Star Trek: The Path of Destiny
by RobertCanary
Summary: Brand new issues coming! Can the universe be saved?
1. Teaser

**JAMES T KIRK: The Next Generation (or Star Trek: Shadow and Light as it is called now) **is a serialized story that is currently over 420,000 words long. The story follows various "Star Trek" characters, including James T Kirk,Rebecca Sisko, Annika Hansen, Constable Nog, Admiral Janeway, Colt "McCoy" MaCahan, Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard, Garak and so many other characters! Join the excitement today...the adventure continues. Be prepared for adventure, romance, comedy and even a few thrills now and then!


	2. Rust Buckets

**James T Kirk: TNG**

**Rust Buckets**

**Our story begins at a spaceport that orbits Rigel-7**

James T Kirk; that was his name, or better put, that was his real name. But it had been three years since he had gone by that name. Three years since his entire life was turned upside down and he found himself in the late 24th Century. Three years since his friends and crew mates, Chekov and Uhura, died before his very eyes. Only two others knew Jim Kirk's real name and story (more on this later Savvy readers). Not even Kirk's wife in this time period knew his story. Her name was Myran Javoh.

Many times he had wanted to tell her how he came to live in the late 24th Century. However, Jim Kirk knew of the possible danger that could come to Myran if she knew who he really was. He couldn't even risk telling her his real name, thus Jim Kirk went by the alias of Robert Crane.

The married couple waited patiently at the Rigel-7 Spaceport hub for their flight. After two years of begging him to do so, Myran had finally persuaded Kirk to visit her home world of Bajor. The Spaceport, which was in orbit of Rigel-7, was very busy. The transport vessel would soon be arriving from Vulcan, and once it was refueled, and the Rigel-7 passengers boarded, it would resume its journey to Deep Space Nine, and from there, to the planet Bajor.

Up to that point they had spent all of their marriage on the small planet of Timus Prime, where they had met and fell in love. Myran worked as a school teacher on the small colony world, and Jim Kirk ran an old style antique store. No only did Kirk sale aged Earth antiques, but antiques from all over the galaxy. The antique business was actually set up for him by the Department of Temporal Investigations, so that Jim Kirk could exist on his own.

The two agents he had dealt with ever since arriving in the 24th Century, Agents Dulmer and Lucsly, had been very helpful in that regard. After Kirk's new life was established with fake IDs, and a workable biography, the two agents left Jim Kirk to live out the rest of his life.

Jim Kirk stared out the large window at the arriving and departing vessels. There had been much engineering developments since the 23rd Century, and Jim Kirk felt like a child at a candy store. Myran came over to her husband, and handed him a cup of coffee.

"You look like them," Myran said, as she pointed over at two small children. "In fact, I think you're more excited than they are."

Just like Jim Kirk was, the two young human boys were in awe of all the different kind of ships coming and going.

"Yeah," Kirk said as he sipped his coffee, "we don't get this kind of traffic back at home."

"Robert," Myran said, "I could always get a transfer, you could move your store, and we could move to another world that is busier and with larger cities. It might be fun to live in the a city."

Kirk reached out and touched the wrinkles on her nose with his index finger in a loving way, and then held her closer.  
"No," Kirk said, "I like Timus because it is quiet. I love our home, I love the canyons nearby. And I know how important you are to your students."

"There will be always be students," Myran told him.

"Perhaps, but they will not always have a teacher like you."

Although those were good reasons to stay, they weren't the main reason Kirk wanted to stay on Timus. It was no accident Kirk had ended up on the small colony world. Timus was indeed a world that was well off the beaten track of interstellar space travel, and thats why Kirk had lived there. Even though over a hundred years had passed, and he wore his hear differently, Kirk knew that if he spent too much time in large cities, someone could always recognized him. It had been decided that in order for Jim Kirk to stay forgotten, it was best he live on a forgotten world.

Kirk had to remind himself that although he, Chekov and Uhura moved forward in time, their other selves had had lived full lives. Kirk and the other two had been teleported across the galaxy, and unexpectedly, two sets of duplicates had been created. One set of Kirk-Uhura-Chekov had, according to Dulmer and Lucsly, ended up on a strange world where they were to have become arena fighters, and breeding stock, on a world where beings gambled on the contests. The other set of duplicates had arrived on the same world, but in the 24th Century.

Chekov and Uhura had died instantly upon arrival, but Kirk survived and was eventually rescued by a Pakled survey expedition that had come to the world and had no idea who he was; which was when his new life had started.

"Well," Myran said, bringing Kirk out of memories, "its something to think about at least."

"Look at that one!" One of the boys suddenly said.

"I think it's a Klingon ship," the other said, "Vor'cha class I think."

"Actually," Kirk said, correcting the child, "It's a K'Tinga battlecruiser," he added with awe in his voice.

Although Kirk had done battle with many K'tinga's in his time, he had always secretly admired the look of the Klingon ship.

"Oh yeah," the child said, "you're right. Its one of those old rust buckets."

Kirk was about to challenge the assertion the ship was a rust bucket, and in an indirect way he saw himself as that ship, but Myran stopped him.

"Come on Robert," Myran said, "we better get over to our boarding square."

Kirk picked up the three bags they had brought, and looked back, stealing one more glance of the Klingon ship from his time, as it zipped away.

"Rust bucket?" Kirk asked himself softly, "Never."

**-continued…**


	3. Quarks

**James T Kirk: TNG **

**Quarks**

In his travels, James T Kirk had seen many space stations. Most of them were boring metal constructs. They were not with out technical merit, to be sure, but Starfleet's architects seemed void of any imagination beyond the bland. Before Kirk had left on his five year mission with the Enterprise, back in the 23rd century, he had seen many space-station prototypes that seemed inspired by nothing more than giant mushrooms.

The future giant mushroom space stations Starfleet had imagined would not doubt prove to be very impressive gigantic ports that could hold several Starships inside their massive innards, but they were, in Kirk's opinion, boring. But when the Transport vessel carrying Kirk and his wife Myran came out of Warp, and when Kirk saw their destination, Deep Space Nine, he gasped with awe. It was like nothing he had ever seen before, and the best part? Even without having ever set one foot on DS9, Jim Kirk could tell that it had character; it was probably as "life like" to its inhabitants as the Enterprise seemed to Kirk and Scotty.

"What is this place again?" Kirk asked Myran.

"It's called Deep Space Nine," Myran said. "It was originally built in orbit of my world; Bajor."

Myran had told Kirk about the Cardassian occupation of Bajor, but in a broader context.

"But it's a Starfleet outpost now?" Kirk asked.

"Well," Myran added, "Since Bajor is part of the Federation now, and its military has been merged with Starfleet, it's all the same. But in the not so distant past, before Bajor joined the Federation, it was administered by Bajoran and Starfleet personal. In fact, the first Federation commander was human named Benjamin Sisko, who was also a religious icon to my people."

"A human was a religious icon to your people?" Kirk said with disbelief in his voice. "What do you mean by that?"

Myran took a breath, and was about to explain, before she shook her head.

"He was the Emissary to our Prophets, but It's a long story Robert (Kirk's alias)," Myran said with a smile, "I'll tell you the full story some other time."

Kirk went back to looking out the window as the Transport vessel made its final approach. Thirty minutes later, after the Transport had docked at one of the upper pylons, the passengers were soon making their way into the round habit area that was the Mecca of the station.

Perhaps more than any other space station he had been too, DS9 had a wide variety of alien visitors and crew members. All kinds of alien sentient life forms made their way through the large space station. In the intervening years when Kirk vanished from the 23rd Century and arrived over a hundred years the future, Kirk was proud of how far the Federation had come in terms of bringing other worlds into membership. He knew his wife could see the awe in his eyes, and he knew she could here the excitement in this voice, but he had to keep real truth of his genuine enthusiasm to himself.

With their luggage safely checked in, and with three hours to spare before the next flight to Bajor, Myran had offered to ask one of the officers to take them on a tour. But Kirk, fearing he might be noticed by a Starfleet officer, bluffed his way out of the tour, and took up her second offer; a drink at the local bar.

As they made their way through the Promenade, Kirk felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. It was caused by seeing this century's version of a Klingon warrior walking past him.

"Why is it you always seem suspicious of Klingons?" Myran asked. "They are our allies don't you know?"

Kirk had always found that hard to believe.

_(Writer's reminder; this Jim Kirk is from what would be considered Star Trek's second season, thus Klingons were without the ridges)_

If there was one true constant in the universe, other than bureaucracy of government, it was the fact that most bars were dark, loud, and had secluded tables. The moment they walked into the bar, which was called Quarks, Kirk knew right away that it was a safe place to go if one wanted to fade into the background.

The first thing Kirk noticed was the scantly clad women who waited the tables, and stood around the table of some of game of chance, no doubt to distract the customer's concentration from the game. It was an old trick that had worked since the dawn of time. The more things changed, the more things stayed the same, Kirk thought to him self.

A waitress showed Jim Kirk and Myran to a table on the upper level. Kirk could not keep his eyes off of the buxom beauty that was showing them to their seats. The unique outfit that exposed the lower half of her bosom was hard not to notice. After seating them, the waitress excused herself and walked away.

"Um, Robert," Myran said, feigning anger, "try not to stare too hard at the waitress. She might spontaneously combust."

Kirk smiled, and knew she was being sarcastic.

"Sometimes you act as if you've never been in space, or seen Starships, or any modern technology; its one of the things I love most about you." Myran said. "Did you live a sheltered life when you were a child?"

Kirk was happy to know that his act of naivety had been working.

"Actually," Kirk said, as he looked down at the spinning wheel on the lower level that was causing so much cheering, "I lived on small farm on," he realized he was being to open, and altered his real to what he had told her ever since they had been married, "Cestus III."

"Yeah," Myran said, "you told me that before. Cestus III may have a professional Baseball team, but it's so remote, almost as remote as Timus."

Kirk looked past Myran and saw a Starfleet officer, a medical officer to be more precise, the grayish uniforms were hard for Kirk to read sometimes, being seated at the table behind her. Kirk was happy that the man was sat facing away from where Kirk and Myran sat. Then, seconds later, a small impish looking alien, which Kirk had been told by Myran was a Ferengi, came over to the Starfleet officer. Kirk strained to hear what the two were talking about.

"Transfer, you're going to transfer?" the Ferengi asked.

"Quark, you knew this was going to happen," the Starfleet officer replied. "It's time for Ezri and I to move on, just as Miles and Worf did."

"I don't like it Julian," the alien named Quark replied, "It isn't fare. Did you know that when my customers come here, and get tipsy, I tell them; go see Dr. Julian Bashir. Why they ask? I tell them it's because you will make the hangover last ten minutes instead of ten hours. Who will I send them to once you're gone?"

"Quark," Bashir said, "you need to go buy that moon you've always wanted and move on yourself."

"I don't want to," Quark protested. "And neither do you really, or Ezri." Quark sat down across from Julian. "If you do leave, you will come and visit I hope."

"You know I will," Bashir replied. "I promised Captain Sisko I would be back for Rebecca's birthday, and I will."

"You know," Quark said, "he isn't a Captain anymore. Why do you and the others keep calling him that?"

"Out of habit, and respect," Bashir said. "All of us spent so much time together, fighting the Dominion, having to deal with Dukat, heck, even meeting Kirk, that calling Captain Sisko anything else would seem wrong."

Kirk listened to the exchange and concluded he was the Kirk that the man had just mentioned. But Kirk had no memory of ever meeting him, nor who ever Captain Sisko was.

_(writer's note; this Jim Kirk left the 23rd Century just a few weeks before the events of Trouble with Tribbles)_

"Oh, you know what?" Bashir said getting up, "I forgot that I'm supposed to meet Ezri at her office, and then we were going to come here. I'll be right back," Bashir said to Quark.

Bashir headed away, leaving Quark shaking his head. Suddenly Quark stood up and came over to where Kirk and Myran were seating.

"Excuse me," Quark said to Kirk, while looking down at the empty table, "but if you're loitering, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Kirk was about to respond when suddenly the waitress returned.

"What took you so long?" Quark demanded of the waitress. "I almost had these two thrown out for loitering," Quark then looked to Kirk. "I truly am sorry about that. I assure you that I will dock her pay next week."

"Please," Kirk said, "That won't be necessary," Kirk replied, "we just got here ourselves."

Quark glowered at the waitress, then at Kirk, and then hurried away.

The waitress took their order and then headed away.

"You seem at home in a place like this," Myran said finally. "I swear there is more to you Robert Crane than you have told me."

Kirk smiled at his wife; if she only knew, he thought to himself.

A couple hours later, after leaving Quarks, Jim Kirk and his wife were boarding another transport vessel. It was the final flight, and would take them to Myran's home world of Bajor. Jim Kirk didn't realize it at the time, but his life was about to change again very soon. And it would happen the moment he would meet the man Dr. Julian Bashir had been talking about with Quark; Benjamin Sisko.

Continued...


	4. What to Wear

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**What to Wear**

**The Planet Bajor;**

James T Kirk was happy; happy to be breathing in fresh air. From the moment they had left their home on Timus Prime, and until they had beamed down to Ashalla, the capital city of Bajor, Jim and his wife Myran had been breathing filtered air on various Transport vessels and space stations. To be sure, Jim Kirk had spent many years aboard starships breathing in filtered air as well, but, at least there were landing parties.

In fact, he remembered getting gently ribbed by his peers for risking his life as much as he did, especially when he became the captain of his own ship and had a first officer to do all the physical work. But one of the reasons Jim Kirk liked to go on landing parties was so that he could breathe real air. Growing up on a farm, as he did, always instilled Jim Kirk with the yearning of inhaling real fresh and crisp air.

Ashalla was a beautiful city. The Bajorans were a friendly people, and as Myran had pointed out, had made great strides since the days of the occupation. The once battered cities, including Ashalla, had slowly recaptured the beauty they had before the Cardassians had arrived and occupied Bajor.

The simple market square that Jim Kirk and Myran strode through was crowded and full of life. A rain system had passed through the area for several days, meaning that the first real day of sunlight had brought a feeling of joy to the market square, and the crowds as well. Jim smiled at a cluster of Bajoran children ran past him and Myran as they chased some sort of flying toy.

"Robert," Myran said to Jim, "I need to use the facilities, so don't go wandering off like you always do."

Jim Kirk, who had been using the alias or Robert Crane for nearly two years, even to his wife, smiled at Myran while motioning to a clothing store nearby.

"I'll be over there in that store," Jim told her, "this leather jacket is getting to warm. I'm going to see if they have something lighter I can get."

"Alright," Myran said, and then she turned and headed off in the opposite direction.

-  
Inside the clothing store Jim entered, there were all kinds of customers. Many of them were from off world, and were no doubt tourists as well. Many of the alien races he saw in the store were unfamiliar to him, but he had been used to that observation ever since he had joined Starfleet. And, sure enough, he saw four of the modern age Klingons shopping and looking around as well. The ridges on their foreheads made the modern Klingons seem even more menacing than ever, and it was taking Jim sometime to get accustomed to.

Making his way through the various clothing sections, he finally found himself in the woman's scarf section. It was almost like tradition that when ever he and Myran went shopping, no matter where they were, he would get her a new scarf. The selection, which was dominated by locally created scarves, was quite extensive. But when Jim came across a selection of scarves made from pure Tholian silk, he knew she would want one.

It was at that moment, as he looked through the selection of Tholian scarves, Jim began to overhear a conversation. He looked over and saw a teenaged girl, of African descent, with a man who she called dad, her father no doubt, and they were having a controlled argument over an article of clothing she wanted to get.

"Dad," Rebecca Sisko said, "why can't I get it?"

The girl held up a very slinky two piece bathing suit. Jim Kirk smiled inside, instantly knowing what the two were arguing over. Though he had never had a teenage daughter, Jim had, on more than one occasion, seen the same scene play out at other clothing stores he had visited in his life. The daughter wanted to wear something that the father thought was inappropriate. The daughter contested the father's judgment, and would no doubt stall for time, until the mother could miraculously appear and save the day for the daughter. Jim decided to listen in and see if he was right. What else did he have to do?

"Rebecca," Benjamin Sisko, with his deep baritone voice, said to his daughter, "You're only twelve.."

"I turn thirteen in two months," Rebecca countered.

"It wouldn't matter if you were twelve, thirteen or fourteen, because the only place I would even let you wear that bathing suit, if that's what you call it, is inside your room; if that."

"Oh come on dad," Rebecca pleaded, "everyone is wearing these now."

"Fortunately, for them," Benjamin said in the tone of a father, "everyone isn't my daughter, but you are. Now," Sisko said, with a broad smile, while motioning towards the more bland selection of bathing suits, "there are many nice choices here."

The girl stared at the selection her father was pointing out to her then sighed, and shook her head defiantly.

Suddenly a woman came from another section of store, carrying an assortment of clothes as well, draped over her arms.

"Rebecca," Kasidy Yates said, with a slight tone of anger in her voice, "I can hear you from all the way over there. Now what seems to be the problem?"

Rebecca held up the bathing suit she wanted to get.

"Oh honey," Kasidy said to Rebecca, "that is so lovely."

Upon hearing that, Ben Sisko spun around on his heels.

"Kas, how can you even say that?" Benjamin Sisko asked with a laugh and a tone of disbelief in his voice.

Jim Kirk had to fight urge to laugh out loud. The argument was going just as Kirk had expected. The teenage girl, now armed with her mother as a solid ally, was surely going to get the suit she wanted. If the man were smart, Kirk concluded, he'd just give up; the fight was over.

As the mini-argument waged on, Jim Kirk shifted his view when he noticed that several of the Klingons he had seen earlier were, at least in Jim Kirk's opinion, preparing to attack the bickering family. The Klingons had separated earlier and now, from four different directions, they were slowly converging as they pretended to look at the assorted clothing racks. Something was about to go down and Jim Kirk going to be right in the middle of it; or was he? Was Jim's imagination getting the best of him?

It's when he saw one of the Klingons holding a D'k Tahg, which was a Klingon made knife, that Jim Kirk instantly knew his instincts were right; and he had to do something to stop it!

Continued…


	5. A Hero Again

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**A Hero…Again**

**Planet Bajor**

**The Capital city of Ashalla**

**Inside a clothing store at a local village square**

It seemed like an odd place to attack someone, Jim Kirk thought as he watched the four Klingons converge on their unsuspecting targets. Jim did his best keeping a low profile, looking at an assortment of Tholian silk scarves, as he thought of how best to deal with the situation. The fact that the four Klingons, who in the 24th century were supposed allies of the Federation, were willing to take such a risk in full public meant the stakes were personal. Jim shelved those thoughts, because the time for strategizing had passed.

Meanwhile, Ben Sisko was involved with his own battle; against his nearly thirteen year old daughter Rebecca, and her staunch ally, Ben's own wife, Kasidy Sisko. As each year passed it became more and more evident to Ben Sisko that he shared his life with two very strong willed females. His only ally, Jake, had moved to Earth, leaving Sisko along in the battle of the sexes.

"Kasidy," Sisko said, realizing the battle was no longer with Rebecca, but with his wife, "you can't stand there and tell me that our daughter, our still twelve year old daughter, should be wearing something like this," he held up the slinky two-piece bathing suit.

Kasidy put her left hand on her left hip. It was a sure sign Ben Sisko that Kasidy was about to retaliate with one of her stern lectures about women's freedoms.

"Benjamin Lafayette Sisko," Kasidy said in a stern voice, "in case you didn't get the memo, I am also a parent in this family and I say she is mature enough to wear this outfit. I think it looks lovely and I see no problem with it."

Ben was about to cut in, but Kasidy pressed on.

"And I might add," Kasidy went on, "Rebecca is a sentient being who can make her own judgments about what to wear and what not to wear. Now, why don't you go over to the sports section, like a good father and husband, and let us do the shopping for clothes!"

Sisko could see a small grin on Rebecca's face, and he also saw that Kasidy's eyes were flared with purpose. Ben Sisko was about to try another tack when all of a sudden their simple little argument was interrupted.

Suddenly the entire confrontation between the three Sisko's became a blur. Ben Sisko felt a thud on the back of his head, and he fell to the ground. The next thing he knew, Ben was on the ground looking up and watching blurs of images. He saw what appeared to be a gang of four Klingons attacking Kasidy and Rebecca.

And then, at the same time, as Sisko struggled to keep his wits, he saw a human male join the fight, trying to safe Rebecca and Kasidy. And even though the stranger fought valiantly, and by himself took out three of the Klingons, with expert moves, and even a double fisted blow here and there, the stranger was still able to save Kasidy from certain death by a stab of a knife, Sisko could only watch helplessly as the fourth and final Klingon teleported away, smiling with the savage look of victory, and with his large and powerful hands around Rebecca's neck.

Kasidy, in a panic, ran over to tend to her husband. Blood was coming out of the injury on the back of Ben's hairless head.

"They took our daughter," Kasidy said frantically as she reached for a shirt on one of the nearby clothing racks and used it to apply pressure to the wound. "Did you hear me?" Kasidy asked Ben. "Can you stand?" Kasidy asked finally.

Ben nodded in the affirmative and then Kasidy helped him get up. It was a bit of a struggle but eventually Ben Sisko was standing, propped up by Kasidy. The human who had come to their rescue was squatting down and looking at one of the dead Klingons, while also holding the dead Klingon's knife.

"Ben," Kasidy said in near shock, "what are we going to do! They have Rebecca, they have our child!"

Ben Sisko did not respond to his wife's question, instead he studied the man who had almost managed to stop nearly all four Klingons at once. And though the stranger's back was turned to him, while he was just beginning to stand up from surveying the dead Klingons, Ben's memory began to play games with his mind. Perhaps the knock to the back of the head had made Sisko delirious, but he swore he knew the man. But when the stranger finally stood up and turned to face Ben Sisko, it was as if time had stood still, because Ben Sisko instantly recognized the stranger.

"James…T….Kirk," Sisko said in a near whisper.

Jim Kirk reached out his hand, and almost on blind instinct, so did Ben Sisko.

"I'm sorry I couldn't save the girl." Jim Kirk said with genuine remorse, "But I swear," Kirk added with determination in his voice, "I won't stop until we find her."

"Excuse me," Ben Sisko said softly, "but are you really James Tiberius Kirk?"

"No, that isn't his name." The words were spoken by Myran, Kirk's wife who had finally arrived in the clothing store, "his name is Robert Crane."

Kirk looked at his wife, and smiled. And in an instant she knew that something was wrong and that their lives were about to change in a big way.

"I'm afraid he's right, Myran," Jim Kirk said softly, seeing the hurt growing in Myran's eyes, "my real name is Kirk; Captain James T Kirk."

Not a sound could be heard for many long seconds after that….

Continued…


	6. Come and Get Me

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Come and Get Me**

Rebecca Sisko and her captors materialized on board a Klingon Bird of Prey, which then charged out of orbit of Bajor, cloaked, and went to warp.

For her part, Rebecca didn't go easy. While the two guards escorted her down the adjoining corridor, Rebecca was Screaming and yelling, whaling about with both arms at her captors. The two males, one of whom had beamed up with her, were Klingons warriors, and yet Rebecca still managed to get a couple scratches in before she was slapped across the face, and thrown into a holding cell in the Klingon ship's brig.

Rebecca hit the ground, but sprung back up and ran to the very edge of the energy barrier that kept her contained in the brig cell.

"Hey, you better let me go, you T'glas!" Rebecca screamed, at full sound. "My father will come after you and kick your ass!"

Rebecca saw another Klingon enter the brig. Unlike the other two guards who seemed a bit taken back by her wild antics, the third Klingon was calm in his demeanor, more sinister looking, and it was very evident to Rebecca that this Klingon meant business.

"Why do you think you are still alive?" The Klingon asked quietly as he too came to a point just inches away from the energy barrier. "Your name is Rebecca Ann Sisko. Your father is Benjamin Sisko, and trust me, I know very much about your father."

"Well," Rebecca said, "he will come for me. It doesn't take much," Rebecca searched for the next word, "honor to kidnap a defenseless teenage girl like me." Rebecca said with disrespect in her voice. "My father defeated Cardassians, Breen, Jem'Hedar, he will have no problem dealing with a ship of cowardly rogue Klingon pigs like you."

The Klingon sneered at Rebecca, and then he began to laugh.

"I like your attitude," the Klingon said. "You have some Klingon blood you, I am sure of it. It is a shame your life is almost over."

"Who are you?" Rebecca asked. "And why did your men kidnap me?"

"My name is K'alaf," the Klingon replied. "And as for why I have taken this step? I have unfinished business with your father. I am confident he will indeed come after you, and then, when he does," K'alaf said with a very sinister grin, "I will have my revenge by killing you right before his very eyes, and then, I will kill him as well."

"Unless he kills you instead," Rebecca taunted back with.

One of the other Klingons came over and to where K'alaf stood.

"My lord, I think you better take a look at this." The guard said.

K'alaf turned and followed the lone warrior of the four sent to retrieve Rebecca, and who actually had come back alive.

"Are you ready to explain to me what happened down there?" K'alaf asked, "How only you survived the mission?

"Yes my lord," My'noQ replied, "Just before we attacked Sisko and his family, we scanned the clothing establishment." My'noQ pointed at a human standing near a clothing rack with scarves draped upon it, "This human was in the same section of the store. He looked like a coward so we did not consider him a threat."

"He does look like a coward," K'alaf added, "what went wrong?"

"He fought like a warrior," My'noQ said, with respect in his voice. "He used techniques I had never encountered before. So, I decided to investigate this human once I made it back to the ship." Then My'noQ lowered his voice. "My Lord; what you're about to see may disturb you."

"We are Klingons," K'alaf replied, "and we do not become disturbed by mere images displayed on our screens."

My'noQ pressed a button. The image of the human standing next to the clothing rack was reduced and another image appeared next to it of the same human, but wearing an old style Starfleet uniform. The man's named was listed beneath the new image. K'alaf took a few steps backwards, not believing what he had seen.

"This is an error," K'alaf barked at My'noQ, "he died on Veridian-III, and was much older."

"Yes my Lord, but this is the human I saw," My'noQ came back with.

K'alaf searched his mind for a reason, a logical explanation for what they had just seen. "Perhaps he's descendent."

"A possibility," My'noQ agreed, "but he fought like a warrior; like a Starfleet officer."

Rebecca was able to stand to the side of the security barrier, inside her cell, and she was able to see the screen across the room and the image of the man on it. History had never been one of her strong suits, but it didn't have to be, because the man's image was displayed proudly in her father's office room in their house located in the Kendra Province on Bajor.

K'alaf looked over at Rebecca and instantly knew that she recognized the human as well.

"Do not get your hopes up," K'alaf said with sarcasm in his voice, "it can not possibly be him. He died years ago on some desolate world."

"Well," Rebecca said with a smile, "if it can't be James T Kirk, then why does your fiend look so scared."

K'alaf looked over at My'noQ, who did look visibly worried. In one swift move, K'alaf took the disrupter from his side and fired it at My'noQ, who then instantly was vaporized. Then K'alaf stormed out of the brig.

Rebecca stared at the image of Kirk. Could it be true? Was James T Kirk the man who had almost saved her from the Klingons? She smiled at the thought and velt a little safer.

Continued….


	7. Across Time and Space

**James T Kirk; The Next Generation**

**Across Time and Space**

**Planet Bajor**

**The capital city of Ashalla**

A half hour had passed since the attack upon Benjamin Sisko, his wife, and the abduction of their daughter Rebecca. Four Bajoran security officers had arrived and were investigating the crime scene and questioning witnesses. Ben Sisko took comfort in the fact that the Klingon attackers went out of their way to abduct Rebecca, not to kill her, which meant she was most likely still alive. She was taken for a reason, and Ben was quite sure that reason was him.

The three Klingons who managed to be thwarted, and were now in custody, refused to say anything, and were taken out of the clothing establishment and on to the local detention facility which was less than a mile from where the market square was. Kasidy was speaking with one of the Bajoran security agents, trying her best to convey how much she was concerned for her daughter. Ben Sisko looked over at another security agent who had just questioned the man who appeared to be James T Kirk. And it was clear that the Bajoran female who was with the Kirk look-a-like was not happy; at all.

Ben Sisko walked over to where the two were talking. They were sitting at a table, and although not much was being said, the silence was speaking volumes. Kirk looked up at Sisko.

"I wanted to thank you," Sisko said. "You saved my wife's life, and quite possibly my own."

"But you're child was taken," Kirk said, in a somber tone, "I'm sorry I couldn't stop the other one."

Myran looked up at Ben Sisko, with genuine concern.

"Emissary," Myran said, "I know the Prophets will bring her back to you."

Jim Kirk had been told the story of how the Cardassians had occupied Bajor by his wife, and recently the fact that the Emissary was a former Starfleet officer named Benjamin Sisko.

"Excuse me," Kirk said, "but are you Benjamin Sisko?"

"Yes I am," Ben Sisko said, "may I?" Sisko asked, looking at the empty seat at the table.

"Yes Emissary," Myran said, "Won't you please join us?"

"Thank you," Ben Sisko said as he sat down. "Excuse me for repeating myself," Sisko said to Kirk, "but are you James Tiberius Kirk?"

Kirk nodded in the affirmative.

"I am," Jim Kirk replied with a warm smile, "and I am sure you are finding that hard to believe."

"Captain," Ben Sisko began to say.

"Jim," Kirk cut in, "please; call me Jim."

Ben Sisko smiled at the thought that he was actually talking to Captain James T Kirk, it was all so very hard to believe.

"Alright," Ben Sisko said, "Jim, how can you possibly be Jim Kirk?"

"Your records show that I died on a planet called Veridian-III," Jim Kirk told Sisko.

"Exactly," Ben Sisko said, "in fact, you died in the presence of another Captain of the Enterprise, Jean-Luc Picard, nearly twenty years ago."

"And, in a strange way, I did," Jim Kirk said. "As I just finished telling my wife, both myself, and the Jim Kirk who died on Veridian-III, are the products of a freakish Transporter accident. Over a hundred years ago I, along with two of my crew mates and friends, were abducted from the Enterprise to a world called Triskelion."

"I know the story well," Ben Sisko told Kirk, "it is required reading at Starfleet Academy. As I recall the other two were Lt. Uhura and Ensign Chekov. You were required to engage in physical contest for an alien species to gamble upon."

"Are you sure the world wasn't Ferenginar?" Myran asked sarcastically, still visibly annoyed at finding about the true life of her husband.

Kirk shook his head, but knew that in the broader sense of the matter, Myran was justified in being angry.

"As it turned out," Jim Kirk went on to say, "when we were abducted by the Transporter signal device that brought us to Triskelion it not only brought us a great distance, it also became fractured and created to sets of signals. One set arrived on Triskelion as intended, the other set also landed on Triskelion; but nearly a hundred years into a future which you call present time."

"That is amazing," Ben Sisko said, upon hearing Kirk's explanation. "However it is not unprecedented. This same kind of accident, the splitting of a Transporter signal, has happened before; though I have never heard it happening like this. Does anyone else know about this?" 

"That's where I come in to this," Myran said. "Robert was found on Triskelion nearly three years ago by a passing Pakled ship, and eventually made his way to civilization where by chance someone recognized him as to who he was."

"And you don't believe that?" Kirk asked her.

"I believe you Robert, I mean Jim, but you could have told me; I'm your wife." Myran told him. "Why couldn't you trust me with this information?"

"Honey," Jim said to her, "I made many enemies in my time, and the other Jim Kirk made, no doubt, many others. I didn't want that past life to find me. I never thought I would have settled down, but you," Kirk told her with a smile, "you gave me that life. And I would have done anything to protect it."

"Wait a second," Ben Sisko said, "you've been in our present time for three years? Someone had to have known."

"After I was recognized I soon came into contact with an organization," Kirk went on to say, "The Department of Temporal Investigations."

Sisko nodded his head, totally understanding what had happened.

"And they," Ben Sisko said for Kirk, "set you up into a new life, in essence asking you to just drift into the background."

"The planet Timus fit the bill," Jim Kirk added, "and so I did just that. I faded into the background, fell in love, and went on with my life."

"Until today," Ben Sisko concluded for Kirk. "And by trying to save my daughter you have brought yourself back into the foreground."

"It would seem so," Jim Kirk said.

"What about you?" Ben Sisko asked Myran. "Can you adjust to this?"

"Emissary," Myran said to Ben Sisko, "I love Robert, I mean Jim. I too have aspects of my past that he understands and has accepted. But, as I just told him before you joined us, if he is this great legendary Star Fleet officer James T Kirk, then I know he will do all that he can to find your daughter and bring her home."

Ben Sisko looked to Jim Kirk.

"I maybe a hundred years out of my element," Jim Kirk said to Ben, "But I think I can help you find your daughter."

"No," Sisko said to Kirk, "I can not ask you to risk your life again."

"Emissary," Kirk began to say.

"Call me Ben," Sisko replied with a smile.

"Ben," Jim Kirk said, with total respect in his voice, "I want to help you."

Sisko thought about it for a moment, and then at last he stood up and reached down his hand toward Kirk.

"Captain James T Kirk," Ben said with pride in his voice, "let's go find my daughter."

Three hours later a Bajoran transport vessel arrived at Deep Space Nine. The circular doors that fed into the space station's boarding area opened and an honor guard of Starfleet officers was there to greet the arrivals, as was the stations commander; Kira Nerys.

Stepping through the circular door were two newly reactivated Starfleet officers of high regard; one of the men was Benjamin Sisko, wearing the uniform he had last worn when he was commander of Deep Space Nine. The other officer wore a much different Starfleet uniform from a much different era. His name was James T Kirk, and the honor guard all regaled at seeing Kirk in his legendary uniform; Captain James T Kirk lived again!

Continued…


	8. We'll Find Her They know

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**We'll Find Her; They know**

Jim Kirk had now visited Deep Space Nine twice in the same day. After briefly meeting his wife's family on Bajor, and leaving her safely there, Kirk rejoined Captain Ben Sisko who had dawned his own modern Starfleet uniform and had honored Jim Kirk's request by bringing along a regulation uniform from his own era. While he had no issue with the 24th Century uniforms, it just didn't seem right to be wearing one. And even though his uniform seemed antiquated, it didn't matter to Jim Kirk; he felt comfortable wearing it and that was all that mattered.

Both Captain Kirk and Captain Sisko were beamed up to a Transport vessel orbiting Bajor, and were whisked off into space. They arrived to an honor guard on the massive space station, and were greeted by its Bajoran commander; Captain Kyra Nerys, who had once been a Bajoran resistance fighter, and was now an officer in Starfleet, proudly serving as DS9's commander.

The three Captains entered Kira's office, which had once been Sisko's office as well. Sisko smiled at Kira as she sat behind the desk that had once been his; Sisko and Kirk took seats across from her.

"You should be very proud," Ben Sisko said, his deep voice conveying pride in his former first officer, "command suits you very well Nerys."

"You should be sitting here," Kira replied. "Deep Space Nine just isn't the same without you."

"Well," Jim Kirk said to them both, "I find this space station of yours quite," Kirk searched his mind for the right word, and found one he missed hearing on a more regular basis, "fascinating."

"It is an honor to meet you," Kira said to Kirk. "Your name is highly regarded in this time."

Sisko was appreciative of the pleasant meeting, but he and Kirk had arrived on DS9 for an urgent reason; trying to find clues as to who abducted his daughter and why.

"Were you able to check the sensor logs of the Bajoran system?" Sisko asked. "There had to have been a vessel in orbit of Bajor that Rebecca was beamed to."

"I have Commander Nog checking the logs as we speak," Kira said. "And you may find this quite interesting as well; Chancellor Martok will be here very soon. Apparently he and his staff were on their way back from a conference in the Gamma-Quadrant when he got word or Rebecca's abduction. Apparently he has taken custody of the three Klingons you managed to apprehend on Bajor, and he is questioning them while heading to DS9."

"Do you think that is wise?" Sisko asked. "He's liable to kill them in the process."

"I have my worries about that as well," Kira admitted, "but how does one deny the Chancellor of the Klingon Empire?"

"Chancellor Martok," Kirk said, "I guess you know him well?"

"He is trusted ally," Ben Sisko explained to Jim Kirk, "and a good friend. And I might point out; he holds you in high regard, which is saying a lot."

"I have never met him," Kirk said to Sisko, "though I guess it is quite possible that Klingons from my time have lived into this era."

"Actually, Jim, he is from this time, and without his strategic guidance, I am quite confident the Federation would have lost the Dominion War," Sisko added. "But, during the war, we often would talk about," Sisko smiled before he went on, "the escapades of Captain James T Kirk and your dealings with the Klingons in your time."

"Oh, by the way," Kira interjected, "Commander Riker will be arriving with the Defiant sometime in the next hour or so. I know you requested usage of the Defiant, but Admiral Janeway would only permit it as long as Riker went along with you. She was quite adamant about it."

"It is rather ironic," Sisko said softly, "that the man who stole the first Defiant from us, and nearly started a war with the Cardassians all those years ago, is now in command of its successor. And," Sisko said looking at Kirk, "he too was created by a Transporter accident not unlike the one that created you and the other Kirk."

"In the regard of Captain Kirk," Kira said, "Admiral Janeway requested that James T Kirk only be given the rank of commander, and that he should wear a modern uniform with three pips denoting his rank. She also was quite clear that she wanted Commander Kirk to return to Earth for debriefing as soon as Rebecca is rescued."

"Who is this Admiral Janeway?" Kirk asked, seemingly annoyed by a woman he hadn't even met yet.

"She may go by the book, perhaps too much so," Ben Sisko explained to Kirk, "but she is one of the most courageous Starfleet officers I have ever had the pleasure to know."

"Ben," Kirk said, with a skeptical grin, "I'm not going to wear one of those uniforms."

"I didn't think you'd go along with that," Sisko said with a wink. "We'll keep it our little secret."

The door to Kira's office slid open and her first officer, Commander Nog, came in.

Nog was visibly nervous as he noticed the legendary Captain Kirk sitting in one of the chairs. He was so nervous in fact; he stood as if frozen in the doorway.

"Commander Nog," Kira said, smiling at the Ferengi's admiration of Kirk, "can you please make your report."

"Ummm," Nog said, looking directly at Kira, and flustered at looking flustered, "the sensor logs of the Bajoran system," Nog made a quick glance in Kirk's direction, "tracked a Klingon vessel that departed Bajor around the time of the abduction of Captain Sisko's daughter."

"And it wasn't cloaked?" Sisko asked, questioning the conclusions of the report Nog was giving, "that seems rather odd."

"Actually, sir," Nog said directly to Sisko, "the vessel was cloaked but it was employing an out dated cloaking device that the Leforge Tachyon field, which is employed throughout this sector of the Alpha-Quadrant, could easily detect."

"They had to have known that," Kirk interjected from where he sat. "Whoever it was who kidnapped your daughter would not let a simple item like that slip by."

"Agreed," Sisko said to Kirk. Sisko turned his attention back to Nog. "Did you get the heading the Klingon ship was taking?"

Nog motioned to the monitor on the wall next to Kira's desk. The image of a solar system appeared, and it zoomed in on the fourth planet from the system's star.

"Where is that?" Kira asked.

"The Koralis system," Nog replied. "That is the course the Klingon ship was on when it left the Bajoran system."

"That's where you sent Laas," Sisko reminded Kira.

"You don't think he has anything to do with this do you?" Kira asked Sisko.

"I doubt it," Sisko replied, after thinking about it for a moment.

"Well," Kirk said to the others, "if I read this correctly, the Koralis system isn't that far from here."

"And, as you said before," Sisko said, "they know that we know where they went. It's almost as if Rebecca's abductors are daring me to go there."

The intercom system chirped and Lt. Ra'v, the male Bak'u who manned the communication post on Ops, spoke.

"Captain," R'av said, "you asked me to inform you when the Chancellor's ship was arriving. His ship will be docking in approximately fifteen minutes."

"I will see to it," Nog said, as he marched out of Kira's office.

The door to Kira's office slid open and Nog left.

"He has turned out to be a great officer," Sisko said, proud of how far Nog had come since the first day Sisko had stepped foot on DS9.

Kira looked at Kirk, who had been surprisingly silent, as if he were taking it all in as some kind of VIP visitor.

"Benjamin tells me you have been in our time for the past three years or so. What do you think of our time?" Kira asked.

"I am quite impressed," Jim Kirk said with a smile. "The political landscape is somewhat different, Klingon as allies for example, but, all in all, from what I have been able to read over the past couple years, I think the Federation is as important now as it was in the 23rd century."

"Well," Sisko said, "Martok will be here in soon. I only hope he was able to get information out of the three prisoners."

Kira chuckled lightly.

"If I know Martok," Kira said with confidence, "I'm quite sure he was able to get some information out of them. If he didn't," Kira added, "I can always send for Ambassador Garak."

"Ben," Kirk interjected, "there's something else we have to consider."

The tone in Kirk's voice was cautious. And if Kirk was cautious, Sisko thought to himself; then it was well worth hearing.

"Go ahead," Sisko said.

"Whoever kidnapped Rebecca," Kirk began to explain, "Has to know everything we know. They have to be aware of the fact that we know where they are, and that we have three prisoners to get information from. They must also be aware of how influential you are, and that you will go through any lengths to get your daughter back."

Sisko pondered what Kirk had said.

"You're right Jim," Sisko finally said. "Everything we are doing is exactly what they expect us to do. By following a predictable path, we might be playing into their plan."

The massive Klingon Negh'var battleship approached Deep Space Nine. In moments it had docked, and its special passenger, Chancellor Martok, was prepared to disembark.

_Next time: Martok has some very important information; he knows who abducted Rebecca Sisko!_


	9. Perception

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Perception**

The loud boisterous voice of Chancellor Martok could be heard throughout Ops the moment the Turbo-lift came to a stop and he stepped off of it, and as it turned out, he wasn't alone. Another Klingon was accompanying him, a Klingon who had once been a member of Deep Space Nine's command crew; Worf, son of Mogh.

The door to Kira's office opened and a smiling Kira and Sisko exited the office upon seeing their goods Martok and Worf making their way through Ops.

"Benjamin Sisko, my old friend!" Martok said as he, in a near violently way, grabbed Sisko's extended arm in a show of affection. "We will find your daughter. And once she is safe and we have this cowardly Klingon in our grasp, I will rip his heart out of his still living body and WE will feed on it together!" Martok spat his words out with full conviction.

Sisko took his arm back, and smiled at his old friend.

"I would expect nothing less," Sisko said in a sarcastic tone.

"It is good to see you Chancellor," Kira said, "and I can see that the Bajoran diet Sirella has you on is starting to take the pounds of your gut."

"Do not take this as an offense Kira, but I hate Bajoran food," Martok said with disgust in his voice. "And yet I do as I am ordered," Martok said, having long realized the futility of arguing with a wife on such matters.

"Commander Worf," Sisko said, reaching his still sore arm out to his former tactical officer, "it is good to see you again. And," Sisko added upon seeing the third pip on the Klingon's collar, "it's about time they promoted you."

"If they had not," Martok cut in, "I would have confronted Admiral Janeway in person."

"Thank you Captain," Worf said. "It is good to see you back in your uniform."

At that second, as Martok saw a third person emerge from Kira's office, the massive Klingon Chancellor froze in his place.

"Worf!" Martok barked out, "Have we died and joined the Black Fleet of Sto-Vo-Kor?" Martok stated in unusual tone for him; stunned shock.

Worf was frozen in his place too, unable to find the words to say as he too saw the person who now stood just outside of Kira's office.

And if anyone was observing the two Klingon's reactions, they would have seen the two take tentative steps towards Sisko; as if they were slightly unnerved at seeing the image of the man who stood before them; James T Kirk.

"How can this be," Commander Worf finally said to Sisko. "James Kirk died on Veridian-III."

"I assure you," Kirk said with a warm smile, "I am quite alive."

"He speaks!" Martok said, almost as if he didn't believe it.

"I think," Kira said, noticing the rest of the Ops crew watching the situation taking place just outside her office with slight smiles, "we should take this into my office."

"She's right," Sisko said, "I will order up some fresh Raktajino…"

Martok cut him off as they made their way to Kira's office.

"You better add some blood wine to that too," Martok said as he skittishly allowed Kirk to enter the office first.

-  
Twenty long minutes passed as Sisko explained the sudden return of Captain James T Kirk. Everyone was seated as the two Klingons listened to the strange tale of Kirk's return, never once looking over at Kirk, nervous at catching his glance. The two dumfounded Klingons were like two children listening to a ghost story. Finally, with the story told, Worf and Martok slowly cocked their heads and looked over at the legend before them.

"Captain Kirk," Martok said with the utmost respect, "perhaps only meeting Kahless himself would bring more honor to a Klingon Warrior than meeting you. And I must say, with all due respect to Benjamin and Kira, you are without doubt; the greatest human warrior to have ever lived."

Both Martok and Worf gave Kirk the Klingon salute; fists to chest, then hands extended.

Kirk smiled.

"I don't know what to say to that Chancellor Martok," Kirk said with a genuine smile, then warmly he said, "But it is definitely an honor to meet you, as well as Commander Worf."

"Captain Picard and I were there on Veridian III," Worf explained to Kirk, "when the other James T Kirk risked, and ultimately lost his life, while saving the primitive culture on Veridan-IV. I did not meet the other, you, but Captain Picard did and I am quite sure he would be honored at meeting you as well."

Kirk decided to turn to the real reason they were all together.

"I look forward to meeting him," Kirk said, "now, please tell us, were you able to get any information out of the Klingons I managed to stop on Bajor?"

"That we were," Martok replied to Captain Kirk, and then Martok looked over at Sisko.

"Chancellor," Kira said, in an official tone, "I have to ask; did the prisoners survive your interrogation?"

Chancellor Martok knew exactly what Kira was implying

"They lived," Martok said, with an annoyed look at Worf, "Worf saw to that. However; what is left of their pathetic lives will be meaningless; that I can promise you."

"What did you find out?" Sisko asked.

"Benjamin," Martok said in a somber tone, "I now know that it was no coincidence that Rebecca was abducted at this time. I regret to say that my being here, in this sector, seems to have been part of the plan."

"That would mean," Kirk said, "that the abductors, or who is ever really behind this, had to have access to your travel plans, which I assume are kept confidential for security reasons."

"Precisely," Worf said to Kirk. "To that end I have sent a request to Starfleet for any monitored communications in this sector."

"Good idea," Kira said. "I will have Nog check all of DS9's communication logs as well."

"Then you know who is responsible," Sisko said.

"Yes, and so do you, indirectly." Martok replied. "Do you remember right before my people invaded Cardassian space, when Kasidy's freighter was confronted by a Bird of Prey?"

"Yes I do," Sisko replied, "and if I recall, you had the commander of that ship, Kaybok, executed for not carrying out your instructions."

"I remember too," Kira said, "Your ships were demanding that all vessels submit to blood scans to prove they were not Changelings."

"And to this day I believe that was the right course of action," Martok fired back.

Kira was about to engage Martok on that point, but Martok went on with his report, not wanting to open old wounds.

"The Klingon who abducted Rebecca is Kaybok's son; K'alaf," Martok went on to say. "It would seem as if he has been planning for this revenge ever since."

"Now that we know this," Worf interjected quickly, "we should take your ship," Worf said to Martok, "and rescue Captain Sisko's daughter."

"The Defiant will be docking in about an hour," Kira added, "I'm sure Commander Riker will love to join your little party."

They all looked to Sisko, who shook his head in the negative.

"Benjamin," Martok said to his old friend, "I will not let that petaQ harm your daughter. We can do this!"

"Jim is right," Sisko said, referring to his conversation with Kirk moments before Martok and Worf had arrived, "everything is happening just as K'alaf has planned. He knows the percentages on our actions and he must have planned for everyone one of them."

Worf stood up from his seat.

"I will go alone," Worf announced. "I will risk my life to save your child."

"No," Sisko said, with a touch of force in his voice, "if he knows Chancellor Martok's travel plans then he most likely knows you are with him and has plan for your being here as well."

"Benjamin," Kira stated in a serious tone, "this Klingon has Rebecca. I know you don't want to risk taking action, but between Martok, Worf, Commander Riker, the Defiant and the flagship of the Klingon Empire;  
K'alaf has no chance in stopping them."

Sisko listened to her words.

"Captain," Martok said, placing his hand on Sisko's shoulder, "all of us will gladly risk our lives to save your daughter; so let us do this." Then Martok lowered his voice to convey his point, "If you won't let us try to save her then who will?

It was at that moment when Jim Kirk did what he always did when there was someone in need, and it was a life or death situation, and there was only one choice to make.

"I will," Kirk said to them all. "There is absolutely no way that K'alaf could have planned for my being here." And then Kirk stood up. "I will go; and I will save Rebecca."

Continued….

Next time; the news of Jim Kirk's existence in the 24th century begins to spread. And when Captain Jean-Luc Picard finds out he decides to take action. But there are others who do not want someone like Captain James T Kirk wandering around the galaxy, and they too decide to take action as well.


	10. Ripples

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Ripples…**

It wasn't often when Jean-Luc Picard found himself on Earth, but the moment he had come across the top secret communiqué mentioning the existence of James T Kirk in the Bajoran sector and since the Enterprise was near Sector-001, he altered his mission profile immediately and ordered the Enterprise to Earth.

The Enterprise had been on its way to Janus VI with new up-to-date equipment for the mining planet's mineral refinement plant, but since the Enterprise was ahead of schedule by three days, Picard decided that a detour to Earth would not be out of the question.

Once the Enterprise had reached Earth, and after he announced a two day Liberty-Call for the crew, Captain Picard beamed down to Starfleet Command, and headed straight for Admiral Kathryn Janeway's office.

"Jean-Luc," Admiral Janeway said with a pleasant smile as Picard entered her office. She stepped out from behind her desk and came over and the two old friends shared a brief hug. "I was just informed of your arrival ten minutes ago, and," she added with a wry smile, "I bet I know why you're here."

The two friends walked over to her desk, and sat down.

"You look really good behind that desk," Picard told her, "The admiralty suits you much better than it could ever fit me."

"That's bull Jean-Luc," Janeway replied with slight laugh. "And I'll have you know; I have made sure that there will be no more ships named Enterprise for at least twenty-years after the E. So, once this one runs out of gas, you'll have no choice but to accept an Admiral's chair."

"We'll see about that," Picard replied with a chuckle of his own. "Kate," Picard said in a more serious tone, "James T Kirk on Bajor? How can that possibly be true?"

"He isn't the same James T Kirk you encountered on Veridian III," Janeway said, as she poured them both a cup of tea. "According to Ben Sisko, this James T Kirk, as well as the Kirk you brought out of the Nexus I might add, were both created when a transporter signal was split, duplicated would be the better description. Anyway, one set of signals ended up on Triskelion, over a hundred years ago, and the other signal arrived on Triskelion three years ago."

"If that is true," Picard said, after he took a sip of tea, and spoke with wonder in his voice, "then this James Kirk never encountered the V'GR anomaly or survived the wrath of Khan, or…" Picard's voice trailed off as his mind followed the path.

"…died on Veridian III," Janeway said, picking up on Picard's train of thought.

Picard set the cup of tea down and stood up, and walked over to the large oil painting that showed legendary officers from Starfleet's past that was hanging on the far wall of Admiral Janeway's office; a painting which included the prominent images of James T Kirk and Spock. It depicted them both as they looked over a hundred years ago, during the second year of their original five year mission together.

"Astonishing," Picard said, as he looked at the image of Kirk on the painting. "Excuse me Kathryn," Picard went on to say, "Did you say that he has been here, in our time, for the past three years?"

"Yes, and again I am ahead of you Jean-Luc," Janeway said as she too stood and came over and joined Picard viewing the panting that adorned her office wall. "You're wondering how we are only finding out about it now?"

"That is precisely what I was thinking," Picard said to her.

"Again, according to Ben's report," Janeway explained, "Jim Kirk was apparently contacted by The Department of Temporal Investigations. They set Kirk up a new life on the planet Timus, where he later met a Bajoran woman, married, and settled down to a new life. He and his wife were visiting her relatives on Bajor when Kirk just happened to witness an attack on Ben Sisko, and the abduction of Ben's daughter."

"Rebecca," Picard added. "As I recall it is her birthday pretty soon." Picard looked to Janeway. "I assume you will treat James T Kirk with the utmost respect; he at least deserves that much."

"I will treat him with the respect, to the extent protocol will allow," Janeway came back with. "However, I have been generous in that I have given him a field rank of Commander, and that's largely ceremonial I must add, until he returns to Starfleet for debriefing. And even then, Jean-Luc, I can't guarantee what kind of career a man from his time can be afforded."

"The crew of the Bozeman fitted in just fine," Picard reminded her.

"Jean-Luc, the crew of the Bozeman was twenty years or so beyond the time frame this James T Kirk came from." Janeway explained to Kirk. "I do not need to remind you of all people the new regulations that came about after this Jim Kirk's five year mission. The Bozeman's crew matured under those new rules and regulations I might add, where as Kirk never really did."

"Perhaps, but news like this is going to spread like fire," Picard said to Janeway. "To many people Jim Kirk is an icon, perhaps that adulation is based on his romantic image from the past, but none-the-less it is true."

"He's just a man Jean-Luc," Janeway said with skepticism in her eyes.

"No," Picard added, as he looked at her, "He's a legend Kathryn. You're worried if he can adapt to our time and our rules and regulations? I think it will be more fascinating to see the effect he has on this era." Picard suddenly smiled. "Speaking of the word fascinating," Picard added with a whimsical tone in his voice, "eventually Ambassador Spock will learn of Kirk's return as well. I have a feeling we will be receiving a coded message from Romulas soon enough."

"Jean-Luc," Janeway said, cutting through the excitement in Picard's voice. "Jim Kirk has technically been AWOL for the past three years, or over a hundred years; depending how you look at it. Now that his cover has been exposed, I expect him to act like any trained Starfleet officer and return to Earth for a debriefing. If he doesn't," Janeway said with a serious tone in her voice, "I will have no choice than to dispatch a Starfleet security team to retrieve him."

"Let me do it," Picard suddenly said to Janeway. "The Enterprise was due for an extended liberty after our transport mission to Janus VI."

"You want to go get Kirk and bring him here? Remember, Jean-Luc, this James Kirk has never met you."

"I realize that," Picard came back with. "However, I think I can relate to him, being the Captain of the modern age Enterprise."

Janeway thought about it for a few moments.

"Alright," she finally replied. "I'll have the USS Arrowhead finish your mission to Janus VI and grant the Enterprise crew their month worth of liberty."

"Thank you," Picard said, as he headed for the exit.

"Jean-Luc," Janeway said, as Picard reached the door, and turned to face her. "Make sure Jim Kirk understands that coming back to Earth isn't an option; it is an order."

Picard nodded his head and left her office.

**Continued…**


	11. Born Defiant

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Born Defiant**

The mood inside of Kira's office had turned serious. The announcement of a communication signal coming directly from the Koralis system had ratcheted up the tension. To be on the safe side, James Kirk had stepped out the office, not wanting to be seen by who ever had sent the signal.

Kira, knowing how restless Kirk was, had suggested that Nog let Kirk accompanying him down to the lower docking platform where the Defiant was due to dock at any moment. Nog, ever so excited to be around the legendary James Kirk, was more than happy to oblige.

"Jim," Sisko said, as he came out of the office for a moment as well. "I think you'll find the Defiant a most interesting." Then Sisko directed his gaze at Nog. "I'm sure Commander Riker will have no problem giving our esteemed guest a VIP tour."

"Ben," Kira said, "Tom has a poster of Jim Kirk in his quarters."

"That's right," Ben said to Kira. "He removed my poster of Duke Ellington."

"Well, anyway," Sisko said with a slight tone of humor in his voice, "you will get a kick out of the Defiant."

"Ben, that isn't really necessary," Kirk said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "A ship is a ship."

"Actually, you will be returning the favor," Sisko came back with. "Years ago I had the chance to visit your time. It was before your accident as I recall now, huh." Sisko added with a flare of realization. "Anyways, walking the decks of your Enterprise, the original NCC-1701, was like a dream come true. The Defiant is my pride and joy, in fact, I helped design it, so, I would really like to hear your opinion of it."

Kirk could tell that pride was coming through Sisko's voice, but he could also see the concern in Sisko over his daughter's situation. Kirk decided to play along for Sisko's benefit.

"Alright," Kirk agreed. "But once the communication is over between you and K'alaf, I want to be briefed."

"You can count on it," Sisko said with a quick nod of his head.

And with that, Kirk followed Nog to the Turbo-life.

-

As Kirk strolled through the Promenade with the Ferengi officer, taking in the sights and sounds along the way, he couldn't help, again, but marvel at the diverse forms of life that was on display. Kirk had seen his fare share of aliens, but not nearly as a varied collection that Deep Space Nine had. It was no doubt due to the proximity of the wormhole, which Myran had told him about.

"Commander Nog," Captain Kirk said, finally breaking the silence between the two, "I assume you have been to the other side of the wormhole?"

"Oh yes sir," Nog said with barely contained excitement in his voice, "in fact, Captain Sisko and his son Jake, along with my uncle Quark and I, had one of the earliest encounters with the Jem-Hedar. I can look back at it now and laugh, but back then, when it happened, and we were stranded in the Gamma-Quadrant, I didn't think we were going to make it. But Captain Sisko got us through it all."

"Jem-Hedar?" Kirk asked. He remembered the alien race from one of Myrans stories of the past, but whom and what they were eluded him.

"Oh, excuse me Captain Kirk." Nog said to Jim Kirk, "I keep forgetting that you come from another time. The Jem-Hedar were warriors of the Dominion, not unlike the Klingons on our side of the Galaxy."

Kirk wasn't really interested in the politics of the 24th century; he was more interested in the wonders of it.

"What is it like; traveling through the wormhole?" Kirk asked.

Nog realized what time it was, and angled their walk toward one of the large windows that had a perfect view of the wormhole.

"Have you seen it open up yet?" Quark asked Kirk.

"No; I haven't." Kirk replied.

"The Defiant will becoming through any moment," Nog said as they arrived at the window. "When I was much younger, Jake and I would come here and just watch the wormhole flare open. It is a sight that I never tire of seeing."

And then, almost as if on cue, the wormhole came to life in a massive wave of light particles and swirling streams of cloud like constructs.

"Oh my," Jim Kirk said with a widening grin. "What an incredible sight," Kirk said to Nog. "I could see the allure of watching that all day long as a child, even as an adult. And you say that the Defiant is coming out of that?"

"If you look toward the lower region you might see her," Nog explained, pointing as he did.

Then just as fast as it had opened, the wormhole closed in upon itself; and it was gone. And sure enough, just as Nog had said, an object could be seen getting larger as it got closer to the space station. Nog knew which platform the Defiant was heading for, and knew the Defiant would fly by the very window he and Kirk were standing by.

"Watch this," Nog said to Kirk. "The Defiant will cut right across this window, and then dive below to the docking ring. Commander Riker likes to show off the Defiant, and his piloting skills, and thankfully for us, he never tires of it."

Kirk marveled at the small compact ship as it came ever so close to the viewing platform and, just as Nog had said it would, dived down and out of sight. Kirk was indeed amazed at the interesting configuration of the smaller but obviously more agile starship.

"How fast can she go?" Kirk asked, as he followed Nog as the Ferengi officer made his way to the docking platform.

"With the new engines," Nog replied, "I think Commander Riker says he was able to push her to Warp 9 point five. Captain, did you ever…"

Kirk cut the young man off.

"Please, Commander Nog, my rank has been lowered to that of Commander, just as you are. You don't need to keep calling me captain."

"I'm sorry sir," Nog said, sheepishly. "I will try but I can't promise you I will remember."

Kirk shook his head, not understanding the hero adulation.

The two made their way through the crowded lower deck. As they did, Doctor Bashir and Ezri Dax watched them from the nearby Klingon restaurant.

"Have you had a chance to meet him yet?" Ezri asked.

"Have you forgotten?" Bashir asked with a smile, "I already have."

"Oh yes," Ezri said, "you and Miles were part of that scuffle on K-7. You were lectured to by Captain Kirk," Ezri said with a broad smile. "I wonder if he'd remember. To you, that happened over a decade or so ago. For him it was just three years ago."

"Him; remember me?" Bashir repeated her words. "I highly doubt it. Besides, as you just said, I'm over ten years older now."

"Julian," Ezri said, turning to a more serious subject. "You do still think that our transferring to our new Earth assignments is the right thing to do?"

"You're starting to sound like Quark," Bashir said, with a dismissive tone in his voice. "It's time for us to move on Ezri. And, think of it this way, we'll get to see more of Miles and Keiko."

"Oh great," Ezri said in mock anger, "I can't wait to see what famous battle gets reconstructed in our new apartment."

"Oh, we'll keep is small," Bashir said. "I was thinking of making it D-Day."

"D-Day; what is D-Day?" Ezri asked, realizing her question would lead to just one in a hundred long explanations of what it was.

-  
Commander Nog and Commander Kirk arrived at the docking platform. The circular doors opened up and several Starfleet crew members made their way aboard, many of them with awkward looks on their faces as they slowly realized who was standing with Nog. And then, finally, Commander Riker emerged from the Defiant, accompanied by his rather large first officer, who hailed from Chalnoth. His name was Bakooth.

Commander Riker, seeing Kirk, slowly extended his hand in friendship.

"James…T…Kirk?" Riker said, as if in a trance.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too," Kirk said with a warm smile, "I've heard a lot about this ship of yours, and you. In case you're wondering, I too am the result of a Transporter accident not unlike yours."

"You're here due to duplication?" Riker asked.

"Yes," Nog replied for Kirk. "But the second signal didn't materialize until our time."

"Amazing," Riker said. "Well, Captain Kirk, I have to say that…"

"Actually," Kirk said, with a slight annoyed look on his face, "its Commander Kirk."

Riker immediately concluded the reason behind the demotion in rank.

"I guess Admiral Janeway realizes you're here as well," Riker concluded. "I would have expected as much, but then again, that's why she's calling the shots and not me."

"Actually, Captain Sisko is going to…" Nog began to say.

"Captain Sisko?" Riker asked, not yet knowing the events that had brought Sisko back into active duty.

A brief recap was given to Riker by both Kirk and Nog, as the three commanders and Bakooth made their way onto the Defiant.

"Is Rebecca alright?" Riker asked, after being filled in.

"I would think so," Kirk told Riker. "They would have killed her by now. From what I can tell, it all has something to do with the son of a Klingon out for the revenge over the execution of his father."

"Captain Kirk," Riker said, ignoring the demotion, "I want you to meet my first officer. He's probably about as opposite to your First Officer as someone could be, but he's a trusted friend, and great for clearing the way on crowded streets. His name is Bakooth."

Kirk looked up at the eight foot tall alien and smiled.

"Good to meet you," Kirk said.

"Kirk…!" Bakooth, who was from the planet Chalnoth, said in a low voice, and with a slight growl. "I…know legend!"

"Legend?" Kirk asked.

"Captain," Riker explained, "I've told him about many of your exploits. I know this may sound strange, but I first started reading about your adventures way back when I was in elementary school."

"I read them in middle school," Nog added. "And as I recall, Jake had one of those old scratch-and-sniff holoprograms. Did you really do battle the Planet Killer?"

"I still don't understand it," Kirk said to them both. "I'm nothing more than a man. And yet the people of this time seem to hold me up on some kind of," Kirk searched his mind for the right word, "Pedestal."

"I'm sorry, you're right." Riker told Kirk. "For my part; I'll try not to let it happen again." Riker went on to say, "Bakooth, why don't you go ahead and go to Quarks and I'll meet you there in about an hour or so. And tell Quark that I expect the holosuite I reserved to be ready when I get there."

Without a response, Bakooth turned and walked in the opposite direction, towards the boarding ramps that led to DS9's promenade.

-

Later, as they made their way on to the Defiant, Nog noticed how much Riker and Kirk shared the same passions when it came to ships and how they were constructed, and what different classes of ships could do, in terms of battle and maneuverability. Nog was also appreciative of the fact that they would even let him in on the various conversations about power consumptions. They were both genuinely impressed with Nog's contributions to the conversation, and that made Nog feel appreciative.

They were soon in the special section that housed the cloaking device.

"Tom, this is incredible technology." Kirk said, as he eyed the complex looking device which was situated inside a web of control panels. "Scotty would love to get a look at this. But didn't I hear you say that the Federation is banned from using cloaking devices?"

"Yes Captain, I mean commander," Nog said. "We are banned by treaty not to use cloaking devices on Starships, the Defiant is the lone exclusion."

"And I might add," Riker said, "this is the latest version; thanks to a favor owed to Captain Sisko. We had it installed at a Romulan Starbase in the Gamma-Quadrant."

"Are the Romulans allies of the Federation?" Kirk asked.

"Unfortunately not," Riker replied. "But after the Dominion War was over, both militaries began to have joint exercises so as to lower the risk of incidents. The strange thing, over there," Riker said, referring to the Gamma-Quadrant, "there is far more cooperation. If I was a betting man, and I am, I'd give good odds that we become allies with them in the next twenty-years."

"I, of course, find that very hard to believe." Kirk said. "But, then again, the Klingons are our allies now, so I guess anything in possible."

"As Ambassador Spock has always said," Riker reminded Kirk, "there are always possibilities."

"Spock," Kirk said soflty, "if I understand what I was told by Ben," Kirk came back with, "Spock is on Romulas now."

"At last reports," Riker said. "Though, if I recall, last year he showed up on Vulcan for his son's wedding."

"Spock has a child?" Kirk asked, totally dumbfounded at the thought.

"No one told you?" Riker asked with a wide grin. "If I recall, you knew the boy's mom as well. She…"

-

Finally the tour ended up on the Bridge of the Defiant. Kirk, Riker and Nog made their way toward the center seat.

"Go ahead Jim" Riker said to Kirk, as he motioned toward the command chair. "Try her out."

Kirk smiled, but declined.

"Thank you, Tom" Kirk said, "but it just wouldn't seem right, at least not right now."

"You know," Riker said to Kirk, "they have an old Constitution-class starship back on Earth. A friend of mine runs the exhibit. If you ever get back there," then Riker stopped himself. "I don't think you'll need anyone to pull strings for you Jim. If you ever do get back to Earth," Riker thought with a smile, "you're going to get parades everyday in your honor."

"I hope not," Kirk said with a laugh.

At that moment they were joined by Captain Ben Sisko, Captain Kira Nerys, Chancellor Martok and Captain Worf.

"How did it go?" Kirk asked them all.

The looks on their faced betrayed their moods; the conservation with K'alaf, Rebecca's captor, had not gone well.

-continued…

Next time; Rescue 911!


	12. BRIEF WORDS FROM THE WRITER

Hello all…

Just taking a brief timeout here to say, yes, I have received your questions as to which other Star Trek icons will appear in this story. Also, fifteen people have asked me for a big plot spoil; who is the mother of Spock's child. I had not expected so many questions and wow, I am happy you are enjoying the story so far. But, of course, I can not tell you. Only this clue; we've seen her before.

But do not worry, I have some great things planned ahead and I am quite sure some of them are going to surprise you. But we have to give this a little time. I am not even sure if Spock is going to be aware of this Jim Kirk right away because, yes, he is on Romulas.

There will also be some interesting twists coming up, so watch for them. And wow, I wonder how Kirk will react when he finally gets to meet that meddling Admiral Janeway.

If you have any characters from the TNG-DS9-VOY time frame that you'd like Kirk to come across, please tell me. I'm always looking for interesting ideas.

Very shortly, Kirk is going to find out that the one person on DS9 who might be able to help him the most is; Quark.

Rob


	13. Rescue 911

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Rescue 911**

The small barren planet in the Koralis system was covered in large foliage, and aside from typical animal and plant life, was devoid of any intelligent civilizations. On the southern continent was a compound, nearly five acres in all, and it was protected by an energized force field.

Inside the compound, Rebecca Sisko had been putting up a good front, but as she sat in her cage, for lack of a better word, she knew there was a chance she might not live to see her next birthday, which was just weeks away. She sat in the corner of her cell, and nibbled on the bread and water her captors had given her. She looked over at the entrance to the cell and saw K'alaf glaring down at her.

"So why did you have to kidnap me?" Rebecca asked. "I thought Klingons were great honor bound warriors. Somehow the thought of four rough and tough Klingons attacking a lowly female at a clothing store doesn't seem, well, honorable."

"Actually, female," K'alaf said, "you would not be alive here today had my father followed through on his honor bound duty."

"I don't even know your father," Rebecca said, in a defiant tone.

"My father was a great warrior," K'alaf began to explain. "He was executed by then General Martok. Your mother, Kasidy Yates, was the captain of a freighter that my father was ordered to investigate for possible Founder intrusion. Your father, Captain Benjamin Sisko, arrived upon the scene and convinced my father to not follow through on his orders, convincing my father that a war between our two people would be the result. My father listened to your father and then; he was executed."

"I'm sorry for what happened to your father," Rebecca said.

"Your pity is not wanted, human," K'alaf said, in a stern manner. "By killing Chancellor Martok and Benjamin Sisko, I hope to restore my father's honor and allow him to reach the shores of Sto-vo-kor. If I am fortunate, and I will be, I will die in the coming attack as well, and join my father in the great Black Fleet."

"My father," Rebecca said, staring up at K'alaf, "is a great man too. He is the inspiration for millions and millions of Bajorans. He has told me incredible stories, many of which involve your people; Klingons. I don't see how killing my father would restore your so called honor."

"Your father is well respected by my people," K'alaf admitted. "This is personal."

"So your plan is to trade me for them?" Rebecca asked.

"Yes, and it is a price they will pay." K'alaf said with a broad smile. "I have paid what was left of my family's fortune on technology that will ensure my victory. This building we are in was used during the Dominion War. It is surrounded by a force field, which can not be penetrated easily. Most of the fortune was spent on anti-cloaking technology, which will alert me to any cloaked vessels. Add to that a very impressive array of sensors, means there is no chance they can rescue you."

"How will you escape?" Rebecca asked.

"I will not escape," K'alaf explained. "I just told you, I plan to die in the attack after I release you. The seven warriors I paid to assist me, four of which remain, have their escapes planned out."

"So this is it?" Rebecca asked. "You trade me for Chancellor Martok and my father, you kill them, you die, and that's it?"

"Yes, it is a simple plan," K'alaf said, "however, it will be successful."

Koma'Q, the lone attacker who had made it back from initial attack on Rebecca and her family on Bajor, entered the room and came over to where K'alaf stood.

"The Chancellor's ship has left Deep Space Nine and is heading this way. It should arrive in this system very soon." Koma'Q reported. "I have placed our warriors at strategic points around the compound to spot any opposition on the ground."

"There will be none," K'alaf told him. "I have warned them that if any attempt is made to land on this planet, I will kill her instantly."

"What about Kirk?" Koma'Q asked. "Our planning never accounted for him."

K'alaf thought for a moment.

"Kirk will not come," K'alaf said with confidence. "His Starfleet now operates by rules and regulations that circumvent unauthorized actions. More importantly, Sisko would not risk the life of his daughter on foolish antique methods of rescue."

"Yes my Lord," Koma'Q said, and then turned and walked away.

"What if you're wrong," Rebecca said. "What I have heard about Captain Kirk I have heard from stories told to me by my father. Some of them seem far fetched, but wow, wouldn't it be amazing if he is coming here too?"

Rebecca smiled inside as she saw the calm and cool veneer of K'alaf give way to worry. It was quite comical, and quite expected, which is why she did it.

"If I could kill Kirk," K'alaf finally said, with a fiendish smile, "my family's name would be come that of legend."

"Unless Kirk kicks your ass," Rebecca said with her own smile.

Both of them shared a laugh for the opposite reasons, and then the cold glare returned to K'alaf's face.

"Kirk will never set a foot in this planet, on that, you have my word as a Klingon warrior!" K'alaf said with a sneer on his face.

Outside the compound, hidden safely behind thick foliage and trees, James T Kirk was on the ground, and stared through special binoculars at the compound. Thomas Riker was right next to him, staring through binoculars as well.

"Well," Riker said, "I owe a big favor to my Romulan contact. That new cloaking device is the only reason why the Defiant is directly above us, and we're here on the planet."

"A Romulan contact," Kirk said with humor in his voice, "I never thought I live to see the day."

"Things change," Riker said, he being no stranger to the curveballs life threw now and then. "I hope I get to see you do that flying leg kick thing of yours when we attack the compound."

"Oh shut up," Kirk said with a mock attitude.

"All we have to do now is just wait here for Captain Siskos's signal." Riker said. "Then it will be show time." Riker could sense the enthusiasm in Kirk's demeanor. "You're enjoying this; aren't you?"

"A child's life is at stake," Kirk said, never once taking his eyes off the compound.

Riker went back to looking through is binoculars as well, shaking his head and still not believing he was preparing to attack a Klingon guarded compound with Captain Kirk on point. The universe was indeed full of surprises.

-  
**ROMULAS**  
In another part of the galaxy, on the planet Romulas, several dozen Romulans were eating at a large outside café. There had been many liberal reforms since the end of the Dominion War, and a recently signed trading agreement with the Federation had brought many outside goods to the Romulan society. In the recent past, such places such as outside cafes were frowned upon by the government, but old rigid ideas were more and more giving way to new ideas.

One of the Romulans enjoying an early meal wasn't really a Romulan at all. He was half human, half Vulcan, and his name was Spock. He had seen much change on Romulas since his first attempts at unifying the Vulcan and Romulan societies. He once believed such an outcome was centuries away, but now believed his efforts had brought such a possibility to just decades from happening.

Spock gazed at the distant mountain range, as he thought about his daily schedule, which included a secret meeting with a Romulan senator, when suddenly one of Spock's Romulan aids handed him a data pad. Spock set his tea down and read the information displayed on the small hand held device. As he read the information, his eyes squinted just a bit as he read more and more. Finished, he set the device down and stared blankly out at the mountain range. And then, if ever so slightly, he allowed himself to grin. The information had been quite unexpected, but having known Jim Kirk, it was quite not out of the ordinary. And as he had so many times before, in the company of Kirk, and their mutual friend Leonard McCoy, Spock said the one word he thought more appropriate for the situation.

"Fascinating," Spock said to himself.

The rest of the information on the pad counteracted the pleasant news of Jim Kirk's continued existence. And Spock knew, immediately, he would have to put his plans for Romulan/Vulcan unification on hold. For if the younger version of Jim Kirk was to live a long and healthy life, Spock would have to make sure of it. Unknown to Kirk, there were forces out there that wanted him to stay dead; and Spock would not let that happen; again

Continued…

By the way, I am making some cool cover art for each "issue". If you would like to see them, check out my profile for information.


	14. Rescue 911 part two

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Rescue 911**

**(make sure to visit my profile for the cover art to this issue. It will be the first link listed…enjoy! The second link, when it updates, is titled "You're Alive:Now Run.." Consider it a coming attraction)**

The massive Negh'var-class Klingon ship entered the Koralis system, and moments later, it was in orbit of the fourth planet in the system. Sensor scans of the planet were just as suspected. It was a smaller sized planet, relative in size to Earth's moon, and was covered with thick foliage. There were no sentient life forms, but there were many forms of animal and plant life.

In the southern region of the planet there was a military compound that had been built, originally, by the Cardassians. During the Dominion War, the Jem'Hadar had used the compound for a brief period of time.

"Are we sure that K'alaf is down there?" Ben Sisko asked, as he stood toward the back of the bridge.

Martok looked over at the Klingon science officer, who gave a look of acknowledgement.

"The coward is down there," Martok finally replied.

"Chancellor," the female Klingon communications' officer said, "we are being hailed."

Martok gave her a curt nod of his head. The image of the planet was replaced by that of K'alaf.

"We are here; coward," Martok barked.

"You are willing to give your life for a human female," K'alaf said with anger in his voice, "you are the coward."

"Your family's name will stricken from the records," Martok came back with. "It will be as if it never existed."

"It does not exist now," K'alaf said. "Enough of this," K'alaf added. "You will bring yourselves down to the coordinates I have just sent. I will scan your transporter signals for any sort of weapon, so don't waste our time bringing them."

"Taking another warrior's weapon is not honorable," Worf said, who was standing next to Sisko.

K'alaf, hearing Worf's comment, glared at the Starfleet officer.

"Do not lecture me on honor, traitor!" K'alaf said. "To be even wearing that uniform shows you have no respect for our people and our customs."

"Worf," Martok interjected, "has shown more honor than you will ever know."

"Then it is most fortunate he will take command of your vessel after I take your life." K'alaf said with a slight chuckle.

"Where is my daughter?" Sisko finally demanded. "How do we know she is still alive?"

The image on the screen switched to a view of Rebecca Sisko. The young lady was sitting in the corner of her cell, as a Klingon guard stood over her, holding a Bat'leth.

"He will slice her head off right before your very eyes if any rescue attempt is made," K'alaf said, "So, do not attempt one."

The signal was cut off.

Moments later, inside the Transporter room of the Klingon ship, Chancellor Martok and Captain Sisko were standing on the transporter pad. Martok nodded at the Transporter technician, who then entered a code on a small device. The code was; 911. Instantly the code was transmitted on a highly secured frequency, and then, after giving Martok a salute, the technician activated the Transporter machine.

At that very instant, after receiving the 911 signal, Kirk and Riker, who had already timed the roving guards, stood up from where they were waiting behind a cluster of trees, and slipped past the force field as it was temporarily lowered during the Transport cycle. In mere seconds, the force field was reactivated.

Riker and Kirk split up, each tasked with bringing down two guards. Riker watched, from a distance, as Kirk prepared to take down the first guard. The Klingon guard, with his Bat'leth held to his side, came around the corner, and was taken by surprise as Kirk propelled himself into a flying double leg kick, knocking the larger Klingon down. Kirk did his legendary roll, which ended with his leveling out his rump, as he rolled to his feet, and then using his old style hand phaser, Kirk fired the weapon which was set on high stun, and knocked the Klingon out.

"Awesome," Riker said with an awe inspired smile, after watching Kirk execute his legendary move.

Both men went into action.

Inside the compound it was a different story. Captain Ben Sisko and Chancellor Martok, weaponless, were greeted by KomaQ as they materialized. KomaQ aimed a disrupter at them.

"Through that door," KomaQ ordered.

"You dare order me?" Martok barked. "Give me a weapon now, you Pa'taq and then try ordering me again."

As they made their way through the large compound rooms, which had once served as what appeared to be a holding facility, Martok and Sisko knew that all they had to do was bide for time. And since K'alaf was confident the force fields that protected the compound would hold; that conceit would play to Sisko and Martok's advantage.

"Chancellor, I do not covet honor," KomaQ said with a grin, "I covet my payment, which is half now half later."

"You're no better than the Ferengi," Sisko said with disgust upon hearing KomaQ.

"With one notable exception; I love to kill, they don't," KomaQ replied with a laugh.

They eventually entered another large room. At the far end stood K'alaf, and next to him, kneeling on her knees with her arms tied behind her back was Rebecca.

"Daddy!" Rebecca said with a broad smile, which was met with a loud slap across her face via the large right hand of K'alaf.

Rebecca smashed to the ground, and screamed in pain.

Sisko attempted to run to his daughter's aid, but K'alaf put the tip of his own Bat'leth at Rebecca's neck.

"Take another step, and she dies!" K'alaf yelled at Sisko.

Sisko halted his advanced.

"We're here," Sisko said, "now let her go!"

"Did you really think I would let her go," K'alaf countered. "Besides, I quite like her tone of voice. She would make a great prize on my way to Sto-vo-kor!"

"The only place you're going," Martok spat out, who was still held in check by KomaQ, "are the agony halls of Gre'Thor!"

Suddenly the ground began to quake as the Negh'Var opened fire with its torpedoes.

"K'alaf," Martok barked loudly, "let the human female go, just as you had bargained, and the attack will cease."

"Ahh," K'alaf said in a loud boisterous tone, "you must have ordered them to open fire after a certain amount of time without communication. Unfortunately for you, it will take far too long to penetrate the shields."

Martok and Sisko both knew that the Negh'Var wasn't firing its weapons to disable the fields. That would have resulted in the destruction of the compound, killing everyone in the process. The Negh'Var was just doing it for show.

"Let…her…go!" Sisko repeated.

"No," K'alaf, "now; she will die."

K'alaf glared down at Rebecca, raised his Bat'leth, and the girl began to scream.

"NOW!" Ben Sisko yelled.

Suddenly, as the room still quaked from the Negh'Var attack from space, the glass window high above the room smashed open and two figures repelled down into the compound; Kirk and Riker. In the mass of confusion, and falling glass, Martok sprung on KomaQ, twisting the henchman's neck, killing him instantly, and grabbing his disrupter in the process.

Sisko ran towards his daughter as K'alaf, surprised by the confusion, retreated into the bowels of the compound; before he could kill Rebecca. Kirk and Riker, who had landed on the ground, took off after the dastardly Klingon.

Kirk was in the lead, and Riker was right behind him.

"Let me take point!" Riker demanded from behind.

"Why?" Kirk asked, gasping for air in the process, as he ran at full speed.

"He might turn and fight," Riker said, "and if you get killed, my name will become infamous for letting the legendary Captain Kirk die."

"Shut up, nice try," Kirk said with a laugh. "This Klingon bastard is mine!"

Kirk could see K'alaf running into a room up ahead. The logical thing to have done, and Spock would have told Kirk had he been there, would been to have stopped the pursuit and made a plan of action before entering the room. But, then again, Spock wasn't there and Kirk didn't want to delay the fight any longer, so he burst into the room, hoping for the best.

James T Kirk froze in his tracks at what he saw, as did Riker when entered the room as well. K'alaf was on the ground, with the barrel of a large phaser-rifle aimed at his head; it was held by Bakooth; Riker's first officer.

"I...beam...in…" Bakooth said with a wide, fang filled grin.

Riker and Kirk surmised the large Chalnoth must have taken the Defiant into a position inside of the force fields perimeter when they had been momentarily lowered during the beam in of Sisko and Picard.

Riker and Kirk began to laugh, realizing the prize of the hunt had gone to Bakooth.

Moments later, K'alaf was brought back to the main area. Sisko was hugging his daughter, and Martok watched the two Sisko's with a content look. Then he looked directly at K'alaf.

"You will be executed," Martok said with a sneer. "You were captured during a Klingon military action! This is no longer a Bajor matter! You will be punished under Klingon law." His words exploded like thunder.

Sisko, Rebecca, Kirk, Riker and Bakooth, who held K'alaf in this grasp, all watched in silence.

"I, being the Chancellor of the Klingon Empire, judge you to die now!" Martok went on to say, reaching down and picking the Bat'leth which K'alaf had been holding earlier. "Chalnoth warrior; bring him to me!"

Bakooth did as instructed.

K'alaf sneered back at Martok, and had a determined look. And then K'alaf took a deep breath, and then he screamed; "taHqeq!"

And then the next two point five seconds went by in blurs of motion!

At that instant, a Klingon D'K Tahg, a warrior's knife, streaked across the room, having been fired from a specially made device hidden on the far side of the room. On the blade, and unseen to the naked eye, was a clip of Martok's DNA, which K'alaf had paid dearly for. The device which had fired the D'K Tahg had scanned all available life forms in it's short range, and found the perfect match; Martok.

The knife headed straight for the unprepared Chancellor of the Klingon Empire, but it would never reach its target. Kirk, who stood just a foot from Martok, sprang into motion, fully intent on taking the blow instead, diving head first to block the knife; but Kirk wasn't the only one who had sprung into action; so had Thomas Riker, who stood a foot closer to the speeding knife's path. And just as Kirk thought he had finally faced death, he saw Riker cut across his angle, and the knife dove into Riker's chest, delivering what would prove to be a fatal thrust.

Martok, in a fit of anger at what had just happened, took his Bat'leth and swung it forcibly at K'alaf's neck, decapitating him as Bakooth withdrew his own knife and buried it into K'alaf's back.

In the sudden silence, Rebecca, sobbing, buried her head into Sisko's shoulder at the gruesome sight, and the terrible wound Riker had taken.

Kirk, on his knees, rolled Riker over, and saw the dark blood that poured out of the wound pooling on the ground.

"Hey," Kirk said, knowing Riker was dying, as he propped Riker's head up, "that was supposed to be my final heroic act!" Kirk smiled at Riker, both knowing death was near.

"Naaaah," Riker struggled to say, as blood trickled out of his mouth, and down the side of his face, "My final act was to save one of the greatest Starfleet officers the Federation has ever known; what better way is there to die?"

Chalnoth got down hurriedly on his knees and stared down at his dying friend.

"Mr. Grumpy," Riker said with a smile as he looked up at Bakooth, "I want you go find that Cardassian stripper you've had your eye on and marry her…" his voice began to fade.

"I…never…forget." Bakooth said, with obvious sadness in his eyes.

And then Commander Thomas Riker died. Kirk felt a twinge of pain in his heart. He had only known Riker for a short amount of time, but in that time, Kirk felt as if he had made a friend; and now that friend was dead

Several hours later, they had all returned from the Koralis system. Rebecca had been rescued, but it had cost the life of Thomas Riker. Wanting to reunite his daughter with her mother, Ben Sisko was loaned a runabout and left moments after returning to DS9, and headed off to Bajor. Chancellor Martok had abruptly left as well. A memorial for Thomas Riker was planned for a week later, and it was sure that many friends had planned to attend.

Kira also informed Kirk that Captain Jean-Luc Picard would be arriving with-in the coming days so as to escort the legendary captain back to Starfleet for debriefing. Kirk contacted his wife, Myran, and told her that he was fine, and to wait for him on Bajor and he would return once his debriefing on Earth was completed. She gave him her love and told him she would be waiting for his return, and then they would go back to Timus and rejoin their quaint lives. Jim Kirk smiled at the thought, but had a feeling that his life would never be quaint again.

The next day, after a full night of sleep, and several hours of contemplating alone in his quest quarters on DS9, James T Kirk, in a somber mood, and alone, entered Quark's and sat at one of the upper tables. The crowd was in its usual jovial mood, cheering loudly at the large Dabo wheel, but Kirk was not jovial. The death of Riker had more of an affect on Kirk than he had expected. It had been three years since he had witnessed the deaths of Uhura and Chekov, and now here it was again; death. It was imposing its will on those close to him, and he didn't like it.

It was at that moment when the Ferengi owner of the bar, Quark, sat down across from Kirk.

"I don't care who you are," Quark said, with a look of irritation on his face, "legend or not, you just can't sit up here drinking free water all day long. I only serve paying customers."

Kirk forced a grin on his own face.

"I was just trying to pass the time." Kirk said.

"Well, you can pass the time somewhere else," Quark said in an irked tone. Then he leaned in, and when he was sure no one was looking, he whispered, "I have an important message coming in for you from a mutual friend of ours. Meet me at holosuite-4 in ten minutes."

"You and I have a mutual friend?" Kirk asked, with a tone of disbelief in his voice.

"Yes, we do," Quark replied. "His name is," Quark paused as he leaned in even closer to Kirk, "Spock."

-continued…


	15. You're Alive now Run!

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**You're Alive…now run!**

(Don't forget to check out the cover art in my profile for this and the previous installment. No, it's not Picasso, but its fun to do. And thanks to KlingonKitten for some great casting suggestions and story ideas. I'll have more to say later when they show up in the story. If you have some cool ideas for Kirk's adventures in the TNG era, let me know. I can't pay you, but I'll give you a credit, maybe name a character after you or something like that…)

James T Kirk stood outside of Holosuite-4 when, finally, Quark arrived on the scene. The Ferengi bar scurried over to Kirk and then handed him a small triangle shaped object.

"What is this?" Kirk asked.

"It will activate the signal, some sort of inter-dimensional scrambler." Quark said. "Now, listen carefully. There is a special filter on this device, as well as the one Spock has on Romulas."

"Romulas," Kirk cut in, "he's on Romulas?"

"Yes, and that is why I know your Vulcan friend." Quark said. "He's been smuggling things on and off of Romulas for almost two decades, and he's paid me very handsomely to arrange many of those transactions. In fact, he has over paid several times so as to build up credit with me; which remind him, he is taking advantage of now." Quark added. "This filter," Quark said pointing at the device in Kirk's right hand "will shut down the signal if it detects any attempt at surveillance, so there is no telling how long you have to converse."

"What do you mean converse?" Kirk asked. "He's on Romulas, I'm here."

Quark rolled his eyes.

"I don't have time to nursemaid you," Quark came back with. "Just go in there, and press the button on that device. Spock has bought fifteen minutes of holosuite time, so don't waste it. Now," Quark said, as he pressed a button on the holosuite's door, and opened it. "Get in there, and oh," Quark added, "I have a feeling you'll want to see me when it's over. I'll be at my bar. It seems I have two new Dabo girl applicants, and I need to be there so that I can measure their," Quark paused, "body assets to make sure they are qualified." Quark turned, and scurried back down the corridor, which led to the bar.

Jim Kirk, with a little apprehension, entered the holosuite. The door swished shut behind him, and he found himself in the cold confines of an un-activated holosuite. Kirk had never been inside of one, though even in his time he had seen early schematics for such devices on Starships, mainly for training purposes. He looked down at the device in his hand, and then pressed the main button.

And then almost instantly, and to Kirk's bewilderment, the cold metallic surroundings of the holosuite were replaced by a beautiful awe inspiring view of large mountain range in the distance. Waterfalls could be seen cascading down the largest mountain. A massive lake was in the foreground, and reflected the large mountains; it was a most beautiful sight to behold. He turned to his left and saw what appeared to be a man, nearly twenty feet away, and he was wearing a dark brown cloak, and facing the other way, away from Kirk. The person in the cloak turned around, and slowly pulled back the hood of the cloak, revealing an aged face, but with stoic features. And though age had indeed weathered his face, Kirk recognized the person instantly; it was Spock. And, to Kirk's further surprise, a lone tear made its way down Spock's face. Spock, wiped the tear away, and then raised his hand in the familiar Vulcan salute.

"It pleases me to see you again, Captain Kirk." Spock said.

"Spock," Kirk said, with bewilderment in his voice, "are we really talking? Or is this a recorded message."

"We are conversing in real time, if that is what you mean," Spock said. "The device in your hand is converting the signal into a form that your visual and audio senses can then filter through. I have a similar device here, on Romulas. In both our perspectives, we are here on Romulas."

"This place," Kirk said, as he marveled at the spectacular view before him, "is Romulas?"

"It is indeed," Spock said as he came closer to where Kirk stood. "Jim, Romulas is a beautiful world, with a wondrous and proud civilization. I have spent he better part of my life trying to unify the Vulcan and Romulan heritages. Each has much to offer the other."

"Wow Spock," Kirk said, "I wouldn't believe it possible. What about Sarek? I read of his passing on an old news-data chip I came across on Timus. Was he in favor of this endeavor of yours?"

"In his advanced age," Spock explained to Kirk, "Sarek became rigid with many of his views. Jim," Spock said, "according to what little information I am in possession of, you have been in this era for nearly three years. Why have you kept your existence shrouded in mystery?"

"It wasn't my choice, at first," Kirk explained. "I was contacted by representatives of the Federation and was asked to live a normal, uneventful life, for a myriad of reasons. At first I didn't want to just fade away, but then I met the woman who would become my wife, and my perspective changed. Spock, I had been instantly transported a hundred years into a future, a future I had little connection to. So," Kirk went on to say, "I decided to do what they asked; live a normal life."

"This may sound like a self indulging statement," Spock said, after a moment, "however; I wish you would have at least contacted me. Why didn't you?"

Kirk, who was now walking along side Spock, took in the beautiful surroundings, and thought about his answer.

"I don't know," Kirk replied. "When I read about what the other Kirk went on to accomplish, after he returned from Triskelion, I Just felt like a man on the outside looking in. This era, this time, was one he had helped to shape and I didn't want to alter that legacy in anyway. As for not contacting you; it may sound," Kirk searched his mind for the right word, "illogical; but I felt that you and the other Kirk had shared so much, it would have wrong to inject myself into that as well."

"The other Kirk, as you refer to him," Spock said to Kirk, "was absent for nearly eighty years himself. So, in actuality, you both ended up circumventing most of those years, and have managed to bypass the results of the aging process. I no doubt look very old from when you last saw me on Stardate 3211.8."

Kirk looked at his much older friend.

"Older, yes," Kirk said, with a smile, "but from what I have recently heard, still very much alive; you have a son? Who is his mother?"

"A most logical choice," Spock replied, "T'pring."

Kirk gasped once he heard the name spoken.

"You have to be kidding me," Kirk said, with doubt in his voice. "Just knowing her, for the short hour or so that I did, almost cost me my life, and yours. If Bones hadn't had slipped me that neural paralyzer, things might have ended up much differently."

Just ahead, as they walked along a dirt path, Kirk saw an interesting looking animal scurry across. It looked like a cross between a chip monk and a small cat. Kirk had to remind himself that he was actually still on DS9, inside a holosuite.

"Yes, one of the good doctor's many ingenious improvisational moments." Spock said, as he thought back on the events on Vulcan, which from his point of view, had happened a century ago.

"So, your son, what is his name?" Kirk went on to ask excitedly, "what is he like? With Sarek's blood and T'pring's blood floating around in him, and yours too, he must be a very," Kirk paused for affect, "interesting Vulcan."

"His name is S'vath, and" Spock added, "he is far too independent minded for my taste. It seems as if following the rules and regulations of a society has no meaning to him at times."

Kirk chuckled.

"As I recall," Kirk said, "your own streak of independence is what kept you and Sarek distant from each other."

For a brief moment, the entire surrounding flickered.

"The filter," Kirk offered.

"Yes," Spock said, "it would appear as if someone has become interested in the signal. I had hoped we would have had more time to share," Spock said. "Jim, listen to me," Spock said in a more serious tone, "When Captain Picard brought the other Kirk out of the Nexus, there were rumors you had survived. I became aware of communiqués inquiring about details of your whereabouts. Though the rumor of the other Kirk's survival was false, I still investigated further, and concluded that had the other Kirk survived, there were forces converging on the Veridian system to change that; they were coming to kill him."

"And you think the same will happen to me," Kirk concluded.

"It is happening again already," Spock said. "I have detected the same sort of communiqués, and I believe your life is in peril."

"Spock," Kirk said, "This Captain Picard I keep hearing about will be arriving on Deep Space Nine very soon. I'm to be taken back to Starfleet to be debriefed by Admiral Janeway herself."

"Jim, trust me when I say, Captain Picard is a very honorable Starfleet Officer, as is Admiral Janeway," Spock told Kirk. "I do not believe they, by themselves, are a threat. However, I do believe there is an element of Starfleet that does not want to see James T Kirk live again. I believe it is up to you, and I, and others I will contact, to expose this threat from with-in Starfleet."

The surroundings flickered again, and for more than two seconds.

"We're running out of time," Kirk said. "Spock, I wasn't born yesterday. I know the way orders work; I'm not going to be able to refuse Picard's insistence that I return with him to Earth, and there isn't much I can do about it."

"Actually there is," Spock said. "As you recall, I once stole the Enterprise, risked both of our careers in the effort, so that I could pay a debt of honor to Captain Pike."

"I do remember," Kirk said, with trepidation in his voice. "It not only almost cost us our careers, but your life."

Then Spock stopped walking, and turned to face Kirk head on.

"Jim," Spock said, "I will use every, as you would say, trick in the book to ensure that no harm comes to you. When you leave the holosuite, find Quark. He is going to give you a special program that was encrypted with this communication signal. By now he has transferred it to a data file; take it. For now, until I can find passage to the Federation, this is all I can do for you."

"What exactly am I going to do with this data file?" Kirk asked, with no clue as to what Spock wanted him to do.

Spock arched his eyebrow, in true Spock fashion.

"You're going to steal," Spock said with a matter of fact tone, "the Defiant."

Continued….


	16. The Good Times

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Good Times**

**(the new cover art for this segment is also available at my profile)**

A small quaint valley in the Kendra Province was alive with laughter. The Sisko home, which was situated on a large block of beautiful land, was always a place where the delicious aromas of a wide variety of foods could be sensed on the wind. And, on warm nights, with the windows open, the smooth sounds of jazz music could be heard as well. The Bajoran people had actually respected their Emissary so much; there was no encroachment near his land, and the home he had built with little help. His son, Nog, and, when had the free time, Julian Bashir, for the heavy lifting, had all worked together to build the humble abode. And, when it was done, it was the dream house that Ben Sisko had always wanted to build

Rebecca Sisko had spent two full days at the medical center in the capital city of Ashalla, and on the third day, she had been released in the late afternoon. The doctors had wanted to do a routine check-up on her, and had applied a skin rejuvenation pad to mend the savage bruise on her face (from K'alaf's slap.)

After leaving the main city, the Sisko's returned to their home in the Kendra Province and Ben Sisko, in honor of Rebecca's safe return, had cooked Rebecca's favorite dinner; thick crust pizza, with a side of macaroni and cheese, with apple pie as a dessert. Though, as Sisko would point out many times during the dinner, the macaroni and cheese he created was more than just mere noodles and melted cheese; it was a master creation by a master chef.

Kasidy listened once again as Ben and Rebecca recounted the entire escapade. The excitement in their voices was contagious. It was a strange, Kasidy thought to her self. Just days ago Rebecca's life was in danger, having been kidnapped by the Klingons. And now it was all one exciting adventure. And even though the story ended up with Rebecca home and safe, it wasn't without loss.

"Ben," Kasidy finally said, "we have to make Tom's memorial service."

"Yes, I know," Ben said, as he sipped from his mug of coffee. "And we will. From what I hear it has been moved up to tomorrow to account for Captain Picard's impending visit. Unfortunately the Titan will not be able to make it, due to her mission in the Gamma-Quadrant, so William Riker will not be able to attend."

"What about Jim Kirk, is he going to be there?" Rebecca asked, with a slight tone of excitement her voice.

"She has a crush on him, you know," Kasidy added as she took a bite from a piece of pizza.

"No I don't," Rebecca said, "but he did save my life." There was the slight 'doe eye' look in her eyes as Rebecca spoke.

"Rebecca," Kasidy came back with, "I've seen that look in your eyes every time you had a crush on some boy."

"And Hey," Ben said, with a slight annoyed tone in his voice, "Your dear old dad had something to do with your rescue too."

"Oh I know, daddy," Rebecca said, "but when he and Riker came through that smashed ceiling, it was so awesome."

"Yeah it was," Sisko said, with a teeth bearing smile on his face, "It was pretty incredible."

"It was just like one of those tales of Captain Kirk stories you use to tell me when I was a kid," Rebecca said.

"Maybe," Kasidy said, with a serious tone in her voice, wanting to keep the conversation grounded in reality, "but in this story someone other than a security guard wearing red died."

"I know," Rebecca said softly.

"From what I knew about Thomas Riker," Sisko said, "if he had to give his life, this was how he would have wanted it. Somehow," Sisko said, with a wistful sound in his voice, "where ever he is now, I am quite sure he is looking down on us and enjoying our memories of him."

"What about Jim Kirk," Kasidy said, "what will happen with him now?"

Ben thought about it for a moment.

"After he returns to Earth, and is debriefed," Sisko explained, "I'm Admiral Janeway will be give Jim the opportunity to remain in Starfleet, if he wants to. But I think his wife, Myran, will have something to say about that. And for all we know, Jim may prefer a quieter life now."

"Would Starfleet even let Jim have his own ship and crew?" Rebecca asked. "I mean, so much time has gone by. I kind of feel sorry for him because he's like a fish out of water. And it wouldn't be right if they made him start all over again."

"I don't know," Sisko said. "There have been a few instances when ships, whole crews even, that have come into this time from the past, and they chose to stay in Starfleet. But no one as much as a legend as Jim Kirk is. I rather suspect there will those who will be against someone like Jim Kirk being in the modern Starfleet Command."

"Well," Kasidy conclude, "I hope they find something useful for him to do. From what you've both told me, I don't think someone like James T Kirk can sit inside of an antique store selling old books."

The Sisko family continued with their home made dinner. Sisko wished there were more he could do for his new friend, James T Kirk, but he had his own family life to worry about. And, besides, Sisko concluded, Jim Kirk had an uncanny ability of adapting to any situation. But, if Kirk should call for assistance, Ben Sisko would render it; it was the least he could do for the man who helped save his daughter's life.

* * *

**DEEP SPACE NINE**

Deep Space Nine was alive with all sorts of travelers. With the Dominion War years in the past, and the Gamma-Quadrant only minutes away, via the wormhole, DS9 had indeed become the center of commerce in the sector of the galaxy it was positioned at.

In the area of Deep Space Nine living quarters, which had several quarters designated for guests, Captain Kyra Nerys and Commander Nog waited outside of Jim Kirk's room.

"I can't wait to see how he looks," Kira said to Quark.

"Captain," Nog said to Kira, "how did you exactly convince Commander Kirk to change into a standard uniform?"

"I told him the truth," Kira said. "I told him that Admiral Janeway insisted that he do so, and the fact I was this station's commander meant it was my responsibility to see to it that he did. He understood, and told me he would, so here we are."

Suddenly the door swished open, and there he was; Commander James T Kirk, and he was wearing the standard uniform of the day, with three shiny pips on his collar. It was obvious that Kira was more than impressed.

"You look great," Kira said, as she was slightly blushing. "And thank you again for doing this, it means a lot to me."

"I should be thanking you, Kira," Kirk said with a warm smile, "You have been more than kind since I arrived."

The three Starfleet officers made their way down the hallway, and soon stepped on a nearby Turbo-lift and were gone. Just as the Turbo-lift slipped away, another figure could be seen coming from the opposite direction. It was the massive Chalnoth warrior, Bakooth. He made his way to Kirk's quarters, and entered a special code on the door's pad. The door to Kirk's quarters opened, and Bakooth entered.

* * *

It was rare when Captain Kira ordered full military honors for an arriving Starfleet officer. It had happened recently when Captain Sisko and Commander Kirk had arrived, and now it would be happening again. Captain Picard's specially modified runabout due to arrive at any moment. The runabout had been refitted with new engines that allowed it to travel at nearly Warp 9. The military guard, consisting of seven of DS9's Starfleet crew, all in dress uniforms, had gathered and waited patiently for the signal to stand in formation. The Turbo-lift opened, and Captain Kira, Commander Kirk and Commander Nog emerged.

"Alright," Kira said to the honor guard, with an appreciative smile, "go ahead and get in formation; I just got the signal that his runabout is in final approach."

As the honor guard got into formation, the Turbo-lift doors opened and Lt. Commander Julian Bashir and his wife, Lt. Ezri Dax, emerged.

"Julian," Kira said, "you two don't have to be here."

"Perhaps," Dr. Bashir said to Kira, "but Ezri and I missed the arrivals of Captain Sisko and Captain Kirk, for which I apologize," he said that directly to Kirk, "so I thought it best we at least make this one."

"The runabout has docked," Nog announced.

Kira looked over to Commander Kirk. And although Kirk was putting on a good front, Kira could tell that he wasn't thrilled about his situation when it came to Starfleet, and she couldn't blame him. From all the stories she had heard about Kirk, Kira was suprised at how aloof Starfleet seemed about having one of it's living legends back from the dead.

The honor guard prepared for full military salute, and Kira, Kirk, Nog, Julian and Ezri, in that order from the door, all stood in formation as well. The circular doors of the boarding ring opened and not one, but two noted Starfleet officers emerged; Captain Jean-Luc Picard and Commodore Edward Jellico.

* * *

**Risa**

Risa was the world where vacactioners of all kinds went to relax, and enjoy themselves. And, for those who wanted such a vacation, Risa also provided a wide variety of intimate pleasures as well. That was where Jaden Weer was when he received a coded message. Who was Jaden Weer? Well, first off, that wasn't his real name. And, second, he was one of the galaxy's most accomplished assassins. Jaden climbed out of the bed that he had shared the past week with another man and woman, and he quietly entered the other main room. Alone, he retrieved a special case, which was slender and black. He opened it, and activated the sleek communication's device that was inside the case. The communication device was specially made, and untraceable. It was the method by which assassins like him were given their new assignment. He looked at the image of the man on his screen, the man which would be Jaden Weer's next target. Jaden recognized the man, after a moment of trying to remember.

"James T Kirk," Jaden said soflty. "It will be a pleasure meeting you," then Jaden smiled, "and killing you too."

Continued


	17. To Dine on Ashes

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**To Dine on Ashes**

(a new cover art is available at my profle for this issue and the next issue…)

Deep Space Nine

Captain Kira had made sure that all the arrangements were made for a special dinner for her honored guests. All the bells and whistles were on display. Full dress uniforms for the serving crew and guests. One of Bajor's more prominent belaklavion performers even provide the musical entertainment for the guests. All this effort was put forth due to the fact it wasn't often that DS9 hosted guests as noteworthy as the three men, Commodore Jellico, Captain Picard and Commander Kirk, who all sat at the large banquet table; and Kira made sure to put on a great show. Several varieties of food were placed on the table. There were human favorites, such as Lobster and Prime Rib, which she had once read was one of Kirk's favorites, but there were also Bajoran food items as well.

The honored guests were joined by Kira herself, as well as Commander Nog, Lt. Commander Bashir and his wife Lt. Ezri Dax. There other guests as well, including Quark, who had put the dinner all together, as well as three guests who had arrived for Thomas Riker's service; Master Chief Miles O'Brien, his wife Keiko, and the recently returned Chancellor Martok, and Commander Worf, special attaché from Starfleet Command.

Kira lifted her glass to make a toast.

"I want to thank Commodore Jellico and Captain Picard for making the long journey to Deep Space Nine. I am quite sure Commander Thomas Riker would be appreciative of their being here."

The guests all joined their glasses in the center, and the song clang of glass on glass christened the dining experience.

"A very nice toast, indeed," Captain Picard said.

"Commander Kirk," Commodore Jellico said, "I am really pleased to see you in a standard uniform. The uniforms from a hundred years ago, while very respected, do seem somewhat over-the-top compared to today's more subtle variety."

"Bah," Martok said, before Kirk could respond. "Captain Kirk, although you wear that uniform, in the heart of this Klingon, I see you as you were."

"Yes," Jellico said to Martok, "however, Commander Kirk," Jellico emphasized the word commander, "Kirk is a loyal officer and knows the demands of protocol.

Kira almost choked on her food, fearing how Kirk would respond to such a comment. But, instead, Kirk smiled at Jellico.

"I always say," Kirk said, after sipping his drink, "when in Rome…"

"I for one do not judge a man by his uniform," Captain Picard said, trying to find a middle ground. "Commander Kirk's well deserved reputation speaks for its self."

Martok laughed.

"Deserved? Captain Kirk," Martok countered with, against all the platitudes, "if Starfleet won't let you serve in your honored rank of captain, I assure you, the Klingon Empire will."

"Thank you Chancellor," Kirk said, "however, I have yet to decide if I will explore a new career in active duty. Myran, my wife," Kirk said, as he looked over at his wife who had arrived on DS9 quite unexpectedly, and sat with him, "and I have yet to decide on what I will do next."

Kira didn't know what to think. Kirk seemed to be going along with what was expected of him to say; almost too easily, if the stories Ben Sisko had told her about Kirk were true. Maybe the younger version, Kira concluded, of Jim Kirk wasn't as rebellious as the legend warned.

"Captain Picard," Nog said, from the other side of the table, "how did the modified runabout handle?"

"Commander Nog, I was quite impressed," Picard replied. "I even had enough time to rendezvous with Commodore Jellico before coming here. I think the modifications will make the runabout- class more practical."

"Captain Kirk," Lt. Ezri Dax began to say, "I'm sorry, Commander Kirk," Ezri corrected her self, feeling the glare of Jellico on her, "what do you think of this era. You pretty much jumped over a hundred years in time to this one, so one would have to think there is much different, from your perspective."

"He is fitting in, if that's what you mean," Myran said for her husband. "I only found out about his true past recently. Thanks to the Emissary, who sent reading material to my sister's house near the capital city of Ashalla, I have had the chance to read up on Jim Kirk." Myran looked directly at Jim Kirk. "Jim, I am so proud to be your wife. You have done so many wonderful things."

"Myran," Jim said, "much of what you read no doubt encompassed what the other Jim Kirk accomplished. I have much to live up to."

"No," Myran said, with a smile on her face, "I only read up to the point of your abduction to that strange world. And, from the notes the Emissary sent, I know you were, and still are, a great man."

Jellico picked up on the sentiment Myran was expressing.

"You have a very lovely wife, Commander Kirk," Jellico said with a smile. "One would not think differently of you should you decide to return to your life on Timus Prime."

Commander Kirk looked over to Captain Picard, who sat across from him.

"You knew the other Jim Kirk," Kirk said, "What was he like?"

"To be honest," Picard replied, "I only knew him for a very brief time. Unlike most people form this era, and since I command the Enterprise-E, I had a special bond with him, and you I might add. I found him to be very much like the man I had read about all those years."

"However," Jellico suddenly said, "We have to temper our opinions of that other Kirk. Although his career speaks for itself, we would be remiss if we didn't conclude that, while he was a great Starship Captain, he, like all men, had character flaws that we hope the modern Starship Captains can avoid."

Everyone at the table understood what Jellico had said, and meant. It was clear that Commodore Jellico was not only voicing his opinion, but the opinion of Starfleet Command, and it was clear they wanted Jim Kirk to fade away; again.

The rest of the dinner went smoothly, but there was an undeniable undertone. And yet, through it all, James T Kirk had managed to not let it affect him. With the dinner, and dessert finished, everyone said their goodbyes and would all meet up the next day for Commander Thomas Riker's memorial.

Myran boarded a Transport that was on its way back to Bajor. One of her younger nieces was expected to give birth the next day, and Myran wanted to be there. She and Kirk said their goodbyes, and Kirk watched from the one of the viewing decks as the Transport she was on shrunk in size the further it went. Suddenly the massive Bakooth stood next to Kirk.

"Are we a go, my new friend?" Kirk asked softly.

Bakooth nodded, and then stepped away. Kirk turned and watched the massive Chalnoth warrior disappear into the crowded Promenade on the lower level. If Spock's concerns about Kirk's life were real, and Kirk had no reason to doubt them, the time to act was soon. Kirk smiled as he thought about Jellico's comments about the other Jim Kirk. Perhaps the younger version had character flaws too.

But was Kirk acting logically? Even if he was doing so at Spock's behest, was it the correct course of action. If all went according to plan, then not only would Kirk be stealing one of Starfleet's most powerful starships, the Defiant, be he would also be abducting most of his crew, and most of them had never even met James Kirk. But if Spock's worries were true, worries about rouge elements of Starfleet willing to kill to achieve their objectives, what would stop them from acting out against other targets as well?

Jim Kirk took one more look out the window, just in time to see the wormhole come alive. It was indeed a beautiful sight. He smiled at the brilliance of the wormhole, turned around, and headed for his quarters.

Next time...

The memorial for Commander Thomas Riker goes smoothly, until the arrival of a Jem'Hadar attack fleet! Plus, Jim Kirk has plans of his own!


	18. The Master of Icthyology

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Matter of Ichthyology**

(Don't forget to check out the new cover art for this chapter. You can find it at my profile. Montgomery Scott fishing? Why not, I say…)

The memorial service for Commander Thomas Riker was moments from beginning, and all of the guests had arrived. One of the massive cargo bays had been decked out for the ceremony, due to large crowd. Several images of Thomas Riker adorned the walls, as did many of his awards. During the Dominion War, and after he had been freed from a Cardassian prison, Riker's talents had been put to use and he made a name for himself. In fact, he was only one of a handful of Starfleet officers who served in combat along side Romulan, and Reman, shock troops. He had earned such a reputation, especially among his Romulan allies, that Starfleet awarded his efforts with a promotion to commander. As it turned out, he had just been given a promotion to the rank of captain, and the promotion would be awarded, posthumously during the memorial.

Several food arrangements were neatly arranged about the cargo deck. Riker was known for his varied food cravings, thus there were food selections from all over the galaxy. He was also fond of an old Earth delicacy; ice crème. To this end, Quark had gone through great lengths to obtain an authentic ice crème maker. The final deal breaker was when Quark's brother, Grand Nagus Rom, had put pressure on a Pakled dealer in rare antiques. The effort worked, the ice crème maker was a favorite of many of the guests.

Quark was one of the guests for the ceremony, but it didn't stop him from making sure the entire setup went smoothly. Quark was busy making sure one of the food trays was properly heated when Commander Worf walked up to him.

"I am amazed, Ferengi, however I must admit; your efforts here, in this cargo bay, are worthy of song." Worf said, with a little pride in his voice.

"Riker was always good to me," Quark said. "He deserves this."

"That he does," Worf agreed.

As guests entered the cargo bay, an usher would escort them to their seats. All of the Starfleet officers were in dress uniforms. Chancellor Martok was also in full dress, even wearing the large robe of office, which had been worn by previous leaders of the Klingon Empire.

One person who was having troubles composing her self was Captain Kira Nerys. It was only known by very few, but she and Thomas had become lovers. They had decided to keep their relationship a secret, for professional reasons. One person who knew of their intimacy was Benjamin Sisko. He pardoned himself from his wife and daughter and walked over to Kira, who was standing by herself, overlooking the gathering throng.

"Nerys," Sisko said as he came up to her. "I haven't had time to tell you how appreciative I am for what Tom did for my daughter. He risked his life to save her, and I wish there was more I could do for you."

"Emissary," Kira said softly, "Tom died the way he would have wanted to."

"It is ironic you should say that," Sisko said with a smile. "We were just saying the same thing last night at dinner," Sisko said to her. "It is a shame that Captain Riker could not be here."

"Honestly, I'm kind of glad he couldn't make it." Kira said. "I know its wrong to say that, but seeing him, on this day, would remind me too much of Thomas."

"Yes, I understand," Sisko said. He turned to head back to his seat when Kira reached out and took him by the arm.

"Benjamin," Kira said. "I need to tell you something; something that no one else knows just yet."

"What is it?" Sisko asked.

"I'm pregnant with Tom's child," Kira said, but there was no excitement in her voice.

"That is incredible," Sisko said, "but why do I feel you do not want to have this child."

"I don't know if I want to raise this child alone, without a father," Kira told him. "Would it be fair?"

Sisko thought for a moment.

"It is your choice, of course," Sisko said. "However, what better way could there be to ensure that part of Tom lives on. This child is the best way to do that. It may not be the best reason to have the child, and yet, I can think of no other."

Kira gave Sisko a slight peck on the cheek. Sisko smiled, and headed back to his seat.

Moments later, the rest of the guests had arrived and had taken their seats. Kira was about to take her seat, which was toward the front, when Commander Nog came over to her.

"Captain," Nog said softly. "Lt. Commander Bakooth," Riker's Chalnoth first officer, "has decided not to attend. He said to go ahead and let someone else use his seat."

"What a shame, then again," Kira said, "Chalnoth's are known for their loyalty. Maybe Tom's death has affected that big behemoth more than we think."

Kira also noted that Commander James T Kirk was no where to be seen either. Kira concluded that Kirk may have felt out of place. She was considering finding Kirk but the final chimes sounded, and it was time for the ceremony to begin. Kira took her place in the front row of seats, right next to Commodore Jellico, and the ceremony soon began.

* * *

Commander James T Kirk entered the bridge of the Defiant. Bakooth was busy at work, making final adjustments.

"Bakooth," Kirk said to Riker's first officer and friend, "you don't have to do this. We could both get into a lot of trouble, and I wouldn't want that to happen to you."

"You go…I follow." Bakooth said with his low toned voice. "Tom say…much good about you. He is gone…my O'gma now… with you."

Kirk didn't need the word O'gma translated. It was one of those words that seemed to have a universal meaning, and in this case it was no different; O'gma meant soul, or heart. Kirk smiled at O'gma, and then he continued to get acclimated to the new ship.

* * *

In another part of the galaxy, on the planet Norpin...

A lone boat was sitting gently in the waters of a lake that had a fine mist just hovering above its surface. It was early morning, and already the boat was near the center of the massive lake, and had been there for several hours. To some, fishing with reels and rods was more than just catching fish and gutting them; it was more about the strategy of baiting the larger fish, the smarter ones. It was the same on all worlds that had aquatic life forms like fish. Some people didn't understand the art of fishing, but it didn't matter to this man; it just meant smaller crowds to contend with, which was fine with him.

Montgomery Scott was relaxing in comfort. His captain's chair was right dab in the middle of the small boat. His crew numbered just one, and the one, was him. It was the retired life he had been began planning over a hundred years in the past, and now, he was living it. He had two rods cast about, and Scotty, with a bottle of Scottish lager resting next to him in a scrum can holder, just waited with eagle eyes glued on the thin fishing lines; waiting for the slightest sign of a bite. It was at that moment he heard a strange sound. It was a faint beeping tone. It took him a moment to recognize it, but he did.

After emerging from the USS Jenolen's Transporter machine nearly twenty years earlier, and assisting the crew of the Enterprise-D, Scotty continued on to the Norpin Colony, which was where he was now. Spock, along with McCoy, had both finally visited him, and Spock left Scotty a special transmitter, just in case of any emergency. Apparently that emergency had come, because it was the special transmitter which was now beeping to life. He could only guess what it was. McCoy had finally passed away two years prior, so Scotty could only wonder why Spock needed to contact the Enterprise's former chief engineer now.

Scotty reached down and unpacked the bait and tackle box, and already discarded bottles of beer, which he had piled up on the transmitter, which he took with him wherever he went. He opened the device and read the displayed message. Moments ago, Scotty had been gazing at his fishing lines, no doubt heading for a quick nap in the process. But now, for the first time in recent years, adrenalin flooded his body. Jim Kirk was alive; again! And more important, Kirk needed help. And although Scotty was no longer a spring chicken, it didn't mean he couldn't help. And, apparently, Spock felt the same way.

"So long me darlings," Scotty said as he retracted his lines, staring down at the unseen fish beneath his boat. "I wonna be gone for long."

Jim Kirk was sitting in the captain's chair of the Defiant. Bakooth sat in the one-man helms post in front of Kirk. Final prep was finally completed, and Bakooth pivoted in his chair and looked back at Kirk, and nodded.

Kirk, who had changed back into his archaic uniform, opened a panel that was on the chair's left arm rest. In his fingers he held the special chip with the program that Spock had sent him, and which had received further transmissions in the interceding days. Kirk had no idea what would happened, once the program was activated, but it didn't matter. There was no other person Kirk trusted more than Spock.

"Now we wait," Kirk said to Bakooth. "Once Riker's memorial has concluded," Kirk said, as he looked at the monitor that was displaying the ceremony on the cargo bay, "I will activate the program."

Bakooth smiled, and displayed a fine rack of fangs. He smiled because he had no idea what would happen next either, but the Chalnoth warrior was quite sure it would full of adventure, which humans like Thomas Riker and James T Kirk were always sure to deliver.

-continued…


	19. In Motion

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**In Motion…**

(don't forget to check out the cover art. Just go to my profile and click the link that is there…)

Jim Kirk sat in the command chair and silently watched the memorial service unfold on the Defiant's main viewing screen. Several guest speakers had taken turns talking about Thomas Riker, with some of the stories followed by appreciative laughter from the gallery. It was evident that Riker had been an unorthodox Starfleet officer, which made Kirk respect him even more. Kirk could also see that Bakooth, who sat at the helm in front of Kirk, was missing his former commander, perhaps even more than any of the guest speakers. As a collection of images or Riker streamed across the screen, Kirk took that opportunity to walk over to where Bakooth sat.

"I know you miss him," Kirk said, as he stood to Bakooth's side. "I only knew your friend for a brief time, but after hearing the stories they told about him today at the memorial, I can truly say I wish I had known him longer. When he volunteered to help save Rebecca Sisko, and wouldn't take no for an answer, I knew right there and then that Commander Thomas Riker was a special man."

"Tom…Riker once…save Bakooth's…life too," Bakooth told Kirk. "I should die…on Koralis…not Riker."

"But you didn't," Kirk said, as he now looked at Bakooth straight in the eyes. "The best thing you can do, to honor your friendship, is live your life as if he were still here. There can be no other way," Kirk said with straight forward conviction.

Bakooth nodded in agreement.

As the memorial concluded, Kirk realized it was time to implement whatever plan Spock had in store. Jim Kirk had no idea what Spock had planned, but having read most of Spock's career after he had last known him, over a hundred years in the past, Kirk was quite confident it would succeed.

In truth, Kirk was embarking on a new kind of mission; to find the hidden element of the Federation government, or Starfleet Command, or perhaps both, that would condone murder of its citizens to pursue its objectives. On the surface it might have appeared he was just trying to save his own life. But he and Spock both knew it ran deeper than that. Kirk may have been from another time, but he still knew what was right and what was wrong. He was well aware that it was probably a fool's errand; but it didn't matter. Kirk and Spock would combat the unknown enemy together; it was the least they could do for a new generation that didn't quite grasp the concept of liberty.

James T Kirk took the special data chip and, after sitting back down in Defiant's command chair, he slipped the chip into an empty slot. Almost instantly Kirk could sense the power levels fluctuating on the Defiant. He once remembered when he was a young boy, his father, George, telling him about automobiles. George Kirk had gone so far as to show his young son images, pictures, of automobiles that were referred to as muscle cars. They all had exotic names; Corvettes, Mustangs, Novas, and Chargers, and now, in Kirk' mind, Defiant. That's what the ship reminded Kirk of; a muscle car. The other modern Federation starships, even the Enterprise-E, were beautiful streamlined creations, mind boggling even, with their power and grace. But the Defiant, with its pug like nose, and compact frame, would have given Kirk's father Goosebumps.

Kirk settled back into the captain's seat, and gave a Bakooth a whimsical smile, as they both noticed the computers of the Defiant come alive.

Five minutes later…

The tension level on Deep Space Nine was at its highest level. Captain Kira and the rest of her bridge crew were manning their posts, still clad in their dress uniforms, in the Operations Command center. With so many visiting dignitaries, they were not alone. Commodore Jellico, Captain Picard, Chancellor Martok, Commander Worf and the former Commander of DS9, Benjamin Sisko, were in Ops as well. For the time being they had all respected the fact that Kira was in charge, and they all stayed in the background; until…

"How is it," Commodore Jellico stated with irritation in his voice, "that our listening post in the Gamma-Quadrant only detected the approach of the Jem-Hadar fleet five minutes before it reached that side of the wormhole?"

Lt. Z'var, a blue skinned Andorian female, who was also DS9's tactical officer, shook her head.

"Commodore, the Jem-Hadar may have new technology," Z'var said, "It would be illogical to believe that just because we are no longer at war that they would not still try to advance their tech levels. Perhaps Starfleet Intelligence was caught unaware."

"That is an interesting opinion," Jellico said, "but I would not go so far as to say Starfleet intelligence acts illogically." His condescending tone was unmistakable.

"I would," Chancellor Martok chimed in with a chuckle. "My people have been warning you about such possibilities. The Dominion, to this very day, uses the Jem-Hadar as their military wing, a fact that should be a concern for all of us."

"Perhaps we went too easy on them; after the war," Jellico added.

"Not we," Martok said beneath his breath, "you."

"Chancellor, Commodore, the Dominion has every right to defend themselves," Sisko told them both. "The Borg have made incursions in the Gamma-Quadrant as well. We could not have expected them to ensure their own survival. And from I understand, Minister Odo had kept his word and has allowed Starfleet to monitor their movements in the Gamma-Quadrant. "

"Lt. Z'var," Captain Picard began to say from where he stood, next to Sisko, "How long until the Jem-Hadar fleet exits the wormhole on this side of the galaxy?"

"One minute and thirty seven seconds," Z'var answered, her two antenna slighting moving as she spoke.

Martok shook his head, and charged towards the Turbo-lift.

"I will go to my ship and face them myself," Martok harrumphed.

"Captain," Z'var suddenly said, "the Defiant has left its mooring station, and is advancing towards the wormhole."

"And she's armed her weapons," Nog said, from where he stood next to Worf.

"On screen," Kira commanded.

"Finally," Martok said with pride at the image of the Defiant, as the small, but very powerful ship, headed towards the wormhole. "A brave warrior!"

"Who is in command of that ship?" Jellico asked.

The image of the Defiant was replaced by Commander Bakooth. He was sitting at the helm of the Defiant.

"Commander Bakooth," Kira said, "what are you doing?"

"What is he doing?" Martok barked in reply. "He is acting like a warrior."

"He could get us all killed," Commodore Jellico countered. "He could unwittingly start an interstellar war."

"Not…start war," Bakooth said, "put…on…show."

Some of the others understood Bakooth's reasoning. The Defiant may not have had the strength against a Jem-Hadar attack fleet, but at least it would show the Jem-Hadar that Starfleet wasn't just going to rollover.

"I'm ordering you," Jellico finally said, "to stand down immediately. Return the Defiant to its mooring station and report to me at once."

James T Kirk stood to the side of Bakooth, out of view of the viewing screen, and seemed amused at Jellico's demand. Bakooth, playing his part perfectly, shook his head at Jellico. Kirk was holding a data pad and wrote large words on it for Bakooth to read, which he did.

"I…not..standown," Bakooth read, "I save…your…honor."

Kirk gave Bakooth a thumbs up signal.

Back on DS9, the anger in Jellico's face was obvious. Bakooth's words were not only in defiance, they challenged the Commodore's character. Jellico was about to respond when suddenly DS9 slightly rumbled, and the viewing screens on Ops a flashed brightly.

All over ops, main power suddenly cut out, and sparks came from several of the redundant systems, causing confusion. And then, without warning, the lights cut out for several seconds, and more systems sparked. And, just as sudden as the disturbance started, it ended.

"What just happened?" Captain Picard was the first to ask.

Kira, who had fallen to the ground during the confusion, stood back up and turned to Nog for answers; but the Ferengi wasn't where he was standing moments before.

"Commander Nog?" Kira called out.

Worf looked baffled as well. The Ferengi had been standing next to him before the disturbance.

"He was standing right here," Worf said to Kira.

"Captain," Lt. Z'var suddenly said, as her systems came back on line. "The Defiant; it's gone."

"Where is the Dominion fleet?" Jellico asked, "It should have come through the wormhole by now."

"Benjamin," Picard said, as he walked over to where Captain Sisko stood, "I recall reading one of your reports. You stated that the wormhole entities once eliminated an entire Jem-Hadar fleet inside the wormhole. Is it possible they have done so again?"

"It is possible," Sisko replied. "Though, I am quite certain they would have contacted me before doing so."

"Then where is the Defiant?" Martok asked. "Was it destroyed?"

At that moment, as Turbo-lift arrived on Ops. Stepping off of it were Keiko O'Brien and Lt. Ezri Dax, and they looked worried.

"What's wrong?" Kira asked, sensing the women's worried state.

Keiko spoke first.

"I was sitting with Miles, in our guest quarters, when the disturbance happened. And then suddenly he was beamed away."

"The same for me," Ezri stated suddenly. "Julian and I were at Quark's, talking about Commander Riker, when the station quaked. And then suddenly he was beamed away."

"Nog is gone too," Kira told them both. "It's possible during the sparking of the panels up here, and the bright flash on the screens, he was beamed away and no one noticed."

Z'var pulled out a Tricorder and scanned the area where Worf was still standing.

"I am detecting residual Transporter activity," Z'var reported. "Commander Nog was most certainly beamed away as well."

"It was the Jem-Hadar," Worf stated. "They must have new cloaking technology. They must have come through the wormhole, and then beamed away our comrades."

"An interesting theory, Commander Worf," Picard said to Worf. "However, there is no indication that the Jem-Hadar ever exited the wormhole."

Jellico's mind was already jumping ahead.

"Do we have any proof," Jellico, "that the Jem-Hadar entered the other side of the wormhole?"

"The listening post indicated they did," Z'var reported.

"Commodore Jellico is right," Picard said. "Our instruments may indicate that the listening post detected the Jem-Hadar, yet couldn't that information have been falsified?"

"Perhaps," Kira replied to Picard. "But for what purpose; to abduct Miles, Julian and Nog?"

"All we know for certain," Jellico pressed, "is that the Defiant, and three Starfleet officers, are missing."

"What are you saying?" Martok asked. "That the Jem-Hadar never entered the wormhole?"

Kira motioned for Worf to join Lt. S'var.

"Commander Worf," Kira, "You know these systems, could you please assist Lt. S'var and authenticate the data from the listening post."

Without answering, Worf walked down to the lower area and joined S'var at her post. The two, one the present tactical officer, the other a former DS9 tactical officer, went about their task. But even before there efforts were concluded, Jellico was, once again, thinking ahead.

"Let me get this straight," Jellico said. "If the signal from the listening post was artificially created, and there was no Jem-Hadar incursion…"

S'var cut in on Jellico.

"It is confirmed," S'var said. "The data from the listening post can not be verified."

"What does that mean?" Kira asked.

"It means," Worf stated, "that the signal did not come from the listening post. The data was input on this side of the wormhole."

"Someone entered false data?" Sisko said, with doubt in his voice. "Why?"

"I'll tell you why," Jellico stated with a tinge of force in his voice, "it was all a ruse. The Defiant wasn't really destroyed; it was part of the ruse."

"And if I recall," Worf added, "the Defiant was recently equipped with the latest Romulan cloaking device, which has not yet been studied by Starfleet."

"Then what you're implying," Chancellor Martok said, with his gruff voice, "is that someone staged this entire drama before our eyes so that they could get their hands on the Defiant; impressive."

"And they abducted Julian, Miles and Nog in the process," Keiko said, with a worried tone in her voice.

Jellico listened to the worried wife of Miles O'Brien's wife. And as the names of the missing Starfleet officers were mentioned, Jellico's mind went straight to another name of another Starfleet officer who was currently aboard Deep Space Nine as well.

"What we have here, people, is a stolen starship," Jellico said to the others, "This endeavor was designed so perfectly, and effectively, that it has stalled our reaction. Every detail was planned logically, and with purpose, that it seems to have come from the mind of a Vulcan."

"Agreed," Picard said.

Then Jellico went a step further.

"Then I ask you," Jellico said, as he aimed his gaze at Captain Kira Nerys, "where is," he paused so as to make his point, "James…T…Kirk?"

Continued….


	20. Up To Now

James T Kirk: The Next Generation

Our story thus far…

Our story actually begins on stardate 3211. During that "episode", The Gamesters Of Triskelion, Captain Kirk, Lt. Uhura and Ensign Chekov were abducted from the Enteprise, via a powerful Transporter beam. This Transporter beam was so powerful that it was split into two signals. One signal landed on Triskelion instantly, and Kirk-Uhura-Chekov had to endure the events that happened when they were trained as Thralls and had to fight to live.

The other signal landed on Triskelion, but over a hundred years in the future, three years after the events of STAR TREK: NEMESIS. Unfortunately they did not all survive. Chekov and Uhura died instantly, but Captain Kirk managed to live. Triskelion had by that time become uninhabited. Luckily, a Pakled trading vessel came close enough to the planet and detected Kirk's life signs. Jim Kirk eventually made it back to Federation space.

Before his existence became common knowledge, representatives of Department of Temporal Investigations intercepted Kirk. They explained to Kirk that over a hundred years had passed, and they convinced Kirk to keep his existence silent, and to live another life. They provided him a fake name (Robert Crane) and a way of life. They setup an antiques store for Kirk on the world of Timus Prime. Kirk, who now went by the name of Robert Crane, ran the store and was resigned to live the rest of his life as a normal citizen. He met and then fell in love with a Bajoran woman named Myran.

After two years of marriage, and wanting her family to know her husband, Myran convinces him to travel to Bajor. After landing on Bajor, Jim Kirk is in a local clothing store looking for a scarf to buy for his wife. He, while innocently shopping, he witnesses an attack. Four Klingons attack an innocent family of three, right inside the store, and Kirk comes to their rescue. He is able to fight off three of the Klingons, but the forth escapes, and abducts the teenage daughter. Kirk is identified by the girl's father; Benjamin Sisko.

From that moment on Kirk's existence begins to ripple out to the rest of the galaxy. As Kirk's wife is at first angry about the deception, but eventually forgives him. Kirk vows to bring Sisko's daughter back, and becomes part of a rescue team.

The Klingon responsible for the attack blamed his father's dishonor on Sisko and Martok. After abducting Sisko's daughter, Rebecca, the disgruntled Klingon, K'alaf, retreats to his camp on Koralis-IV. K'alaf has planned for every possible contingency, but one; Captain James T Kirk. While Martok and Sisko distract K'alaf from Martok's flagship, Kirk, and Thomas Riker, use the Defiant, under cloak, and launch a ground assault on the camp. With help from Riker's first officer, a Chalnoth named Bakooth, Rebecca is rescued. But, during the attack, Riker is mortally wounded and dies.

Everyone returns to DS9 where Kirk receives a coded message from his now much older friend; Spock. Spock warns the younger Kirk that there are forces in Starfleet that want him, Kirk, dead, and that he must not accompany Captain Picard back to Starfleet Command for the debriefing Admiral Janeway has ordered. Spock aids his friend by sending him a specially made program that Kirk must activate aboard the Defiant.

Moments after a memorial service for Riker aboard DS9 is completed, Kirk, who is aboard the Defiant with his new friend Bakooth, activates the program. DS9 goes to alert under the assumption that a Jem-Hadar attack force is about to emerge from the wormhole. But when the Jem-Hadar fail to appear, and the Defiant, as well Nog-O'Brien-Bashir vanish; Commodore Edwin Jellico suspects only one person would have had the gumption for such an act; James T Kirk.

Ro


	21. No VIP Treatment

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**No V.I.P. Treatment**

-make sure to check out the new cover art at my profile-

Admiral Kathryn Janeway's face dominated the large monitor inside Deep Space Nine's main conference room. The mood in DS9's conference room was very serious as the meeting with Janeway, who was on official business on Starbase 247, on the apparent theft of the Defiant began. On one side of the table sat Captain Kira Nerys, Commander Worf and Captain Benjamin Sisko. On the other side sat Commodore Jellico and Captain Picard. All stared up at the monitor.

"You mean to tell me," Janeway said, her tone was low, and stern, "that James T Kirk is in possession of one of our most powerful starships, has abducted three of our Starfleet personnel, and we have no idea as to why or even where he is now?"

"Exactly," Jellico said. "We are working on a general theory, but the details are somewhat sketchy at best. But one fact we do know is that the Defiant was recently fitted with one of the latest Romulan Cloaking devices which, at the present, is impervious to our current detection grids. I'm afraid, as of yet, we do not have much else to go on."

"Try me," Janeway said, as she shook her head in apparent disappointment. "What I want to know is why?"

"Admiral," Picard said, "You should know that Deep Space Nine's communication array detected the use of an inter-dimensional scrambler."

"Jean-Luc," Janeway explained, "That technology is top-secret, and classified. Who on DS9 even has access to such equipment?"

"Quark," Kira replied, with embarrassment in her voice.

"The Ferengi bar keep has top-secret Starfleet technology?" Janeway bowed her head in near defeat.

"Actually," Kira corrected her, "it's a Romulan designed."

"Even more interesting," Janeway said with a crooked smile. "How did he get his hands on it."

"We do not know," Picard explained. "However, while the scrambler makes detection of such communications difficult, it does not make it impossible to trace the origion of such signals. Our best data shows that the scrambler received no less that three signals, and that they originated," Picard paused, "from a planet in the Romulan Empire, and most likely, it was Romulas."

Janeway sat back further back in her chair.

"Romulas," she stated blankly, but then her eyes refocused as she connected the dots Picard way laying out for her, "Ambassador Spock," Janeway whispered, "He's still there."

"Yes Admiral," Jellico said, "he is still there. Perhaps his loyalties are being tested, and he has enlisted Kirk to obtain one of our most advanced ships so as to hand it over directly to the Romulan military machine."

"I vehemently disagree," Picard stated emphatically, "Ambassador Spock is not a traitor. I would stake my entire career on it."

"How else would you explain it?" Commodore Jellico put to Picard.

"Picard is right," Sisko said, in a deep voice that conveyed annoyance with Jellico's last comment and having watched the conversation unfold without participating. "Ambassador Spock is no traitor. About fifteen minutes ago I spoke with Quark myself, and I warned him that such endeavors as this would most likely cost him his business license in Federation space."

"They will; mark my words," Janeway stated quickly.

"Quark explained to me," Sisko went on, "that he had done business with Spock for many years. And, according to Quark, Spock had become aware of Starfleet assets being aligned against James T Kirk."

"What does that mean?" Jellico asked bluntly.

"Someone in Starfleet, or the Federation, or even both," Sisko explained, "wants Kirk dead."

"I don't believe it," Jellico said flatly.

"I do," Sisko came back with quickly, and just as bluntly. "On more than one occasion, while I commanded DS9, we came up against agencies that I didn't even know existed, such as Section-31. They certainly acted in ways that seemed to circumvent the liberties of Federation citizens. It wasn't right then, and it isn't right now."

"Believe me Ben," Janeway said to Sisko, "Section-31 has been dealt with and they are no longer a threat."

"Excuse me Admiral," Picard chimed in, "from what I have read about Section-31, they were able to stay under the radar for over a hundred years, perhaps even longer. Perhaps there are other such agencies. But more to the point; I know Ambassador Spock, and I do not believe he would act irrationally. If he believes there is a rogue element at work here, and it threatens James Kirk, I think we should step back and try to see the bigger picture he sees. If there is such a threat, then for all our sakes, we need to expose it."

"I will tell you the bigger picture," Jellico fired back. "If Ambassador Spock felt Kirk's life was at risk, then why not go through proper channels? And as for acting irrationally; I have read up on Ambassador Spock's military record. This isn't the first time the Ambassador has been involved in the theft of a Starship (The Menagerie)."

"Nor Kirk's first time either, (The Search for Spock)" Janeway added.

"Admiral," Commander Worf interjected, "that was the other Jim Kirk, the one that came back from Triskelion, not this one. I do not believe he would go through such measures unless he was certain his actions were honorable."

"Admiral Janeway; it doesn't matter what Kirk's motivations are," Jellico insisted, his anger becoming more apparent as each word was spoken. "Sure, it was the other Kirk that swiped the Enterprise to retrieve Spock's body on Genesis all those years ago, all that does is prove that it is in this Kirk's character to do the same, and as it happens to be, this Kirk has; that's why were here."

"You may see it that way," Sisko said from his end of the table, "but I do not. I agree with Captain Picard, I too trust Ambassador Spock's intuition, and I have told you about our dealings with rogue elements of Starfleet, which you seem to dismiss as being irrelevant."

"Didn't he save your daughter?" Jellico fired back. "Is that opinion of yours coming from a Starfleet officer or a thankful father?"

Sisko was about to fire back when Janeway cut him off.

"People," Janeway cut in, "What would you have me do?" Janeway asked. "Just let officers go off half cocked, breaking rules of protocol and challenge the Chain of Command, simply because of intuition? You know I can't allow that."

"His methods may be somewhat over-the-top," Sisko replied, "and I am sure he understands what will happen to him if he fails."

"Agreed," Picard said. "However, there is another aspect we must consider. No matter what we may think of Jim Kirk, to the public he is a historic icon from the past. Children read about him in schools, Starship Captains still look up to him, all this in the face of his being a rule breaker."

"What the citizenry thinks of Kirk is irrelevant," Jellico protested. "Kirk can not be treated any differently than you or I."

"And he wont be," Janeway declared. "However," she said in a more thoughtful tone, "I want you to use Quark's transmitter and send Ambassador Spock a message from me. You tell him that Kirk has two weeks…"

"Two weeks?" Jellico cut in, with a tone of disbelief in his voice.

"Two weeks," Janeway repeated, "to follow this hunch of his. At the end of those two weeks, Kirk is to turn the Defiant back over to Starfleet, and turn himself in for immediate disciplinary action. Those are my terms, and they are non-negotiable."

"And if he refuses?" Jellico asked quickly.

"Then," Janeway said, "I will order Starfleet to use every measure at its disposal to bring Kirk in, and I will assist Romulas in the apprehension of Ambassador Spock and his followers."

The screen went dark.

"Two weeks," Jellico said to Picard and Sisko, as he stood up, "I would have given him two hours. I should let you know," Jellico added, "I will insist to Janeway that I lead the," he searched his mind for the right word, "posse, that will be ordered to find Kirk. Unlike the two of you, I will not confuse the man with the myth."

And with that, Jellico turned around and left the room.

Kira waited for a moment.

"That was rather tense," Kira finally said. "Though, I kind of understand where Commodore Jellico is coming from. Jim is taking a big risk here, and I hope for his sake, it pays off."

"Is there anyway we can contact him?" Sisko asked.

"Perhaps, however," Picard said, "We need to be subtle. If we dig too deeply we may inadvertently tip off who ever it is behind this threat."

"For all we know," Worf added, "they may already know of our efforts."

The others knew exactly what Worf was inferring.

"Jellico may come off as by the book as they come," Picard said, "but even he would not condone such actions, if provable."

"So what do we do now?" Kira asked.

"The only thing we can do," Picard said finally, "we wait; for now."

* * *

The Defiant; cloaked, and traveling through space…

It had been one hour since the Defiant has vanished. Master Chief O'Brien, Commander Julian Bashir and Commander Nog sat patiently in the Defiant's small galley. The doors had been secured, but the replicator was active. Bashir was eating a chocolate sundae, while O'Brien was eating a piece of Cheesecake. Nog was pacing the floor.

"How can you two be eating at a time like this?" Nog asked, nervously. "We should be trying to escape."

"Nog," O'Brien said, "Someone went through a lot of trouble to do this, let's just let it play out before we over react."

Nog went back to pacing, to the amusement of Bashir and O'Brien.

"What's your guess?" O'Brien asked Bashir. "Section-31?"

"Oh I hope not," Bashir said with a look of regret on his face.

"I think we're about to fine out," O'Brien said as the door swished open.

Walking into the room was Bakooth.

"Commander Bakooth," Bashir said, "they abducted you as well?"

"No abduct," Bakooth replied, "volunteer."

"You volunteered?" O'Brien asked, "Just what exactly did you volunteer for?"

As soon as O'Brien's last words were spoken, Jim Kirk entered the galley. It was right at that moment when Bashir, O'Brien and Nog realized they had just entered the world of the bizarre.

-next time; Kirk meets his new crew! Meanwhile, on the distant world of Gamma Trianguli VI (do your research TREK fans) Spock's son faces an unexpected danger!


	22. Side Show

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Time To Tap Dance…**

The mood on the Defiant's galley was one of wonder and disbelief, as Captain James T Kirk explained his and Ambassador Spock's reasoning for "borrowing" the Defiant, and taking the three Starfleet officers, Nog-O'Brien and Bashir, along for the "ride", as Kirk described it. O'Brien and Bashir, who had had dealings with rogue Starfleet elements in the past (Section-31) were easy to convince.

"To be honest," Bashir said with a smile to Kirk, "I kind of miss those days back during the Dominion War when the Chief and I would rush off behind enemy lines, in constant danger…oh, don't get me wrong, it wasn't terrific at the time, but I still miss it."

"That's because," O'Brien said with mock anger, "you never had to face the Cardassian judicial system like I did; twice even!"

"In any event," Bashir said to Kirk, "I'm actually touched that Ambassador Spock, whom I have never met, thought so highly of me to go so far as to acquire my talents in such a way. You should be to," Bashir said to O'Brien and Nog. "Just think about it Miles," he added, "we're on a mission with," he looked back at Kirk, "James T Kirk."

"What about Keiko," O'Brien said to Kirk, "and my children?"

"I have to think that Spock realized we don't have an infinite amount of time to get this done," Kirk replied. "But then again; I can't make you do this. If at anytime you wish to leave, then we'll find somewhere convenient to let you off. You two," Kirk said to Nog and Bashir, "included."

O'Brien thought about it for a moment.

"Julian's right," O'Brien finally decided. "If Ambassador Spock read enough about us to conclude we could help you, then I'm sure he realized I have a wife and children, and wouldn't enlist my help without taking that into consideration."

"Commander Nog," Kirk began to say, "Ben Sisko told me that you have a promising career ahead of you in Starfleet. If you don't want to take a risk that this might harm that future career, you should think about leaving the Defiant before we get further and further into whatever it is we're about to do."

At first Nog gave Kirk a somber look, but then…

"Are you kidding?" Nog asked with a wide grin. "I'm assisting the great James T Kirk. When this is all over, I'll get my friend Jake to turn this adventure into novel, or even better, a holosuite program, and make real Latinum."

"That's not a bad idea," O'Brien said to Nog. "As long as Julian and I get some a piece of the action," O'Brien said, and then he held out his hand, and Nog shook it.

"Deal," Nog said.

"Alright," Kirk said, with a befuddled look on his face, "I have no idea what that was all about but," Kirk said as he looked up at Bakooth, who was standing nearby, "Bakooth and I are happy to have you aboard."

"So what now…" O'Brien began to say when suddenly the alert klaxon sounded.

* * *

Moments later they all rushed onto the bridge. Bakooth, the large warrior from Chalnoth, took his position at the one man helm station, Nog manned the tactical station, O'Brien the engineering station, with Bashir handling the communications/science station behind the command seat, which was where Kirk sat.

"I've deactivated Ambassador Spock's program," O'Brien stated as he studied the power outlays of the ship, "On your command, Captain Kirk, we can go off script and deal with what ever we have to deal with."

"Good thinking," Kirk said, and then he pivoted his seat toward where Nog sat, "what can you tell me mister?" Kirk asked.

"There are three attack raiders, sir, and their harassing a transport." Nog replied, "More than likely the raider crews are Orion pirates," Nog added.

"On screen now," Bashir added as he engaged the main screen.

"You still have Orion pirates in this time I see," Kirk stated.

"The more things change the more things remain the same, wouldn't you say Captain Kirk?" Bashir asked rhetorically.

"Well," Kirk said, with a nod to Bashir's statement, "that transport isn't going to last long. Here's what we're going to do…"

Three Corvette-class raiders were swarming around the large transport vessel that they had tricked out of warp speed via a fake distress call. It was a common tactic used by Orion space pirates for years that preyed on weaker vessels for a meager existence. The constant barrages of medium powered blasts were taking their toll on the transport vessel.

The pirates' goal was to weaken the resolve of the transport's captain, and then demand payment from him, be it out right latinum or any valuable goods in the transport's cargo holds. Once the payment was completed, the transport ship would be granted passage through the area of space they were in. The pirates, for their part, never killed anyone on the ships they pilfered from, afraid that such out right murder would attract a more steady Starfleet presence.

The vessels the pirates used had once belonged to the Maquis, meaning they were once frontline vessels in the D.M.Z. between Federation and Cardassian borders. The ships were highly maneuverable and were very efficient, when used in pack formations. And, as the transport they were attacking began to slow to an eventual halt, it seemed as if the three Corvettes had accomplished their task. But that suddenly changed when, from out of nowhere, the Defiant de-cloaked and engaged the three raiders. The 'muscle car' of a ship dove into the fray, spinning on its axis as it did. Bakooth expertly piloted the craft, following Kirk's orders as the legend from tomorrow barked coordinates to his crew. The Defiant ripped loose a volley of rapid fire torpedoes on the closest raider, and then the Corvette-class raider exploded.

"One down, two to go," Bashir announced to the others, with excitement in his voice.

"Calm yourself, doctor," Kirk said with humor in his voice.

The Defiant ducked and weaved, fired its Gatling-like torpedoes, and then one by one, damaged each of the other two raiders to a point where they both regrouped and then retreated, as if running away liked scared coyotes fleeing the scene, thankful for the fact they were still alive.. The commanders of the surviving two raiders had realized that they were severely out gunned by the Defiant.

"That," Jim Kirk said from the command chair on the jubilant bridge of the Defiant, "was fun."

Bakooth, who manned the helm, looked back at Kirk with respect.

"Bakooth…never see…that maneuver before," Bakooth said. "It much like…Kirk maneuver beta..two..seven..eight."

"Two seven what?" Kirk asked.

O'Brien, who manned the engineering, chuckled softly.

"All of your famous maneuvers and strategies," O'Brien explained to Kirk, "are taught and practiced by cadets for an entire semester at the academy."

Kirk was about to respond, when suddenly Nog spoke up.

"Captain Kirk," Nog cut in from communications, "I have contacted the transport and they send their regards."

"Tell them we will still accompany them to their destination," Kirk told Nog. "Just incase the Orions return."

Kirk watched as Nog followed his orders, and was proud of the young Ferengi officer and there rest of his ragtag crew. Thanks to Spock's program, the five man crew, Kirk-Bakooth-Bashir-Nog and O'Brien were more than capable of getting by without a standard crew, and the brief encounter with the Orion space pirates went a long way to prove just that.

But Kirk was more than confident that the challenges ahead would not be so easy to solve. And…he was right.

* * *

On Deep Space Nine, Commodore Jellico was in the midst of concluding his conversation with two Federation security agents who were speaking to him from the Federation complex on Bajor.

"Find Myran Crane, Kirk's wife," he told the two security agents. "Eventually we may need leverage against Kirk, and for now, she's all have. Follow her, but keep your distance. When I give you the word; apprehend her."

The communication ended, and Jellico hoped the situation would never lead to the forceful apprehension of Kirk's wife. But Jellico always like to be prepared for any contingency, and it was quite evident, so were Kirk and Spock.

-next time; Spock gets answers!


	23. Generations

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Generations**

**S'vath (son of Spock) is played by Michael C Hall (Dexter)**

**Amanda Chapel (grand-daughter of Christine Chapel) is played by Ail Larter (Heroes)**

**You can see what they both look like by clicking the second link at my profile...**

**(I want to think Klingon Kitten for suggesting these two for the roles...)**

For thousands of years, the humans who lived on Gamma Trianguli VI worshiped an entity they referred to as Vaal. Their only contact with the entity had been through a large machine, which resembled the head of a serpent, built into the side of a rock face, which the humans believed to be alive. The humans were unaware that the machine was nothing more than a computer, which provided them a perfect existence, in exchange for nourishment to run its hidden power source. On stardate 3715.3, the USS Enterprise explored the planet and Captain James T Kirk exposed the truth of the machine's true existence to the human inhabitants of the world.

The humans of Gamma Trianguli VI had no concept of the basic constructs of life, their culture having been controlled by the machine for thousands of year. After the destruction of Vaal, Starfleet established a small presence on the world to assist the growth of a people that were, in essence, starting all over.

Over a hundred years after the initial contact with Kirk and the Federation, Starfleet had accomplished their goal. A communal government had been established, and after nearly two generations, the people of Trianguli VI had slowly progressed and had now built small villages, learned to cultivate land, and even more enjoyable for the people, they learned about the advantages of love and, of course, procreation and the rearing of children, concepts they knew very little about…

Scientific duck-blinds were usually used by Starfleet on such worlds, but ever since the initial contact made by Kirk over a hundred years ago on Gamma Trianguli VI, the knowledge of a galactic community had been advanced beyond cultures of similar worlds of development. It had been decided that covering up what had been learned in that initial contact would have been a contemptuous decision, thus, the humans knew of Starfleet, of civilizations beyond their planet, but they accepted the fact it wasn't yet their time to join it. So an agreement was struck where they would allow Starfleet to maintain a small presence on their world in exchange to progress at their own level.

* * *

Gamma Trianguli VI was one of the most beautiful planets in the known universe, or so, that was the opinion of Lt. Amanda Chapel. Amanda had lived on the m-Class planet for nearly a year, and was the chief medical officer assisting a science team sent to the world for cultural and scientific studies, with the collateral task of checking up on the progress of the indigenous humanoid population of the world, with as little contact with them as possible. It was an ironic posting due to the fact Amanda's grandmother, for whom her middle name was given for, had been part of Kirk's crew all those years ago when First Contact had been made.

Amanda lay naked beneath the blankets of her bed, and slowly walked her fingers over the other side of the bed, hoping to find her husband S'vath sleeping beside her. Her husband was Commander S'vath, a Vulcan in his mid 30s, and was the mission commander. He also happened to be the only son of the legendary Vulcan Ambassador Spock.

But as her fingers crept across the warm bed sheet, she came to realize that S'vath was no longer in bed, which made her frown. She had become so aroused during the dream she had just been having, that when she awoke, Amanda hoped to share an intimate moment with S'vath; but alas, as usual, he was up and out of bed, letting her sleep-in.

"Well," she said to her self seductively, "there's more than one way to skin a cat."

She rolled over and opened up one of the drawers on the night stand next to her bed, and looked inside of it, and licked her lips.

"You'll do nicely," she said as she reached inside.

Suddenly her concentration was disrupted by a low toned beeping sound coming from the closet. She got out of bed, and put on a robe, and then she made her way to the closet and opened it. The beeping sound was coming from the special transmitter that S'vath's father, Ambassador Spock, had given him. They hadn't received a signal from Spock for over a year, congratulating S'vath and Amanda on their marriage to each other. Amanda pressed several buttons and then the screen was activated, and familiar face of an old Vuclan appeared.

Spock raised his hand in the traditional Vulcan way.

"Greetings Amanda," Spock said.

Amanda tried to reciprocate with the same hand greeting, but her fingers just couldn't do it.

"I'm so sorry," Amanda said to Spock, "I've been trying those hand exercises you had your son show me, but I can't get these last two fingers to line up," she smiled, with pure embarrassment in her eyes.

"In time, you will. It is good to see you," Spock said. "I trust you and S'vath have found your research on Gamma Trianguli V rewarding."

"His research really," Amanda Chapel corrected her father in law, "I'm just here to make sure no one gets hurt, especially S'vath, who seems to think he is impervious to pain and death."

"Yes," Spock said with a knowing look in his face, "S'vath was always trying to find new ways to injure himself; rock climbing being his favorite catalyst," Spock said with slight irritation in his voice.

"If you would wait for a moment, I will find him. Usually…" Amanda began to turn to leave when suddenly S'vath came into the room they shared, which was situated inside the small base camp that was several miles from the nearest native settlement.

"I am sorry if the transmission woke you," S'vath to his wife.

"No, not at all," Amanda said with a smile, "I was already getting up when the transmitter activated."

S'vath stepped past his wife, and over to the communication transmitter, and then took it out and set it on the large desk inside the room, and then looked down at the image of his father.

"Father," S'vath began to say, then he remembered to raise his hand and gave his father the proper Vulcan greeting, "it is good to see you."

"S'vath, Amanda informs me that you are still taking great risks with your life," Spock said in a slightly fatherly tone, "you will find, as I often did, that even the body of a Vulcan has its limits. In fact, it was on that very world, where I was nearly killed by an overly aggressive plant."

"Trying to save your captain," S'vath interjected.

"As for those flowers," Amanda informed Spock, "we have had two minor injuries from those plants. Thankfully the serum that Dr. McCoy came up with back then still works to this very day."

"Father," S'vath said, "you are one to talk about risks. Are you still on Romulas?"

"I assure you, my life is in no jeopardy," Spock said, with confidence in his voice.

"Yeah, I bet," S'vath said, not believing his father. "Leonard McCoy told us many stories about the so called jeopardy free missions, and how Jim Kirk had to rein you in all the time."

"Doctor McCoy was always known to exaggerate his memories," Spock said in defense, "and it is ironic you mentioned Jim Kirk. At this very moment, Jim Kirk is on his way to Gamma Trianguli VI."

"Umm," Amanda said with disbelief, "Jim Kirk is heading here? I thought he died on Veridian III."

"He did," Spock replied. "This is a different, and yet very same Jim Kirk."

Spock explained the unique nature of the younger Jim Kirk. Both S'vath and Amanda listened with mouths wide opened.

"So let me get this straight," S'vath finally said, "you helped him steal the Defiant, and now he is heading here? Why?"

"I have to agree with S'vath," Amanda said, "Starfleet Command is well aware of the fact that S'vath is your son. The first person they're going to suspect helping Kirk, after you, is S'vath."

"You're logic is flawless, my wife," S'vath said with pride in his voice. "I could never grasp logic as fast as you have."

"Indeed, I am most impressed," Spock added.

"Father," S'vath said, "what do you want me to do? I will drop what I am doing and I will help your friend in any way that I can."

"Wait," Amanda said, "you could get into trouble S'vath, big trouble, if they find out you're helping a fugitive who has stolen one of the most advanced ships in the Starfleet."

"Perhaps," S'vath said, "however, father knows quite well that getting into trouble is one of my strong attributes."

"No doubt inherited from your mother," Spock added.

"Don't blame S'vath's free spirit on T'pring only; I've read your record too," Amanda said to Spock, "you didn't always seem to follow a logical path, in your dealings with Starfleet."

There was silence.

"I suppose not," Spock admitted. "However, if you decide not to assist, I will accept your decision, and I will simply move on to my second option."

S'vath looked at his wife, and held her close, and then he looked back to his father on the screen.

"We will help Jim Kirk," S'vath replied.

"Very well," Spock said. "The Defiant should be arriving at your position in seven standard hours. I will try to contact you then." Spock raised his hand again, and gave the Vulcan hand salute again. "Live long and prosper; my son."

"Live long and prosper; my father," S'vath replied.

The screen went dark, and then S'vath put the device back inside of the closet. He turned around and saw his wife staring at him with a tinge of anger in her eyes.

"I appreciate your wanting to help Jim Kirk," Amanda began to say. "I just hope it doesn't get you in trouble, or killed."

"It is strange you should say that," S'vath said to her. "Your own mother, after your biological father died, eventually ended her grieving and married a Nausicaan. That is what I call taking a risk."

"You do have a point," Amanda said with a smile, "after her honeymoon she had to get three of her ribs mended, and her pelvic bone reset. But it doesn't change the fact that helping Kirk could upset your life, hell both of our lives, in ways you can not predict. Does that sound logical to a Vulcan?"

S'vath held her close and breathed deeply.

"No," he finally admitted, "I guess not." Then he noticed that the top drawer of her night stand was opened. "Umm, did you awake sexually aroused?"

She nodded her head, and let her hand slide down to his backside.

S'vath picked her off the ground, and fell with her onto the bed, reached out, and closed the drawer.

"You won't need that device now," S'vath told her as he opened her robe.

Continued…


	24. A  Moment of Your Time

**James T Kirk: TNG**

**A Moment of Your Time**

The Defiant was six hours from arriving at Gamma Trianguli VI, and was traveling under cloak. The ship had come with in sensor range of several other ships, including two starships, and had gone un-detected. Commander Bashir, who was manning the communications station, had monitored several coded messages, but there were no communication warnings on any Starfleet channels mentioning the theft of the Defiant.

"You're telling there isn't anything? Not even a wanted poster for us out there?" Kirk asked, as he stood next to Bashir.

"No sir," Bashir said. "Its odd. You would think by now that Starfleet would have sent some kind of message, a warning out about us."

"Maybe they don't want anyone to know," O'Brien said, as he stood up from the engineering post on the bridge and came over to Kirk. "They way I see it there are two possibilities," O'Brien went on to say. "Either they're trying to keep it secret, so as not to cause a panic, or, and I admit this is highly unlikely, they think what we're doing is right."

"Maybe they've already awarded us commendations," Nog added excitedly.

"I wouldn't bet on it," Bashir said to Nog.

Kirk, sensing weariness in Bakooth, walked over to the helm, and patted the large Chalnoth warrior on the back.

"Why don't you take a rest Commander Bakooth," Kirk said, "you haven't left the helm since this all started."

"No rest…needed," Bakooth said.

Kirk knew the truth was other wise. He could tell when one of his officers was over doing it in order to impress everyone else.

"I'll tell you what," Kirk said to Bakooth, "why don't you head down to the galley, get some food, and then head right back up there. I would not want a member of my crew fighting fatigue should we encounter trouble."

"I…need no…" Bakooth began to say when suddenly he was cut off by Nog.

"Captain Kirk," Nog stated in a serious tone. "The long range sensors are detecting another ship on course for Gamma Trianguli VI."

"Captain," Bashir added quickly, "We're detecting a low frequency signal from that other ship. If I'm reading this correctly," Bashir said, as he read the readings on his screen, "Admiral Janeway is aboard that vessel."

"It's the Delta Flyer," Nog said from Ops, as he too read more of the readings on his monitors.

"The Delta Flyer; what is that?" Kirk asked O'Brien.

"A nice little ship," O'Brien replied, with respect in his voice. "She was constructed by Janeway's crew several years ago, when the Admiral was a captain, and she and the crew of the Voyager were stranded in the Delta-Quadrant."

_(If you head to my profile, I have posted a cool image of the Defiant with the Delta-Flyer...how cool is that?)_

"And she's aboard her?" Kirk asked. "coincidence?"

"I doubt it," Bashir said to Kirk. "She must know where we are heading."

"But how would she have known so fast?" Nog asked, with worry in his voice, and a slight gulp.

"I've been to Gamma Trianguli VI before," Kirk told the others. "Janeway might have guessed Spock could have sent me there."

"I find that hard to believe sir," O'Brien said. "You had been to many worlds by the time you vanished from that era, how could she, out of all those worlds, have guessed you would have gone to this one."

"I think I know why," Bashir said suddenly. "According to the Defiant's library computer, there is a Starfleet expedition on Gamma Trianguli VI. The mission commander is Commander S'vath."

"S'vath," Kirk said, recognizing the name, "that's the name of Spock's son."

"Yes," Bashir said, "Admiral Janeway would have known this as well. But why not send someone else to confront us?" Bashir asked. "Why come here herself?"

There was a brief silence, until...

"Because," Kirk told the others, "she isn't here to stop us; she's here to talk."

"Or," O'Brien said with a cautious tone, "there are other forces beyond our sensor range, or heck, she may have convinced Chancellor Martok to lend her some cloaked vessels of her own; we can not know for sure."

Kirk thought for a moment.

"All valid concerns," Kirk finally said, as he made his way to the command chair, "I'm going to gamble that she is here on her own, and taking a big risk to do so. Drop the cloak, and take a position in front of the Delta-Flyer," Kirk said, as he sat down into the command chair. "Its high time I talked to Admiral Janeway."

"Big…risk…" Bakooth said, as he pivoted around to face Kirk.

"I know, my big friend," Kirk said with a smile, "thank goodness we have you at the helm incase the boogey man jumps out from behind the bushes."

"Bakooth could be the boggey man," O'Brien added with a slight chuckle.

"Boogie…man?" Bakooth asked in a confused tone, as he turned back around to face the main screen.

The Defiant decloaked and took a position foward of the Delta Flyer.

"We're receiving a signal," Bashir announced to Kirk, "and it is indeed Admiral Janeway."

"On screen," Kirk replied.

And then, the view of the approaching Delta Flyer on the main screen was replaced by the image of a woman that James T Kirk had heard so much about, and had proven to be a thorn in his side; Admiral Kathryn Janeway.

* * *

Planet Bajor…

The two Federation security guards sent by Commodore Jellico to monitor Myran, Kirk's Bajoran wife, had taken up positions not far from the home of Myran's mother. The home was nestled near five other homes that each bordered a stream that winded its way through the five properties. Several other homes could be seen in the distance in what was a small village several kilometers from Ashalla, the capital city of Bajor.

The two guards, human males, were camped on a secluded hill that over looked the five homes, and had been viewing Myran movements with inferred devices, for when she was obscured inside the structure, as well as high powered binoculars for when she was in view on the outside of the house. They had been observing Myran, and had seen nothing out of the ordinary.

Myran's niece had given birth to an infant, thus not only Myran, but several other family members had arrived in the past several days to see the new born infant. It was actually more of a family union than a get together.

"Do you think the Commodore will have us apprehend her?" Security officer Jones, a middle-aged man of African decent asked his partner.

"I doubt it," Security officer Garrison replied. "He talks a tough game, but Commodore Jellico won't act out side of the law. Besides, he'd have to answer to Janeway, and who would want that?"

As the two men leered at the house through their binoculars, they were unaware of the two hands that were inching their way toward the back of their necks. And then, in a smooth motion, the two hands gripped the lower part of both men's necks, and applied the Vulcan neck pinch. (No readers, it isn't Spock).

Several hours later Jones awoke from the neck pinch. He rustled Garrison enough to wake the other man. They both scurried about for their inferred devices, and, their binoculars, and began scanning the area. In several moments they came to realize the simple truth.

"She's gone," Officer Jones said with worry in his voice.

* * *

Elsewhere on Bajor...

Captain Benjamin Sisko looked out the front window of his home, and watched as Rebecca and Kasidy were preparing the frontyard picnic table with condiments and dinner ware. It was Bar-B-Q night at the Sisko home, which meant plenty of ribs, burgers, chicken and corn to eat. Several Bajoran neighbors would soon arrive to enjoy the meal. But at that instant, Sisko was holding one of the old style flip-top communicators.

"Myran is safe," a voice said through the communicator.

"Well done," Sisko said. "Are you sure there was no harm done to the security officers."

"The Vulcan took great care," the voice replied, "and now Kirk's wife is safe inside the Vulcan embassy and no one knows."

"Thank you Quark," Sisko said. "I owe you one. Did you secure your inter-dimensional transmitter?" Sisko asked.

"Jellico will never find it," Quark's voice replied. "I hope you know that I expect to be well compensated for all of this cloak and dagger."

"I have no doubt you will be," Sisko replied with a knowing smile. "Now, send a signal to Spock and let him know our statis."

Sisko closed the communicator and waved back at a smiling Kasidy. He put the communicator back into his pocket, and headed out to the picnic area to flip the burgers.

continued...


	25. A Moment of Your Time part two

**James T Kirk: TNG**

**A Moment of Your Time**

**Part two….**

The mish-mash crew of the Defiant looked up at the main view screen as the image of Admiral Kate Janeway phased into view. At first her face was stern, as she observed the crew on her end of the transmission, but then she smiled. Was it a genuine smile of a friend? Or the smile of a cat looking down on the prey it has played with before deciding to devour it.

"I want you to know, James T Kirk, or I should say, Captain James T Kirk, that you have proven to be one heck of a thorn in my backside."

"Admiral Janeway," Kirk said, wanting to get to the point, "I would be lying to you if I told you my crew wasn't worried about de-cloaking, as we have, and being blitzed by an unseen fleet. And, considering what little I have come to know of you, we have good reason to be worried."

"I assure you," Janeway said, emphatically, "I am not your enemy, nor am I here to stop you."

"Then why are you here?" Kirk came back with quickly.

"As it turns out," Janeway said, "I have suspected a rogue element with-in Starfleet for the past several months. However, in my position, I haven't been able to do really anything about it, but keep my mouth close, and observe. And I couldn't risk contacting you overtly, so, I had Captain Tom Paris arrange use of the Delta Flyer, so I could contact you face to face," the image on the screen panned down to show Captain Tom Paris waving, and then it panned back up to Janeway. "Don't mind him," Janeway added dismissively, "his lack of control is widely known of and, despite my warnings to stop, he still can prove to be more annoying." Humor could be heard in her voice.

"Thank you," Tom's voice could be heard saying off screen.

"What about Spock," Kirk said, warming to Janeway as he spoke, "is he aware of your position?"

"He is," Janeway said. "And as it turns out, we have a contact that Captain Picard, Captain Sisko, and my self, are all using to parcel messages to Romulas. But I must warn you," Janeway added, "on the surface, I will have to be seen to be against you. To buffer that point, I must allow Jellico to continue hunting the Defiant down, and I will deny any involvement, for now, should you be captured. I hate to say it Jim," Kateway said with a smile, "you and your crew are on you own. But if I read your record correctly; this kind of mission was no stranger to your counterpart, nor should it be for you, at least that's what I hope.'

Nog raised his hand, as if her were being lectured to by a professor at the academy.

"Yes Commander," Janeway said, "what can I help you with?"

"Well, I don't know how to put this, but…" Nog began to say, before Kirk cut him off.

"This won't affect any of these men's careers will it?" Kirk asked, bluntly. "They have risked their careers, and families, to help me in this endeavor."

"Well," Janeway said, "your families will be safe. In fact, your wife," Janeway said to Kirk, "was being followed by Starfleet security. Ben Sisko and Quark, with help from the Vulcan consulate on Bajor, were able to get her to safety inside the Vulcan Embassy. They won't dare touch her there." Then she looked over at O'Brien. "Master Chief O'Brien, as for you wife Keiko, and your two children, Picard and Sisko called on favors owed to them by the Tholians, and they are seeing to their safety."

"What about my uncle Quark?" Nog asked. "I'm actually quite surprised he is helping as much as he is, but they might come after him too."

"One thing I have learned," Janeway said with a smile, "your uncle is one of the most resourceful beings in the entire universe. He'll be fine. Now, as for your careers," she told them, her voice becoming more serious in tone, "I can't guarantee you will still have careers when this is over, for obvious reasons." Janeway said, with regret in her voice. "Just succeed at whatever you're going to do, so it doesn't become an issue."

"We have to go," Tom said in the distance. "Someone's in the neighborhood.

"He's right," Nog said from the tactical station on the Defiant. "Long range sensors are detecting a Starship. It doesn't seem as if they haven't noticed us yet, but there's no way to know for sure."

"We better get going," O'Brien told Kirk.

Jim Kirk looked up at the screen at the woman who had become such a nuisance, but whom now, Kirk considered a friend.

"Thank you for letting us know," Kirk said to Janeway, and then he smiled his legendary warm smile, "Perhaps, when this is all over, we can have dinner."

Janeway blushed, and then her image faded away.

"Alright, now that that is over, engage the Cloak Device," Kirk said to O'Brien, "and. Bakooth, please resume course to Gamma Trianguli VI."

Bakooth did as ordered, and as soon as the Defiant cloaked, Bakooth put the ship back on course for Gamma Trianguli Vi.

Deep Space Nine's promenade was alive with new visitors, as the new arrivals shopped the various stores that sold all kinds of goods. Several had headed straight for Quarks, for a turn of the Dabo wheel, or a highly priced exotic drink.

Once such visitor, a man who was a dealer of gems, and other rare stones, took a seat at the bar next one of the bar's regulars; Morn. But, in actuality, the man wasn't really going to the tradeshow at all. He had arrived in the Bajoran sector for one reason and one reason alone; to kill James T Kirk. The man's name, alias actually, was Jaden Weer. He was one of the most, if not the most, successful hired assassins. He would kill Kirk, or die trying.

Continued…


	26. Tear of a Warrior

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Tear for a Warrior**

**(Somber cover art for this segment can be seen at my profile. Its the only link there...)**

Mass confusion swarmed over Deep Space Nine like it hadn't since the days of the Dominion War. A massive explosion inside the internal workings of the Cardassian built station reverberated through the central hub. It had happened so suddenly that there had been no warning.

The internal lighting of the station had been switched over to auxiliary power, meaning what light remained was dim, tainted with smoke, and cast eeriness throughout. While the damage control teams fought the various fire caused by the explosion, others searched for casualties, and there were literally hundreds.

Captain Kira stood outside her office, blood coming from a gash on her forehead, which had been caused when she was thrown to the ground when the gravity field had been unstable, right after the explosion had occurred. Lt. S'var, the Andorian female whom Kira had come to know as a friend, wasn't so lucky. A beam had fallen from the support structure, and crushed the Andorian, killing her instantly.

As casualty reports were handed to Kira, she let what was left of her command crew deal with the emergency clean up; Kira had to figure out how it had happened, and why. If it had been some sort of criminal act, she had to know in a hurry so that the perpetrators could be caught. She ordered an immediate halt to all ships prepping for departure, as well as a detailed ledger as to which ships had departed in the two hours leading up to the blast.

Kira sat back in her chair, in her office, to take a quick breather. Constable D'aneve, the middle aged Betazoid male who had served in what had been Odo's position years ago, stepped into Kira's office. The door to the office had been damaged, and was stuck in a half-way open position.

"Kira," D'aneve said to her, "what happened?"

The Betazoid came over and surveyed several data pads that were spread across her desk. It was clear Kira didn't have an answer.

"Still no answers," Kira said, but her tone was tainted with anger. "But I know an attack when I see one. This was no accident," Kira stated flatly.

At that instant, Chancellor Martok stepped into Kira's office. He had been visiting the station when the explosion had happened. The look on his face was dejected, and Kira knew instantly it was because the Klingon had terrible news.

"What's wrong?" Kira asked softly, closing her eyes as she prepared for to hear his answer.

"Worf is dead!" Martok stated.

A blank look came over Kira's face, as the news sunk in. She and Worf had a professional relationship based on respect, which dated back to when the Klingon had first arrived on DS9.

"How?" Kira asked, with a flat tone to her voice.

"He and Alexander were on the promenade," Martok replied with anger, "The explosion caused a section of the upper deck to fall in on them. Worf pushed his son out of the way, but was unable to save himself." Martok was visibly upset. "And now he is gone!" Martok barked.

_(Commander Worf had been on loan to Martok, unspecified reasons...he was still a member of Picard's crew at the time of his passing..)_

Kira looked down at her desk, trying to compose her self. It was the second time that one of her friends had died recently, Thomas Riker, her lover and father of the child she was pregnant with, being the first. And now it was Worf, a close friend from the past. Then she looked up at Martok with an intense look of fire in her eyes.

"We'll find out what happened," Captain Kira told Martok in a low toned voice. Then she looked at D'aneve. "I know the computers are down, but the moment they come back up I want you to scour every piece of data before the blast. And the moment the core is reachable, I want to personally go down there and investigate the blast area."

"I'll head down there now and try to speed the damage control parties up." D'aneve said, as he turned and headed out of Kira's office.

"I want to be there too!" Martok said loudly. "If I find out this was an act of a coward, I will hunt them down and I will rip their heads off!"

And with that, Martok barged out of the Kira's office, nearly smashing the inoperable door off its battered holdings.

"You won't be alone," Kira said to Martok's back as he charged out of view.

* * *

Elsewhere on DS9, inside one of the living quarters, Jaden Weer sat quietly on a bed and went through streams of data he had obtained from DS9's main computer. He had accessed one of the computer terminals, and then detonated the special explosive he had brought on to the station. The explosive had been a drone, with a pin-prick size of anti-matter hidden inside of it, no larger than an insect, which Jaden had released once he arrived on the station. The drone, which was also cloaked, was programmed to find the station's power core. Once the core had been found, the drone landed, waiting to be detonated.

The explosion could have destroyed the entire space station, killed Jaden in the process, but he had to take the risk. He had to cover his tracks after his intrusion into DS9's computer system, or die trying. The access codes he had obtained allowed him to retrieve top-secret files, and hopefully, for him, any information about James T Kirk. Jaden also knew that eventually, sooner than later, the truth about the explosion would be known. And, with any luck, it would be determined it was an act of violence related to Kirk's return. Jaden had left enough clues that it was.

In any event, the explosion served two purposes. Garnering short term intelligence, and sending a message to Starfleet that there were forces out there, like Jaden Weer, that would stop at nothing, even killing hundreds of innocents lives in the process, to return Kirk back to where he belonged; history.

Kira stepped out of her office, as an ensign handed her the latest casualty report. The blast had initially killed eighty-three, with twenty more in life threatening circumstances. She looked down the list until she came across Worf's name. She still couldn't believe he was dead. Worf had always seemed to have a second sense about death, and was able to avoid it so many times; but not this time. She felt a tear come down from her eyes, and she knew what it was; a tear for a warrior, the most bitter of them all.

_**Continued...next season! When...**_

Jaden Weer sets his sites on the wife of James T Kirk: Myran!

Jim Kirk finally meets S'vath, the son of Spock!

Scotty meets up with an old friend of Japanese descent!

Martok finds out the truth about Worf's death, and goes for blood!

Commodore Edwin Jellico and Captain Sisko go at it!

William T Riker returns from the Gamma-Quadrant.

and…

Ambassador Spock changes sides!


	27. The Pretext of Bajoran Tea

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Pretext of Bajoran Tea**

Captain Kirk and Commander Nog materialized on the planet of Trianguli Gamma VI. The planet was lush with plant life, a virtual paradise. Nog looked at Kirk and didn't see happiness on the human's face.

"Captain Kirk, this world is beautiful," Nog said, "how can you not be as excited as I am; you've been here before."

Kirk nodded in agreement as he looked around the immediate area, which was indeed a virtual Garden of Eden.

"Ohhhh," Kirk said softly, "it is beautiful, Commander Nog, maybe… even… too beautiful. I lost some really good men here that first time, and the loss of even one of my crew, on a world… such as this one, will always taint my opinion of it." Kirk reached for his communicator and flipped it open. "Kirk to Defiant, Transport completed."

"Aye sir," O'Brien's voice said, through the communicator.

"Go ahead and have Bakooth take the Defiant to the planet's southern polar region. O'Brien; are you sure the magnetic fields down there will obscure the ship enough so that you can power down the Cloaking Device?"

"I'm quite sure," O'Brien said. "Unfortunately, the strong magnetic fields that will act like a vale around the Defiant; will also make communications iffy, at best. Sir, are you sure you want to do this?"

Kirk pondered O'Brien's words for a moment.

"Quite sure," Kirk replied. "If we get any unwanted visitors up there, Cloak the ship and wait until the situation clears."

"Sir," the voice of Bashir could now be heard saying. "Perhaps I should beam down there just incase of any emergencies."

"Doctor, if our information is correct," Kirk replied, "then there is already a medical officer down here. We'll be fine. Give us," Kirk paused, "give us two-hours and then come back up here and check-up on our progress."

"We'll do," O'Brien said, "Defiant out."

Kirk closed his communicator, and looked at Nog, who was looking up at him with a smile.

"What is it commander?" Kirk asked.

"They have old archival film of you," Nog explained, "at the academy. I remember watching a recording of you using one of those old style communicators, like the one in your hand now, and I was thinking how amazing it was to actually see the real Captain Kirk flipping it open, like you did, talking the way you talked. It was really exciting to see."

Kirk shook his head. The hero worship he had been encountering was nearly at nausea, but there was nothing he could really do about it.

"How far are we from camp again?" Kirk asked, knowing that Nog would be distracted from his reverie.

Nog activated his Tricorder, and studied the data on the small device's data displays.

"Just through the foliage and trees over there, and perhaps two kilometers or so," Nog replied.

"Alright, but now listen, and listen carefully," Kirk told the young Ferengi officer, "keep your eyes open. There are plants on this planet that can kill. I'll do my best to spot them, but still, I want you to pay attention."

It was apparent to Nog that Kirk was being overly protective.

"I know Captain," Nog assured Kirk, knowing that the captain was genuinely worried about him. "Unlike Dr. Bashir, I was paying close attention at the short mission briefing you gave us."

"Good," Kirk said with a smile. "And while you mention it, I still don't understand what it is with doctors; they never seem to pay attention at mission briefings."

And with that, the two Starfleet officers began their trek through the trees, plants and general foliage that covered the planet. One of them, Nog, was in standard Star Fleet attire, while Kirk was in the uniform he had worn in his time.

When the Defiant had arrived at the planet, an hour earlier, it had been decided not to communicate with the Starfleet camp on the planet, in lieu of the fact that the camp may have been warned about the theft of the Defiant, and Kirk wanted to avoid any unwanted confrontations. Even though the Defiant hadn't intercepted any such warnings, it was possible, while they were escorting the civilian transport vessel they had saved from the Orion pirates, or in the short time they had met with Admiral Janeway, that a signal may have slipped past them.

As Kirk and Nog made their way, they were unaware that they were being watched…

**Planet Bajor;**

**The rustic setting of the Kendra Province, and the home of Benjamin Sisko…**

Benjamin Sisko poured two glasses of tea, one for himself, and one for Commodore Jellico. Jellico had come to Sisko's home on Bajor on an unexpected visit, and had found Sisko sitting on his porch, reading a book. Sisko pulled up another chair, and had retrieved a hot tea kettle from the kitchen inside.

"So," Sisko, wearing civilian clothing, said as he handed Jellico his tea, "what can I help you with Commodore?"

Jellico sipped the Bajoran tea and nodded his head in approval.

"This is really fine tea." Jellico said approvingly, "It has more flavor than the Earl Grey Jean-Luc is always pushing on us."

"Commodore, just over the hill there," Sisko said, as he motioned to a ridge of hills that could be seen from the porch of his house, where he and Jellico were sitting, "is nearly five thousand acres of Bajoran tea leaves. They have devoted an entire science department on the aspects of perfecting tea."

"I would say," Jellico said, "they have succeeded. Now, as for why I am here. I have a delicate matter to discuss with you," Jellico began to say, his voice in a more serious tone.

"And what would that be?" Sisko asked.

"To the point," Jellico came back with, "two of my men, Starfleet security, were sent here to Bajor with one simple task. That task was to keep a watchful eye on Jim Kirk's Bajoran wife."

"Myran, as I recall," Sisko said, "I have met her once or twice. She was there the day my daughter was abducted by the Klingons."

"Starfleet is of the opinion," Jellico went on to say, "that there may come a time when they may need to use her as leverage against Kirk, if he doesn't return to the fold, and turn himself in."

"That seems a bit harsh, don't you think?" Sisko asked.

"Not at all," Jellico replied. "If you think about it, there isn't much of Kirk's world alive in these times. She is the one element from this time that Starfleet believes they could hold over Kirk. The man has stolen one of our most advanced ships. What if he's on some crazy Captain Ahab revenge scheme and tries to start a war with the Romulans, or the Gorn, or some other element from his past? This is a serious matter."

"And so your men," Sisko said, after sipping tea, "were to keep an eye on her and bring her in if and when conditions warranted."

"Exactly," Jellico said with conviction in his voice.

"I can't say that I…agree…with that line of reasoning," Sisko said with a slight look of worry on his face. "But that is Starfleet's concern, not mine; I'm retired."

At that second, Jellico's eyes became intense; it was no longer time to beat around the bush.

"You're not fooling me, Ben," Jellico said with sarcasm in his voice. "You're the only one on this planet who had the strings to pull to get the Vulcans involved. I think you're working in conjunction with Spock, and that Myran is inside the Vulcan embassy at this very moment. I'm here to tell you, as an official representative of Starfleet, to stop interfering, and, use your leverage to get the Vulcans to turn her over to us."

Sisko's eyes became just as intense.

"And what if I don't?" Sisko asked, in a defiant tone.

"Then you'll be going up against me, Ben, and believe me, you don't want that. I have been tasked to keep tabs on that woman, and all I am asking from you, a former Starfleet Commander, is your understanding on this matter and to do what your duty compels you to do."

"My duty," Sisko asked with a chuckle in his voice. "Jim Kirk saved my daughter. And now he believes an element inside of Starfleet is out to kill him."

"Do you really believe that?" Jellico asked.

"If Jim Kirk believes it, and if Ambassador Spock believes it, then," Sisko concluded, "I believe it too."

"Oh I get it," Jellico came back with. "You're one of those officers who continue to see Kirk through tainted glasses. All of the so called daring missions of his are simple entertainment to you, as you emulate his rule breaking methods. You're a fool."

"You're the fool, Commodore," Sisko fired back. "I would stack one James T Kirk against a million tin-can officers, like you, who just use the excuse of following orders while they neglect to see clues all around them that things might not be as perfect."

Jellico stood up, and glared down at Sisko.

"Now that we know where we stand," Jellico said, "let me assure you; I will get Kirk's wife, one way or another. And if you try to stop me, then I will order your arrest."

"I'm retired," Sisko replied, in a matter of fact tone.

"We are both well aware of the fact that, although you are retired, you are still subject to military disciplinary action for the first five years of that retirement, and considered as part of the Starfleet reserve in times of war."

"I retired the moment I went off that cliff with Gul Dukat, and died. And in any event, we are not in a time of war." Sisko countered.

"Starfleet never listed you as a casualty of the Dominion War," Jellico shot right back. "So, do yourself a favor and sit this one out!"

Jellico turned and stormed off of Sisko's porch. Sisko called out to the commodore.

"Commodore Jellico," Sisko said forcibly at Jellico's back.

Jellico stopped, and turned around.

"Ben; tell me you've changed your mind," Jellico said, with hope in his voice. "End this petty bickering, and do what Kirk should do; come back into the Starfleet fold."

A look of understanding came to Sisko's face, for all of about a tenth of a second.

"I can't tell you that," Sisko said. "However, I will tell you this: If you come back here, or if I see any of your security men on my property, I will shoot and then ask questions. You think I should be worried about going up against a man like yourself; perhaps you should worry about coming up against a man like such as me. I defied death…"

Jellico smiled, tapped his com badge, and then shimmered away.

Just as Sisko turned to go back into his house, a hovercraft came speeding over the hills in the near distance. It was the hovercraft that Kasidy had taken into the main city with Rebecca. Kasidy didn't land the craft where it belonged, by the side of the house, instead she landed it on part of the small garden in front of the house, smashing the plants in the process. The door to the craft opened, and Kasidy and Rebecca stepped out, and ran towards him, with worry on their faces.

"Kas," Sisko said with a tinge of anger in his voice, "you've just squashed my avocados!"

"Ben," Kasidy said, with shortened breath, as she and Rebecca ran up to him. "Its terrible!"

"Why, what happened?" Sisko asked.

"There was a massive explosion on Deep Space Nine," Rebecca said, as Kasidy caught her breath.

"Worf's dead," Kasidy added, with sadness in her eyes.

"Worf," Sisko said, as he hugged his wife, "is dead? I don't believe it."

"It's all over the news in town," Rebecca said. "Initial reports say it was some sort of accident. But nearly a hundred people are dead."

"An accident?" Sisko asked, with disbelief in his voice. "I have to get up there."

Sisko started to walk away, but Kasidy pulled him back.

"No you don't!" Kasidy came back with. "You're time up there is over. You're with us now, and I won't have any argument," Kasidy added as she held her husband tight.

Sisko reciprocated and held his wife just as tight, but as he looked over her shoulder, his eyes looked up to the sky. And as he did, he had a strange feeling that the explosion on DS9 was no accident, and that somehow it had something to do with Jim Kirk's return.

-continued…

Coming soon..more of the mysterious black cat we saw in an earlier installment...a cat named Isis


	28. If Time Knew

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**If Time Knew**

_**(cover art at my profile)**_

Trianguli Gamma VI…

Captain James T Kirk and Commander Nog made their way down a worn path that was covered with trees and a myriad of flora, and finally, after nearly half an hour, the thick foliage began to thin out. Jim Kirk was also well aware of the fact that they were being followed by a native of the planet. The first time Kirk had visited the planet, which had happened a hundred years earlier, Kirk and that landing party were followed in much the same way.

It was when Kirk and Nog had come upon an opening when their "unknown" pursuer broke off its escort. Kirk had the impression that their unseen friend had been more of a chaperon, seeing to it that Kirk and Nog had arrived safely to their destination.

As Kirk and Nog made their way out of the trees, they saw four medium sized buildings. Even though Jim Kirk was a hundred or so years out of his time, he still recognized Starfleet construction habits, as the buildings had been arranged in typical two by two formations. It was a comfort to Kirk that at least some things were still practical and stayed the same.

"According to the Defiant's computer," Nog began to say, as he looked at the data on his Tricorder "Commander S'vath is heading up a once a year expedition to this world. He and his team have been sent to monitor the indigenous humanoid population, which includes medical check-ups of the native children, and to further investigate peculiar energy crystals which have been discovered over the past century."

Kirk was beginning to like Commander Nog more and more. The report the young Ferengi had just given was to the point, and just like Spock use to do, it brushed across the highlights in an efficient manner.

"Very well," Kirk said, "tell me more about those crystals." Kirk said.

"According to the latest reports, the crystals show signs of being organic, and started to show up several years after the automated machine called Vaal had been destroyed."

"As my old friend would say," Kirk interjected, "that sounds rather fascinating."

"That's not all," Nog went on to say, "Due to the unique standing that Trianguli Gamma VI has in the Federation, it has been decreed that the crystals can not be removed from the planet and were declared a life form that could not be interfered with, unless the crystals were an immediate threat to the humanoids."

"Starfleet must have more information about those crystals," Kirk concluded. "This planet, even in this time, is pretty far off the beaten track to keep sending teams up to investigate."

"I wonder where everyone is." Nog asked Kirk.

Kirk was about to answer when, from about twenty yards way, three people came out of the building closest to where Captain Kirk and Commander Nog were standing. Two of them wore standard Starfleet uniforms. One of the two was a Cardassian male, and the other was a human female. The third person, who was also a human female, wore a black one piece jump suit with a silver Starfleet communication badge on the collar. She had a presence about her that drew Kirk's eyes in; she was stunning looking. She looked over to Kirk and Nog, and then she stopped walking.

Nog was obviously enamored by the woman's beauty.

"She's looking at me," Nog said with a broad smile.

"Oh my God," Amanda said to her self, with a soft whisper, "He's here. He's really here."

Kirk and Nog walked over to the others.

"Hello there," Kirk said with a warm smile, "I'm James T Kirk, and this is my associate, Commander Nog."

"Lt. Kacit," the Cardassian said. "Excuse me, but you cannot possibly be James Kirk. He died on Veridian III many years ago."

"Excuse me," Amanda said to Kirk, "we don't get too much outside news here." She turned to face Lt. Kacit and Ensign Angela Reynolds. "This man is definately James Kirk. S'vath and I both were briefed by Admiral 'Xgan two days ago about this James T Kirk's existence. We should have passed it down to you and the others."

"So you really are the Captain Kirk?" Ensign Reynolds asked, with awe in her eyes. "I am so honored to meet you sir."

"Thank you," Kirk said, as he prepared for another round of hero worship. But, thankfully, Kirk was rescued by the attractive blond woman.

"We are all honored to meet you," Amanda said, "I am Doctor Amanda Christine Chapel. I hope…"

Kirk cut her off.

"Amanda Christine Chapel?" Kirk repeated, in a dumbfounded voice.

"Yes Captain," Amanda said, "and yes, I am a granddaughter of Christine Chapel, your former head nurse on the Enterprise."

"Christine is your Grandmother? How is she?" Kirk asked.

"She passed away nearly five years ago." Amanda said with sorrow in her voice. "She told me many interesting stories about her time on the Enterprise and how it was the most fulfilling time of her life."

"Where is the rest of your team?" Commander Nog asked.

"We have several projects we are studying," Lt. Kacit said. "I'm the resident geology specialist. We've had a couple strong tremors in the past month, and I was just on my way to check the instruments in the science building. The others are out in the field."

"I wasn't aware of Cardassian Starfleet officers," Commander Nog said to Kacit.

"Actually," Kacit said, "there are four of us now."

Suddenly, from out of the trees, two other Starfleet officers came into view, propping up yet another officer between them. And it was clear why the other two were propping up the third officer; he had been injured. Four spores were protruding from his chest; which meant, in Kirk's opinion at least, death wasn't too far behind.

Amanda sprinted over to the injured man, with the others, including Nog and Kirk, not far behind her. The injured man had been stretched out on the grassy area at the edge of the camp, as Amanda took a hypo from her side pocket as she got on her knees beside him.

"Be careful; those spores can be deadly," Kirk said to her, as he stood behind her and watched her administer aid to the fallen officer.

Kirk looked at the wounded officer. He had humanistic characteristics, but sported two very Vulcan looking ears. Kirk concluded it was S'vath, the son of Spock. S'vath opened his eyes and looked up at Kirk.

"Hi Jim," S'vath said with a wide smile. "How's it going?"

"Hey, you," Amanda said to S'vath, "no talking! You know you're not suppose to talk or exert yourself until a minute or so after I do this," and at that instant, she put a hypo just beneath S'vaths neck and administered the shot. "Take him to the infirmary; I'll be there in a moment."

The two officers propped S'vath back up, and took him away toward one of the buildings in then near distance. Amanda stood up and walked over to Kirk.

"I can see he's Vulcan," Kirk said. "My first officer, Spock, was injured by spores as well on this world, and he survived as well."

"It wasn't his Vulcan heritage that saved him this time. The spores that hit him were from a rare variety that is three times as deadly as the ones you're speaking of. What saved him was the formula in this hypo spray," Amanda said. " Dr. McCoy returned here years later, after your first visit, with my grandmother I might add, and the two of them came up with the spray's formula."

"Impressive," Nog said.

"Bones came back here?" Kirk asked, having no memory of such an event.

"Yes, but many years later." Amanda told Kirk.

Amanda could see the slight look of depression in Kirk's eyes. It was clear to her that the man was feeling lost, having missed so much of the life he never really actually lived. It's as if time knew, and was trying convince Kirk to let go. It had been the other Jim Kirk, the one who had died on Veridian III, who had carried such memories in his mind. This Kirk was more like a lost child.

"I'll take you both to camp," Kacit said to Kirk and Nog, "I will show you around while the doctor attends to Commander S'vath."

"Alright," Kirk agreed.

"Show them what we're doing here," Amanda told Kacit. "I think they'll find it interesting. We'll meet you at the galley in about an hour."

And with that, Kirk and Nog followed Kacit into camp while Amanda Christine Chapel headed off toward the medical building.

* * *

An hour passed by as Kirk and Nog observed the camp as they were given a short tour of the facilities by Lt. Kacit. In that time, Kirk had also taken care to make routine contact with the Defiant, and finally he and Nog were finally led to the galley which was an impressive dining area with several food items arrayed on several tables. A Klingon chef could be seen behind a serving window. He was preparing food while attempting to sing Klingon opera.

"I know him," Nog said to Kirk. "He opened the first Klingon café on DS9 years ago. He franchised his restaurant chain, and rakes in serious Latinum. He must be doing this for the adventure."

At that moment, from another door, Amanda and S'vath entered, and came over to Kirk and Nog.

"I hope all of this isn't for us." Kirk asked his two hosts.

"So this is Jim Kirk," S'vath said, as he reached out his hand to shake Kirk's. "As I am sure you have heard a thousand times since your return, it is really an honor to meet you. Not only because of your service to Starfleet, but as being my father's most true friend."

S'vath's choice to shake Kirk's hand and not render the typical Vulcan hand salute had piqued Kirk's curiosity. Kirk shook the Vulcan's hand none-the-less.

"Thank you S'vath," Kirk said. "I must say that I am really happy that Spock found the time to have a family."

"I wouldn't call it a family," S'vath said, "My father and I have not always gotten along, and so, I left home at an early age. However, I am quite sure that if he were here he would agree with me that our relationship has been most fascinating."

"Well," Kirk said, with an understanding tone, "your father and his father didn't always see eye to eye either. Its called being stubborn; it must run in the family."

"More than you know," Amanda said with a teasing tone in her voice.

"And your mother is," Kirk paused for effect," T'Pring?"

"Ironic, to be sure," S'vath said.

"I would say so, considering the fact that through her actions, your father almost killed me." Kirk said with a laugh.

"Jim, you have to remember that my parents had been betrothed to each other based on over two-hundred variables, including the prospect of producing ideal offspring."

"Oh, of course," Kirk replied, "So, I guess sometime later her relationship with Stonn sputtered out, and she and Spock decided to at least have children, if not a marriage."

"And fortunately for me," Amanda said, "that reunion created a Vulcan who is not only smart and logical, but sexy and suave as well," she added with a seductive look on her face at her husband.

Kirk was finding this conversation very illuminating. It was clear that Amanda was very in love with her husband, and had no qualms showing that affection in front of others, in a very forward kind of way.

"Amanda is your first name," Kirk said to Amanda. "Spock's mother was named Amanda as well."

"My mother and I share the same name," Amanda said. "It just so happens to be S'vath's grandmother's name as well."

"Please," S'vath said to Kirk and Nog. "Let us sit down and enjoy the food K'Maq has prepared for us."

And with that, everyone gathered around the table for a meal. They were joined by the rest of S'vath's team. During the meal, and more than once, a member of S'vath's team came over to meet Kirk. S'vath watched with humor as Kirk tried his hardest to deflect the adulation the others were giving him.

As S'vath was enjoying his meal, Amanda had one of her hands playfully on his upper thigh, edging closer to his groin in a seductive manner. They shared a few kisses as her fingers reached their goal. Kirk, while talking with the others, noticed the playful banter, above the table, between S'vath and Amanda, and had a pretty good idea what was happening beneath the table. The fact they displayed such behavior in front of others, though innocent, still conveyed strangeness to Kirk. And as Kirk's eyes caught S'vath's glance, if only for a mere second or two, Kirk could almost detect an air of arrogance; the eyes of T'Pring were alive and well.

-next time

Commodore Jellico gathers up a posse to find Captain James T Kirk. The man charged with finding Kirk? Captain Benjamin Maxwell. Meanwhile, Jaden Weer, the man who nearly destroyed DS9, arrives on Bajor. And no one will stop him from capturing the wife of James T Kirk; or so he thinks.


	29. Not Hearts but Diamonds

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Not Hearts; Diamonds**

Commodore Edwin Jellico shimmered into existence aboard the USS Diamond. The Diamond was not only the name of the ship, but the ship was also, roughly, in the shape of a diamond. It had been constructed using top-secret technology which Starfleet had obtained from captured Borg assets, and data obtained by the USS Voyager. Voyager had encountered the Borg many times, and those encounters gave Starfleet invaluable data.

Greeting Jellico in the Diamond's Transporter room was the commander of the USS Diamond; Captain Benjamin Maxwell.

"Edwin," Captain Maxwell said, "how are you?"

"A little more white in my hair," Commodore Jellico replied with a smile, "but still hanging on with my fingers."

Commodore Jellico stepped off of the Transporter pad and shook his old friend's hand.

"Ben, it is really good to see you in command again," Commodore Jellico said with a smile. "If we he had had more officers like you, perhaps the Dominion War would have lasted half as long."

"You're too kind," Captain Maxwell replied, "though the sentiment is welcomed. You have no idea how hard it was to watch that war unfold while serving time in New Zealand."

"And yet," Jellico said, "here you are, commanding one of our most advanced projects."

"Yes," Maxwell said with a smile, "another one of life's twists."

"Well, I hope you can help me out here," Jellico said, "I could really use a good run of luck."

The two long time friends made their way out of the transporter room. And as they made their way down the corridors, Jellico noticed that there seemed to be no one else aboard but them.

"Edwin, I don't mean to sound rude," Maxwell said, "but how did you become aware of the Diamond? And the fact I am not still incarcerated is supposedly as top-secret as the Diamond project itself."

"As you know," Jellico began to explain, "James T Kirk has returned from the ashes of history. He is under the impression that an element inside of Starfleet, with tacit support from the Federation, is out to kill him."

"Yes, I heard," Maxwell came back with. "Kirk is a legend; one that I am fond of."

"Ben, I need you to look at the bigger picture here," Jellico said. "Even a legend can't go around stealing Starfleet property on a whim."

"And you think Project Diamond can bring find Kirk, and bring him and the Defiant back," Maxwell finished for Jellico.

"Yes," Jellico said. "It's that simple. And since you're wondering, I actually only heard of the Diamond two days ago. I received a priority message from Admiral T'nor, and he gave me a brief description of project Diamond, and suggested it be deployed to find Kirk and the Defiant. "

"First off," Maxwell continued, "what about the explosion on Deep Space Nine. Rumor has it that the attack was the act of a terrorist. How can we be sure that Kirk is wrong? Perhaps the attack was an attempt to take his life?"

"I am not denying that there could be an element of truth to Kirk's claim, but that isn't the point." Jellico said. "If there are rouge forces inside of Starfleet, then I would be the first to support Kirk, but it has to be done in the open. Stealing Starfleet property, and kidnapping Starfleet officers, is not the way to go about proving these allegations."

"Jim Kirk, like it or not Edwin, is more than just an ordinary man," Maxwell explained. "When I heard he had come back, briefly, on Veridian III, I was floored." Maxwell and Jellico entered a Turbo-lift. "And now this Jim Kirk comes out of time, but this Kirk isn't the same man as the one before. This Kirk is more like the man we read about in the academy, the one with the old gold and yellow command shirt, from a time when Starship Captains were like old-West Marshalls, maintaining the law, while being the only law around."

"You're just as taken with him as Captain Picard and Benjamin Sisko," Jellico said with a slight chuckle.

"Trust me," Maxwell said, "I would never want to be compared to Jean-Luc Picard, but in this instance, I understand his sentiment towards Kirk."

The Turbo-lift opened, and the two men exited. Jellico gasped as he looked around what appeared to be the bridge of the Diamond.

"Is this your bridge? Where's your crew?" Jellico asked.

"I am the command crew," Maxwell replied.

The bridge was roughly rectangular but half the size of Jellico's Sovereign-class bridge. And instead of the typical layout, command chair—helm navigation control—Communications-tactical and science stations, there was just a command chair with a object, globed shape, situated in front of the command chair, about the size of a standard computer.

"What kind of ship is this?" Jellico asked as he followed Maxwell towards the command chair.

"Project Diamond," Maxwell said, as he sat down in the command chair. "This entire ship can be operated from this chair, by using that little miracle." He pointed at the globe device, which was nearly translucent and was spinning at a very low rate.

"Okay, I'll bite," Jellico said, "what is that thing."

"A coming together of Borg technology and the finest Starfleet technology," Maxwell replied softly. "When I sit in this chair, the device literally scans my mind, and executes what I tell it to do. The device itself was constructed at the Daystrom Institute. In fact, it is actually based on original schematics that Dr. Richard Daystrom had come up with, shortly before his death. As you recall, he had designed a device, much like this one, that could practically run a Starship on its own."

"Yes, I do recall, but it malfunctioned," Jellico, "and if I recall, it was Kirk's Enterprise that first tested the device."

"Yes," Maxwell replied. "Daystrom had redesigned the programming, but his new design was lost over the decades. Then came our encounters with the Borg, Binars, and others, and this little device was found again, quite literally, in a trash heap at the Daystrom institute. It was retooled there, using Borg tech, and now with a surgical implant right here," Maxwell tapped the side of his head, "I can command it."

"I've never heard of this program," Jellico said, with a tinge of worry in his voice.

"They needed someone with tactical experience," Maxwell went on to say, "and someone who would also be willing to risk their life if the process didn't work. The amount of secrecy was incredible, and it worked, here I am."

_HE IS NOT ONE OF US. HE IS A THREAT TO THE MONUMENT._

"So you control this Diamond shaped ship with your mind," Jellico, "it is impressive, but how can be enough to stop Kirk?"

The main screen activated.

"Just take a look," Maxwell said with confidence in his voice.

The main screen showed the vastness of space, but nothing out of the ordinary.

_DO NOT CONTINUE MAXWELL; HE IS NOT ONE OF US_

_I believe I can make him one of us_

_NO, I HAVE SCANNED HIS MIND. HE CAN NOT BE ONE OF US._

And then, as Jellico stared at the main screen full of stars, four Akira-class starships de-cloaked.

"What ships are those," Jellico asked.

"My ships," Maxwell said. "They have no crews. I control them with my mind, and my thoughts. I can transfer energy levels, independently."

"Are you telling me," Jellico said, as he now looked at Maxwell, "that you're not only controlling this ship, but those other four as well, and you're doing all of this via some sort of Borg mental interlink with that thing?" Jellico asked, pointing at the strange globe device, which was now spinning at a faster rate.

"Exactly," Maxwell said, "isn't it incredible."

"Ben," Jellico said, "controlling five independent starships, as well as their energy levels, all at the same time, could not be from the ordinary mind of man."

"As I told you," Maxwell said, "the person they found for this project had to be willing to risk their life, and so I did."

"They did something to you?" Jellico asked. "They did something to your mind so that you could control multiples such as these?"

"Exactly Edwin," Maxwell said. "And they need more volunteers. Good men like you and me. I told them a great deal about you, you could be one of us."

Jellico stared at the four ships on the screen.

_MAXWELL: JELLICO HAS HIS DOUBTS AND HAS HIS DOUBTS ABOUT YOUR SANITY. HE CAN NOT BE ALLOWED TO RETURN._

_But he is my friend._

_NOTHING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE MONUMENT._

"Edwin," Maxwell said finally, "we can use you. There is another Diamond Fleet being constructed."

"Join you for what purpose?" Jellico asked. "All I want is for Kirk to face justice. Thank you for showing me this top-secret Starfleet project, but I better get back to my ship."

"Edwin," Maxwell said, "this ship only needs two crew members, I am one of them. The other crew member is on another level, and he is a Betazoid. My half of the partnership is to do the tactical work, the grunt work. His job is to probe the mind of whom ever we encounter."

"Is he probing my mind now?" Jellico asked.

_THIS STRATEGY WILL NOT WORK_

_Perhaps, but it is the only chance to save my friend._

_THAT IS TRUE_

"Yes he is probing your mind," Maxwell replied. "I know you think I've lost my mind, and that what we are doing here is an abomination. But trust me, this is the future."

"You're part of the conspiracy to kill James Kirk, aren't you?" Commodore Jellico asked.

"Yes I am, old friend." Maxwell said. "Kirk could get in the way of what must be accomplished."

"I think I better leave now," Jellico said. "I don't want to hear any more of this."

"You can't," Maxwell said, with sorrow in his voice. "It is too late now," he added, as he motioned toward the screen.

Jellico looked at the main screen and watched as the four Akira-class ships, under the control of Maxwell, swarmed over Jellico's ship, and blasted it into oblivion.

"What have you done?" Jellico yelled, as he grabbed Maxwell by the neck. "There were over seven hundred people on that ship!"

Suddenly Jellico's mind was rocked by intense waves of pain, so intense in fact, he fell to the ground in absolute pain, and then he shimmered away, beamed into the icy infinity of space, where he died instantly.

_THE MONUMENT MUST SURVIVE. I READ HIS MIND, JELLICO WOULD NEVER HAVE ACCEPTED THE EXISTENCE OF SUCH A NEW ORDER._

_You never know, he may have in time. But it's done now, and my friend is gone. I know Admiral T'nor is worried about Kirk. But how can one man pose such a threat to the Monument?_

_IT IS NOT OUR CONCERN AS TO WHY. WE MUST FIND KIRK AND DESTROY HIM, AND ANYONE ELSE THAT CAN PREVENT WHAT MUST BE._

_Finding Kirk will not be as easy as you think, especially since he has the Defiant. _

_HE IS GETTING SUPPORT FROM AMBASSADOR SPOCK. THE MONUMENT HAS CONCLUDED THAT SPOCK WILL NO ENLIST THE AID OF HIS OWN SON, COMMANDER S'VATH. PLOT COURSE FOR TRIANGULI GAMMA VI. _

And with that, the Diamond, which was in the center of a diamond fleet formation with the other four ships, cloaked, as the other ships did as well, and headed for the distant world, to destroy an unsuspecting James T Kirk. **(You can see this formation at my profile by the way..)**

**Continued...**


	30. Chain Link

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Chain Link**

Several sections of Deep Space Nine had been closed off, due to the damage caused by the explosion which had rocked the space station. It was also used as an excuse to conduct thorough interviews with everyone who was aboard at the time of the explosion. Unfortunately no evidence had yet been found connecting anyone to attack, and the final group of passengers was finally being investigated. Once their interviews were finished, the docking rings would have to open for business once again.

Jaden Weer's forged paper worked had gotten him past two layers of questioning. But before anyone was truly cleared, they had to meet with Constable D'aneve, the Betazoid male who was the chief of security aboard Deep Space Nine. Jaden was escorted into D'aneve's office for final questioning. D'aneve offered Jaden a cup of tea, which Jaden took.

"I'm sorry for the long wait," D'aneve said to Jaden. "I'm sure you understand the need to question everyone. You're group is the last group, so to compensate you for your lost time, we will offer to compensate you should wish to travel anywhere else, after your visit to Bajor is completed."

"It's quite alright," Jaden said with a smile. "During the Dominion War, a civilian ship I was on was boarded by the Jem-Hadar. Believe you me; everyone aboard that ship was happy when they just let us go. The delay is finally over, and that's good enough for me."

"Your travel papers show that you arrived here from Risa," D'aneve said, wanting to get down to business. "For what purpose are you visiting Bajor?"

"Well, as I told your screeners, I was on my way to a gem exhibit in Jalanda City." Jaden took a small hand sized box from this pocket, and opened it. Inside of the box were four gems, neatly arranged.

"Those are nice," D'aneve said, "can I see them?"

"Sure," Jaden said as he handed D'aneve the gem set.

D'aneve held them close, and looked at them.

Meanwhile, inside his mind, Jaden Weer was using every ounce of will power to shut off aspects of his memories from D'aneve, but he had to do it in such a matter to avoid suspicion. He also knew that D'aneve's questions were meant to confuse his mind, and allow easy access to lower areas of memory.

"Well," D'aneve finally said, "I had my people check, and it appears you may have missed the first week of the exhibit, but you still have three days left. I hope that will suffice."

"I'm sure it will," Jaden said. "The gem show is really unimportant considering what happened here. And I really hope you capture the responsible party."

"Thank you," D'aneve said, "you are free to go."

D'aneve watched Jaden leave, and once Jaden was gone, D'aneve signaled for the next person to come in for questioning.

But, before the other person came in, D'aneve pressed a button on his desk, and then he pressed it again. If he was successful, he had just transmitted a signal to Chancellor Martok, who although he wasn't on DS9, was very close, aboard his flagship, and cloaked. D'aneve knew that informing Martok in such a manner could, if it became common knowledge, end his career as DS9's chief of security; but it was a risk he was willing to take. If the Klingons got their hands on Jaden, and if he proved to be the responsible party that planted the bomb, the Klingons would kill him without trial in order to honor Worf's death.

Kira sat at her desk and looked at a schematic of the bomb that had been deduced to have set off the explosion. Internal security cameras had detected the insect sized device on three occasions. Later study of the data from the security sensors, it was determined that the insect was carrying some sort of anti-matter implosion device. Suddenly the door to her office opened and in stepped Captain William T Riker. His resemblance to Thomas Riker was uncanny, simply because they were pretty much the same.

"William," Kira said, as she got up and hugged Riker. "I'm so sorry about what happened to Thomas, and now Worf."

She stepped back.

"How are you?" Riker asked. "And don't lie to me," Riker said. "Don't forget, I knew Bakooth too, and according to his letters to me, you and Thomas were more than just friends." Riker smiled, "And I'm glad. I just hope you're healing too."

"William," Kira began to say, "I'm pregnant with his child. I have decided not to terminate the pregnancy. This child is the last part of Thomas, and I want him or her to grow up and be told of how wonderful he was."

Riker smiled.

"I think that's the greatest news I've heard in quite some time," Riker said with a broad smile. Then he looked around at some of the damage. "I left Commander Vale in command of the Titan while they head to Starbase 247 for R and R. Deanna is down visiting with D'aneve, so I've got a lot of time on my hand. How's your investigation going?"

Kira went on to explain the events surrounding the explosion. She even spent some time explaining how Thomas had died during the rescue of Benjamin Sisko's daughter.

Jaden and several other passengers made their way through DS9's docking platform and boarded a Bajoran transport vessel. They all took their seats, and twenty minutes later, the transport ship launched, and made its way to Bajor.

Jaden sat comfortably in his seat, and gazed out the viewing port. The next part of his plan was to find Kirk's wife Myran. According to a secret message he had received from his employer, there was a distinct possibility that Myran was in the Vulcan Embassy on Bajor. That would be his first destination.

As the Bajoran transport made its way through space, no one aboard could know that right above it was the massive flagship that belonged to Chancellor Martok.

On board the bridge of the Negh'var-class ship, Martok sat in the command chair. From the information he had gotten from D'aneve, and additional information obtained through Klingon intelligence, Jaden Weer was more than just a suspect, in the explosion on DS9 which had killed over a hundred, including someone who was part of Martok's house; Commander Worf.

Martok's chief of staff, Darok, stood beside Martok.

"You may be taking this too far," Darok said. "You are the leader of the Klingon Empire, and this sort of endeavor could cause friction between the Empire and the Federation."

"This coward, this human named Jaden, must face retribution," Martok spoke abruptly.

"I understand, but you know the Federation. They have laws against this kind of justice." Darok countered. "I just hope your efforts are not discovered."

Martok simply harrumphed, and Darok took that as a warning to not go any further with the conversation.

On Starbase 247, Admiral Janeway, who had arrived for a Starfleet function, sat in her temporary office and looked at the shocking news that had just flashed across her classified Starfleet channel. The USS Washington, under the command of Commodore Edwin Jellico, had been destroyed in an ion storm. But as the hairs on the back of her neck stood up, Janeway had the chilling sensation that the loss of the Washington, and Jellico more specifically, had been no accident at all; Jellico had been eliminated. The question for Janeway was why?

-continued…


	31. Mind Sifter

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Mind Sifter**

The visitor center in the capital of Ashalla was jam packed with new arrivals to Bajor. Most of them had been detained at DS9 for questioning in regards to the explosion that had devastated the space station, and had killed so many. Even young children had been questioned, but most of them found it an interesting diversion from the normal lives.

Jaden Weer, who had detonated the bomb, which was no larger than an insect, had been questioned as well. After meeting with the Betazoid chief of security, Jaden had been granted permission to board the transport. Officially, he had come to Bajor for a gem exhibit, but Jaden's real reason for coming was entire different.

The information he had obtained from DS9's computer, shortly before he detonated the bomb, had actually little value. Except for private messages he was able to sift through. According to Jellico's private logs, the Commodore had suspected that Myran would try to hide from the security agents he had sent to track her movements. With Ambassador's Spock involvement, Jellico even suspected that the Vulcan consulate on Bajor could have offered her asylum until the situation with Kirk had played out.

Jaden made his way through the crowded visitor's center, and into one of the public waste-extraction centers. He stepped into the private coed stall, and prepared the device when suddenly…he shimmered away.

* * *

Jaden didn't know what hit him, but the next thing he saw, after being beamed out of the waste-extraction stall inside the space port on Bajor, was an infinite amount of exploding stars in his eyes. He had been struck in the head very hard. As he fought to regain his wits, he focused his eyes and saw a large Klingon reaching down and grabbing him by the neck, throwing him against across a darkened room, hitting up against a hard rock like wall. Jaden had no time to react, and heard the cracking of his ribs as his body fell to the ground.

Blood began to gather in his mouth, as he struggled to speak to his attacker.

"Wait…" Jaden said. "wait…." he managed to stutter out between spits of blood, which he could taste coming up the wrong direction of his throat.

Martok looked down at the human, who was sprawled out on the ground.

"You are the P'ATAK that detonated the bomb on Deep Space Nine!" Martok yelled. "You killed one hundred innocent lives, including the life of a Klingon warrior, who was my friend and who I considered my brother son! Hear these words; you will not leave this room alive!"

Martok didn't waste anytime, and swung his Bat'leth high and brought it crashing down, slicing through the bone of Jaden's right arm, slicing the limb in half. Blood began to pour out of both halves of Jaden's arm, as the human screamed in agony.

Then, with out mercy, Martok reached down and grabbed a clump of hair on Jaden's head and then dragged him across the ground, smearing a track of the whimpering man's blood in their wake.

"I…know things…" Jaden begged, "I…can…tell you what…you want. Let me live…please!"

Martok, by sheer force, pulled Jaden off of the ground, and set him in a metal chair, and then tilted the chair back. Martok reached up and grabbed a strange device that was suspended down from the unseen ceiling on a long cable.

"You can not bargain with something that I can already take by force," Martok said. "This is mind-sifter," Martok explained, with near madness in his eyes, "it will retrieve what I want to know."

Jaden looked into the eyes of Martok, and saw pure rage.

"If you do this," Jaden said with a smile, "my associates will find you and kill you."

"Let them try," Martok said with his own smile, "I will be waiting for them!"

And with that, Martok jammed the end of the device, which looked more like the end of a long, slender knife, into Jaden's forehead, cracking the human's skull, splattering blood on Martok's determined face in the process.

"Who sent you to kill Kirk?" Martok screamed at Jaden.

And then, as the sifter twisted inside of Jaden's head, answers came. They came as the sifter did exactly what it was designed to do; sift through a dying man's last words, and the recent memories of their life. There were times when sifter left the victim alive, but nothing more than a mental vegetable remained.

After nearly fifteen minutes, Jaden was dead. Martok turned off the recording device, and took one last look at the dead assassin who had killed Worf. Then, in a sudden move, Martok clapped his large hands together, and the door to the interrogation chamber opened. Three Targs came rushing in as Martok walked toward the door. The Targ's all grabbed leaped onto to chair containing Jaden's lifeless body, and one by one, the Targ's started eating the corpse, thrashing off large chunks of flesh in the process.

* * *

**DEEP SPACE NINE...**

Quark was sleeping in his large room aboard DS9, with a naked Dabo girl on either side of him. He was also smiling. He was smiling because, in his dream, he was making love to a Dabo girl covered in edible Latinum laced grub worms. Then quite suddenly his dream was ended in a sudden jolt. He opened his eyes and saw Martok standing above him looking down.

"Wake up Ferengi," Martok said. "You have the resources to contact Ambassador Spock. I would speak with him; now!"

"Can't this wait until tomorrow?" Quark said, motioning to the two naked women beside him. "Even I don't receive refunds from them."

Martok's glare was the only answer Quark would get.

* * *

An hour later, Martok was inside a holosuite and standing before him was the holographic image of Ambassador Spock. Martok finished telling Spock what he had learned from Jaden.

"I trust," Spock said, "that the prisoner will be treated as well as possible until further notice?"

"Ambassador Spock," Martok said with a low tone in his voice, "I suggest we continue discussing other matters."

Spock could detect the tone in Martok's voice; the subject was closed.

"The information you have given me is indeed quite valuable," Spock told Martok. "While Mr. Jaden Weer did not provide you with specifics, as to who hired his services, he at least gave us a timeline to work backward from."

"I should also inform you that Commdore Jellico's ship, and all hands, including Jellico himself, were lost in an ion storm. I received a coded message from Janeway, and she is suspicious of Jellico's demise, as well as I am. Commodore Jellico may have been out to get Kirk, yet his reasons was straightforward Starfleet protocols. Janeway believes that Jellico was contacted by those who had hired Jaden, and they eliminated him before he could relay whatever information he had acquired."

"Quite logical," Spock said. "Whoever is behind all of this has no restraint. They are hiring assassins, blowing up space stations, and now a starship and its crew, tells me one thing; that they do not believe their position can be jeopardized, even after such obvious actions."

"Ambassador," Martok began to say, "according to Janeway, you have sent James T Kirk to the planet your son is leading an expedition on. It is an obvious move," Martok said with caution in his voice.

"Moments from now," Spock went on to say. "I will be speaking with my son and Jim Kirk. I will tell them what I am about to tell you. I am very aware of the fact that sending Kirk to S'vath, my son, was an obvious move on my part. You could say," Spock said, pausing for a moment, "it is like shining a brilliant light for all to see; they will come."

Martok smiled a devious smile.

"You want them to go there to find Kirk," Martok said with a look of deviousness on his face. And then Martok laughed. "I like you Vulcan!" Martok said.

"I must end my transmission with you now," Spock finally said. "I must speak with my old friend now, and tell him what must be done," Spock paused for a moment, "so he can live and the Federation can survive."

-continued….


	32. The Monument

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Monument**

The memories of that fateful night were the kind of memories one would rather forget. But, ironically, the mind seemed to hold on to them tighter and tighter as time passed. Perhaps it was a genetic defensive reaction, he didn't know. But what he saw happen that night changed his outlook on reality. And he vowed to make sure it never happened again, or would die trying.

His name was Toran Hamue. When he was the tender age of seven standard years, Toran was already considered one of the most gifted Betazoid's alive. His telepathy was already highly advanced, so much so, that he and his family were relocated to a special facility so that Toran could develop his abilities unfettered by the distractions of a normal life.

By the time he was twelve he was recognized as the second most advanced Betazoid in the modern times. Only Tam (TIN MAN) Elbrum, who was nearly four decades older than Toran, had been rated higher by that age.

It was two days after his twelfth birthday when Toran's life, and every other Betazoid's life on Betazed, was turned upside down. For it was on that day, during the Dominion War, when the Jem'Hadar launched a surprise attack and conquered the planet.

Betazed had not known war for nearly a thousand years, thus their resistance was, no pun intended, futile. Toran was sitting in his room inside the living quarters he shared with his parents and younger sister, when suddenly the door to his room was kicked open. Toran was a twelve year old child, and the sight of two Jem'Hadar frightened him terribly. The Jem'Hadar dragged him into the main living area, and Toran screamed as he saw a Jem'Hadar warrior stab his mother with a weapon; her body falling to the ground without any form as she ended up sprawled upon the ground, her arms twisted beneath her.

Next to die before Toran's eyes was his father. The Jem'Hadar were without mercy as each warrior stabbed the defenseless Betazed man several times, blood splashing the walls of the room, before he too fell to the ground dead. Both Toran, and his five year old sister Caria, screamed and cried. Only moments before they had shared a dinner with their parents, and Toran had gone to his room to study, and now, their world, Toran's and Caria's, had been devastated by a war they knew very little about. What was the Dominion? Who were the Jem'Hadar? None of that mattered to Toran and Caria because they just didn't know.

And it didn't end there. Little Caria, just five years old, and yet far more brave than her older brother, ran across the room and attacked the leg of the Jem'Hadar warrior who had just killed her father. The Jem'Hadar looked at her with the eyes of a soldier. Toran could see into the alien's eyes, from his place on the floor, and could tell that the Jem'Hadar saw no difference between the little girl and her father. In one swift move the Jem'Hadar soldier jabbed down with his weapon, and jabbed it through the young girl's neck, inches above her collar bone. The thrust was so violent, it skewered off Caria's head, just above the neck, depositing it on the ground as her twitching body collapsed next to Toran. Toran closed his eyes and waited for a death that never came, because at that instant, the door to the living quarters burst opened and security officers rushed in.

One of the men, a Betazed security agent, grabbed Toran up and quickly ran out of the room, as the other Betazed officers fought valiantly. Toran had been saved, but he had left his home as an orphan.

Toran Hamue wasn't a warrior, neither were his parents and sister. But it was right there and then that Toran vowed to forge a time when no child would ever have to live through what he had lived through, on that fateful night.

And the answer was; The Monument

Continued….


	33. Family

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Family**

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

Jim Kirk didn't have any real fears. In fact, it was that was probably one of his vices. He had no qualms with rushing without care where even angels feared to go. But that was his character, his inner core. And as he stood before the giant head of the Serpent facade, he didn't fear it; he was in awe of it. A hundred years ago, when several of his men were killed by the artificial intelligence that had the ability to control weather, and provided a means of life to the natives of the planet, Kirk grew to despise it.

Kirk and S'vath had come to the Serpent head together after a scheduled communication with Spock, on Romulas, had not happen. For unknown reasons, the inter-dimensional signal from Spock never came. Although Kirk found it hard to 'read' S'vath, he still had a feeling that S'vath was worried about his father.

"I can't believe its still here after all this time," Kirk said, looking at the device he and Spock had helped deactivate.

"I am pretty sure my father would have heard that statement," S'vath said, "and said something to the effect that it was illogical since it is here." S'vath looked at the Serpent's head, and smiled, as did Kirk. "I can see that you find my words somewhat truthful."

"At first," Kirk said to S'vath, "your father and I had a very unique relationship. I wasn't exactly sure we would make a…" Kirk searched for the right words to say, "perfect fit, and yet, we did. It also helped that Bones was there to take the edge of, sometimes. But if there's one person in this universe who can solve an insolvable problem; it is your father."

Kirk looked around and found that most of the surrounding area had remained the same. It was almost as if only three years had truly passed by instead of the actual 100 plus years. He then looked over at S'vath, who was doing his best to entertain him; but Kirk could tell that S'vath wanted to be doing other things, chiefly among them, making sure Spock was unharmed.

"I get the impression from your wife and you as well, that you and your father don't quite see things eye to eye." Kirk said, as he looked over at S'vath.

"I suppose not," S'vath said, "I respect him, he is my father. However the schisms between my father and I started when I began to show interest in the teachings and beliefs of my uncle. His name was Sybok."

"Is Sybok the brother of T'pring?" Kirk asked, having never heard of Sybok. (Remember readers, this Kirk skipped everything from "The Apple" and onward."

"Oh, that's right," S'vath said, with a warm smile. "You never met Sybok. So you will no doubt be surprised to learn that he was actually my father's half-brother."

"Spock has a half brother? Did something happen between Sarek and Amanda; or did she die and Sarek remarried?" Kirk asked, totally surprised by the news he had just been told.

"It is a long story," S'vath said. "Sybok was actually older than my father. My grandfather, Sarek, had once been in a relationship with a Vulcan priestess before he had married Amanda Grayson, and Sybok came from that relationship. My father once told me that he never had shared the fact he had a brother with you, or I should say the other Jim Kirk, until much later and had regretted so. In any event, Sybok's teachings were forbidden on Vulcan, which led to his exile, when Spock had been a child. And yet, every so often, a Vulcan will slip through the logic of our society and embrace teachings and beliefs such as his."

"A Vulcan like you," Kirk concluded for S'vath.

"Precisely," S'vath said to Kirk. "Sybok believed that the truth of existence could only be found through emotion, not the course of logic that Surak set the Vulcan people on."

"A passionate Vulcan," Kirk said, "Now that is fascinating," Kirk said, almost sounding like Spock-like in the process.

Kirk's communicator beeped.

"Kirk here," Kirk said, upon flipping the communicator open.

"O'Brien here, sir," O'Brien's voice replied, "The Cloaking device's sensor array is detecting other cloaked vessels on the long range sensor."

"I didn't realize they could do that," Kirk interjected.

"I didn't either sir; until Bakooth told me about this feature. This Cloaking device was a gift to Thomas Riker, and apparently it is one of the Romulan's most advanced designs. Now, it can not tell us the exact location of the other cloaked ships, only a general direction they are approaching from."

"How long do we have?" Kirk asked.

"I'd say three to four hours, at best," O'Brien replied, after a moment. "What do you want us to do?"

"I'll get back to you in a moment," Kirk replied, "Kirk out."

Kirk looked over at S'vath.

"I hope your father gets a message to us, because for all I know that's an armada coming this direction," Kirk said. "I'll go get Nog, and we'll beam up to the Defiant. There's no need for you or your people down here to be put in harm's way."

"Captain Kirk," S'vath said, "my father and I may not, as you say, see things eye to eye. However, as I told you before, I respect my father very much. And if he sent you here, to me, then he expects me to do all I can assist you; and that is what I intend to do. I will accompany you to the Defiant to do just that."

"Spock did not expect you to risk your life," Kirk said to S'vath. "I am appreciative to what you've just said, but I can't let you do this. You're a married man, S'vath, and your first priority is to your wife."

"Oh yes, I had forgotten about Amanda," S'vath said softly, "she will no doubt want to come with us."

"Absolutely not," Kirk said, as he started back toward the Federation camp, which was a twenty minute walk from where they were, "Perhaps I didn't explain it clearly enough earlier; we are fugitives. If you were found to be assisting us, it could cost you your career."

"The Ferengi, and the other men aboard your ship, are all part of Starfleet, and yet they are with you," S'vath said, as he walked by Kirk's side.

"The difference is, I abducted Nog, O'Brien and Dr. Bashier," Kirk countered, "No one in Starfleet is going to accept the fact that I forced the son of a good friend to help. You stay here where you belong, doing your research."

Kirk walked on, with S'vath by his side the entire way. Kirk had known Spock to find ways around his orders, and knew that S'vath would do the same. Kirk smiled inside as he looked at S'vath briefly. There was more of Spock inside him than S'vath would admit to.

USS DIAMOND

The Diamond, as well as the four Akira-class ships that surrounded it in a diamond formation, was cloaked. The sensors had briefly detected a Defiant class Starship in orbit of Trianguli Gamma VI. It had since disappeared from the sensors, but it was all the proof Maxwell needed that Kirk was there.

Captain Benjamin Maxwell, when he was a child, grew up reading about the adventures of Captain James T Kirk. It was those adventures of Kirk that inspired Maxwell to enter Starfleet and follow the dream of becoming a Starship Captain. And now, here he was, hunting Kirk down like an animal.

Life was full of irony indeed.

Continued…..


	34. Hikaru

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Hikaru**

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

The USS Defiant traveled at high warp toward the area of space where the Cloaking Device's sensors detected cloaked signatures. Although the Romulan made sensors could detect the general area where cloaked vessels were, it could not locate them with pin-point accuracy.

Captain James T Kirk sat in the command chair on the bridge. It was the same chair that Benjamin Sisko and the late Thomas Riker had once called theirs, but now it was his. At least for the time being, Kirk had to keep reminding himself that it was actually stolen Federation property; and he was the thief.

While no ship could very truly replace the Enterprise, in Kirk's heart, the Defiant was proving to be a worthy ship in her own right. He thought back to recently when he first saw the Defiant and thought it reminded him of an old muscle car from the 20th century. His father had a collection of posters from that time, handed down through the decades, from father to son. The posters showed three hundred plus old cars that just oozed of power, compact power, much like the Defiant did. Maybe it was a childish behavior, to compare Starships to ancient automobiles, but Kirk didn't care. Whether it was rated at 320hp, using a 390CI single 600cfm Holley four-barrel carburetor with cast iron intake and manifolds, or a modern day warp engine, it was all the same to Kirk.

Kirk looked at his crew. Although Kirk had ordered neither S'vath not to come, nor his wife Amanda for that matter, both were there on the bridge. After verbal jousting with them back on Trianguli Gamma VI, Kirk acquiesced and let the join the cause. Kirk was glad to have them both aboard. Even though S'vath didn't act like the Vulcans that Kirk had known from his era, he did respect S'vath's honesty. And S'vath's wife, Amanda, added depth for Dr. Bashir to use in case of a medical emergency. S'vath sat at tactical, along side O'Brien, who manned the engineering hub. This allowed Commander Nog to act best at what he did; being an XO.

Kirk had met a few Ferengi's since arriving in the 24th century, but Nog was the first who showed in inclination toward a military career. Nog not only wore a Starfleet uniform, proudly, he was very efficient as an XO, something he would pass on to Admiral Kate Janeway, should everything work out in the end.

_(Be sure to check out my new story; STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE "BLOOD ISLAND". Based on a script treatment I submitted way back in the second season of DS9)…_

And then there was Bakooth. The Chalnoth warrior, whom Kirk respected immensely, manned the helm/navigation consol directly in front of Kirk. Bakooth, who had been Riker's XO, had been the one who suggested that Nog take the position of XO. It would give Bakooth more time to work with O'Brien, in the running of the ship's systems, which Bakooth knew just about as much as O'Brien.

**Chiisai**

**A planet in a star system 21.4 light years from Earth…**

The planet Chiisai was a colony world of Earth's. It was nearly a fourth of the size of Earth, and was literally covered with forests. Originally uninhabited, it was allotted by the Federation to settlers after proper procedures had been followed.

The settlers were mostly of Oriental persuasion who wanted to create a world with the ancient majesty of Far-East cultures; China, Japan, Korean, Vietnamese, Cambodia and other ancient traditions. The world would be open to all who wished to live and follow the merged customs of those cultures. The Federation did not allow worlds to be colonized and then to be shut-off from the rest of the galaxy, and as it turned out, the customs of the ancient Oriental world had attracted a diverse population to Chiisai. The original colony had grown into eight large sized village towns, each tilting toward a particular oriental niche.

Scotty piloted his shuttle craft down through the thick atmosphere of Chiisai. Finally, and thankfully, he saw the tops of towering trees begin to poke through the dense cloud cover. And then he saw his destination; the home of his good friend, Hikraru Sulu.

The shuttle craft came to a soft landing in a swath of dirt on the outskirts of the massive home that Sulu had pretty much build by hand. Scotty had actually played a part in the construction years ago, not long after his 'return'. He had visited the world two other times since, but this trip was hastily put together, after Scotty had received a coded message from Spock.

Scotty stepped out of the shuttle and stretched his legs. And then he saw Sulu emerge from the Japanese flavored otaku; home.

(which you can see at my profile. Just click on the jpeg link…)

Unlike Scotty, or Kirk for that matter, Sulu had lived through the years without the help of a skip through time. Sulu was nearly a hundred and thirty years old. If it were the 21st century, Sulu would have looked like a man in his late 70s, maybe mid 80s. He was still as skinny as ever, but now sported a head of long gray hair which was tied into a long ponytail. Scotty remembered seeing old style Japanese martial art movies which always seemed to have a character that looked like Sulu looked now.

"Montgomery Scotty," Sulu said, squinting as he spoke. "I see you've finally decided to do something about that belly of yours."

Sulu was correct. Scotty had indeed taken better care to maintain his health. Before Leonard McCoy had passed away, and with assistance from Beverly Crusher, the two doctors had convinced Scotty to become a vegetarian and to cut back on his drinking. He did become a vegetarian, but he would not, under any circumstances, give up his drinking.

"Aye," Scotty said to his old friend as they embraced each other. "Doc'ta McCoy's work I must say."

"So, my old friend, what brings you here to Chiisai? You would not give me any details, so I assume it has something to do with all the chatter about someone claiming to be Captain Kirk."

"Not just chatter…" Scotty began to say, but Sulu cut him off.

"It is too cold out here for my ancient knees," Sulu said. "I say we retire to my okatu and have some herbal tea as you tell me why you're here."

"Is Demora visiting by chance?" Scotty asked.

"She is here on Chiisai, however she is in another village teaching today." Sulu said. "Ever since she retired from Starfleet, as an Admiral I am proud to say, she spends most of her time teaching the younger children. Unfortunately, she was unable to have children of her own, so I think she makes up for that maternal instinct of hers by teaching as much, and as many, as she can."

The two old friends climbed the steps of the ancient looking home and entered the living area, where the scent of tea was unmistakable. Sulu poured two glasses of the tea and came over and sat next to Scotty.

"Well, enough about my family, what is all this news about a Jim Kirk imposter?" 

"Hikaru, the man isn't an imposter, he is the creation of a transporter accident," Scotty explained. "And according to Spock, his life is in danger."

"That's all I need to hear," Sulu said as he stood back up and walked over to a glass display case that held three Katana. "Let me get one of these, then I'll pack some clothes and some snacks to eat along the way, and then we'll go do whatever it is Spock wants us to do. Maybe," Sulu said with a wicked smile, "we can steal another starship!"

Twenty minutes later, after a suddenly spry hundred and thirty year old was packed up, the shuttle climbed back into the sky, and disappeared up into the clouds.

Continued…


	35. Man and the Monument

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Diamonds are Forever**

**(New cover art at my profile…)**

The USS Defiant had been traveling at warp speed for nearly three hours and finally came out of warp. And as it came into normal space, so did five other ships, and directly in the Defiant's path. The sensors had detected the now uncloaked ships' just moments before, and the fact that they were slowing out of warp as well, usually a signal that who ever was in command of the other ships wanted to converse before battling. Kirk decided to follow the other commander's lead, and had ordered the Defiant out of warp.

"What kind of ships are those?" Kirk asked Commander Nog, who stood to his side.

"The four outer ships are Akira-class vessels, by themselves, no match for the Defiant. But four of them could pose a tactical problem," Nog told Kirk.

"Don't worry about little ole' me," S'vath said from tactical, "I can count," with a wry sense of humor to his voice.

"What about the ship in the center?" Kirk asked, with a slight grin at S'vath's most un-Vulcan like comment. "What kind of ship is that?"

"Borg inspired, whatever it is," O'Brien said before Nog could reply. "Starfleet military science has been studying their technology for many years, so I am not surprised to see something like this finally roll of the assembly line."

"The Borg; who or what are they?" Kirk asked.

Everyone on the Defiant's bridge, including Bakooth, stopped what they were doing and they all turned look at Kirk, with expressions of disbelief.

"The Borg," O'Brien said for them all, "area cyborgnetics being from the Delta-Quadrant that aim to assimilate all life into a collective. They are this century's most lethal threat."

"And you're saying this ship, this diamond shaped ship, has been built with elements of their technology?" Kirk asked.

"Using an enemy's technology is not as far fetched as it might seem," S'vath said, "Look at the Defiant."

"Good point," O'Brien said softly. He was about to explain more about the Borg but…

"Sir," Bashir said, before O'Brien could continue, "the commander of the center ship, aptly named the USS Diamond I might add, is hailing us."

"Do you think that it would be safe to let them see us?" Amanda asked from where she sat near Bashir, her words also aimed as S'vath.

"Not…safe…for them…" Bakooth stated flatly.

"On screen," Kirk said back to Bashir.

The image of the ships on the main viewing screen was replaced by the face of a man in a modern Starfleet uniform, and he wore the rank of Captain; four pips. O'Brien immediately recognized the man on the screen.

"Captain Maxwell," O'Brien said to Maxwell, his former commanding officer when they had both served aboard the USS Rutledge. "I thought…"

"It is good to see you too, Miles," Maxwell said with a smile. "I'm sorry that I have found you aboard the Defiant. It makes what I'm about to do next even more bitter."

"Then don't do what it is you intend to do," Kirk suddenly said.

Maxwell fixed his gaze on Kirk.

"Captain James T Kirk," Maxwell said, but without a smile, "I promise you, there is no other Starfleet officer that has studied your career as much as I have. It is a real honor to meet you."

"The Jim Kirk you studied was another man," Kirk said, resolutely, "But one thing we both shared, he and I, was our will to live."

"Sir," Bashir said, "I have muted the signal. I just wanted you to know that all of our long range communications are being jammed. All we have are the short range communication capabilities; signal opened."

"I have been told that you are jamming our long range signals; why?" Kirk asked, trying to get a read on Captain Maxwell.

"Oh, the standard reasons Captain Kirk," Maxwell said. "I can not let you survive this encounter, nor do I want it broadcast for all to hear and see."

"Why," Kirk replied, "what threat can a man, literally from another time, have on the events of today?"

"You are stalling for time," Maxwell said, "one of your most famous tactics. I have given you the common courtesy of letting you know of your fate," Maxwell said, "and now, I will carry out my orders, and again, I am truly sorry Miles."

The screen switched back to the five ships, and the four Akira-class ships began to bank out from the diamond formation.

"I hope you're right about this new cloaking device," Kirk said to Bakooth. "Our lives are going to depend upon it."

And then the Defiant cloaked, and one by one it targeted the other ships. The Defiant had an advantage, and extreme advantage; the Defiant could fire weapons while cloaked, and totally shielded as well; another interesting addition to the brand new Romulan cloaking device.

With that advantage, the battle went fast, as the Defiant banked over and under, and twisted around the four ships, which could not hide once the advanced cloaking device had targeted them. The Akira-class ships attempted to cloak, but invisibility did not save them. They uncloaked to try and attack the Defiant blindly, but Kirk, barking out commands, and Bakooth were to fast for them.

After seriously damaging three of the enemy Akira-class ship, the Defiant took aim at the fourth.

Meanwhile, Maxwell sat on the bridge of the USS Diamond. And even though the battle seemed to be lost, the USS Diamond had one last chance, and Maxwell knew it was time to use it. It was a phasing weapon comprised of Breen technology, and had a wide field. The USS Diamond targeted the fourth Akira, which he still controlled with his mind, and fired the weapon at it just as the Defiant began to attack the fourth Akira as well. The blast detonated. A wave of energy swept out, a wave that had no effect on the USS Diamond or the last Akira, but the Defiant was not so lucky.

"We've lost power," O'Brien said, as one by one, the Defiant's systems shut down.

The Defiant's artificial gravity began to fluctuate, tossing the crew of the Defiant as it did.

"It's almost like that Breen weapon that destroyed the first Defiant," Nog struggled to say to O'Brien as he pulled himself off of the floor.

"I've lost all weapon controls," S'vath called out.

Kirk could also see Bakooth having no luck at regaining helm control the fallen ship.

"O'Brien; how long until we can get the systems back on line?" Kirk asked hurriedly.

"Not fast enough!" O'Brien called back, as he did best to redirect power supplies. "The systems are already trying to come back on line, but I don't think its going to matter much," O'Brien said as he looked up at the main viewing screen.

"Oh my God," Amanda said, as she looked up at the screen as well, "we're not going to make it!"

Kirk looked up at the screen and saw the inspiration for Amanda's gloomy prediction. The Diamond was closing in on the Defiant's position. Maxwell's face came back on the screen.

"The other Jim Kirk went on to be a legend," Maxwell said, "you will just have to settle for an asterisk in the text books." ….

Continued…

TIME FOR A SHAMELESS PLUG...Check out my new DEEP SPACE NINE story over in the Star Trek:Deep Space Nine section of this site. It is based on a script I submitted way back when they let normal people submit scripts. I still think, to this day, it was a great story. But looking back, it was probably too much money to produce. It was before I realized what a 'budget' was...oh well..still good read I think.


	36. Diamonds are Forever

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Diamonds are Forever **

The crew of the Defiant waited for their fate, which was no longer in their hands. And as the USS Diamond, and the last Akira-class ship under its control, angled in to make the final blow on the defenseless Defiant, something quite unexpected happened; and it was S'vath that started to relay the new information from his consol.

"I have two, correct that, three contacts de-cloaking on our starboard bow," S'vath's said, his voice slightly excited. "They are arming their weapons, and the USS Diamond seems to be their target."

"On screen," Kirk said, as he sat up a little more in his command seat.

Three Romulan Warbirds shimmered into view and began firing on the USS Diamond and the last Akira-ship. The Akira exploded instantly; its shields no match for the superior weaponry its Romulan attackers. The USS Diamond began firing its own weapons, but it was a futile effort as the Romulans outnumbered and outgunned the much smaller vessel.

"Shouldn't we help the Diamond?" Bashir asked.

"This is peculiar," S'vath said, as he and the others watched the battle on the main screen.

"Report," Kirk called out to S'vath.

"The Romulans are not trying to destroy the USS Diamond," S'vath reported, "They are only trying to render the USS Diamond damaged, and its working. The Diamond has lost shields."

"Sir," Bahsir cut in, "we are receiving a message from the commander of the Romulan forces."

"On screen," Kirk replied quickly.

The image of the now surrounded USS Diamond was replaced by the face of a stoic appearing Romulan.

"I am Admiral N'rvay. You will power down your weapons, and drop your shield, or we will destroy you as well."

The crew of the Defiant looked to Kirk, and they all knew that Kirk didn't care much for powering down his weapons to talk.

"That is a pretty tall request," Kirk said, "especially since your ships just destroyed another Federation Starship right before our eyes."

"Captain Kirk," N'vray said, his words in a flat tone, "we are well aware who you are, and we respect your forthrightness, however, we just saved your life, and we severely outgun you. Yet, to prove our intentions are not to destroy you or your ship, I will order the ships under my command to lower their shields and disarm their weapons as well."

Kirk looked over at S'vath, who nodded. The Romulans had indeed powered down.

"Alright," Kirk said, to N'vray, "power down our shields and weapons," Kirk said to O'Brien.

"But sir," O'Brien said, with worry on his face.

"You heard the order Mr. O'Brien," Kirk said, with a little more force, "power down."

Reluctantly, and with a harrumph as well, O'Brien powered down the shields and the weapons.

"Alright," Kirk said to N'vray's image on the screen, "We've powered, so would you mind telling me what is going on here? Why have you entered Federation space? You must know that such an act could be considered an act of war."

S'vath looked over to Bashir and gave him a hand signal to mute the communication with the Romulans.

"Sir," S'vath interjected, "I have detected Transporter usage. They are beaming over to the USS Diamond."

"Despite being attacked by Captain Maxwell, and the USS Diamond," Obrien said, "that ship is Federation property. It's our duty to stop them from taking it."

"And die trying?" Amanda asked. "Are you nuts?

"I agree with Chief O'Brien," Commander Nog said to Kirk. "You do intend to stop them I hope," Nog said to Kirk.

"Signal opened," Bashir said as well.

"Admiral N'vray," Kirk said, in a friendly tone, "you must know that I can not allow you to take the USS Diamond. It is Federation property. We have already detected transport signals aboard her; please pull your landing party back."

The expression on N'vray's face was as cold and stoic as it had been moments before.

"Actually, Captain Kirk," N'vray said, "I would like you to beam over to the Diamond vessel as well."

"Me," Kirk said, with a look of "what for" on his face. "Why do you want me to beam over to that ship?"

"Captain Kirk," N'vray said, "I neither have the time nor patience to negotiate with you…"

"Their trying to lock their Transporter on…" S'vath began to say as Kirk shimmered away.

"Beam him back!" Nog said forcibly to N'vray.

"In time Ferengi," N'vray said, "in time."

And then N'vray's image faded from the screen, and the image of the USS Diamond returned.

"Okay, so what do we do now?" Amanda asked. "Do we just let them take Jim like this?"

"We have little choice," O'Brien said to her. "The Defiant is tough little ship, but against three Warbirds, we'd have no chane."

"I agree with O'Brien," S'vath said to Amanda, his wife, "I believe the appropriate course of action here is to wait."

"Five…minutes…" Bakooth said, as he turned back to look at his shipmates. And they could all tell it wasn't a recommendation; it was a statement of what they will do.

"Alright," O'Brien said, "five minutes; and then what?"

"Attack," Bakooth said.

"You want us to attack three Warbirds?" Amanda asked, with disbelief in her voice.

Bakooth smiled a fang filled smile.

Kirk rematerialized on what appeared to be the bridge of the USS Diamond. Captain Maxwell was on the ground, and someone, most likely a Romulan, was tending to him.

"Is he alive?" Kirk asked to the back of the Romulan.

And then the Romulan stood up and faced Kirk, but the other person was no Romulan at all. And although the face on the person who stood before Kirk was somewhat older, and gray hair dominated their head, Kirk recognized his friend immediately; Spock of Vulcan. Spock raised his hand in the customary Vulcan way.

"Jim Kirk," Spock's voice said, with slight rough tone to it, "I have been, and always shall be…your friend."

Continued…


	37. Friends or Foes

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Friend or Foe**

Jim Kirk looked down at the unmoving body of Captain Ben Maxwell, and then back at Spock. When last he had seen Spock, the Spock he had left behind over a hundred years in the past, they were nearly the same age. Now they were many years apart in age, which was as tangible in distance as if they were separated by bridges through time.

"Yes Jim," Spock said, and as if reading Kirk's expression, he said, "I too understand the awkward circumstance of our meeting again at last. The brief conversation we shared via the holographic emitters was fascinating; however, seeing you like this, face to face, was not something I was prepared for."

Kirk smiled at his old friend.

"I have learned about some of your experiences since my disappearance all those years ago, thanks to S'vath," Kirk began to say. "I just wish I had been there, been here, oh hell who knows what to call it, and I'm sorry I wasn't. I should have sought you out when I first reached this time three years ago. There was so much that I missed, so much you could have told me."

"Jim, as I have gotten older," Spock said as he came over to Kirk, "I have come to a point in my life where I now can say that things happen for a reason."

Kirk almost had to do a double take upon hearing Spock's words.

"That doesn't sound like the Spock I knew a hundred years ago," Kirk said, as the two men stood before each other. "If Bones had said something like that, back then, I'm pretty sure a sentence populated by an illogical or two would have been your response."

"To be sure," Spock said, "after the other Jim Kirk, the one who I had known after your Transporter accident, had disappeared into the Nexus and we thought he had been killed, the good doctor and I maintained a friendship."

"I am glad to hear that you two remained friends," Kirk said.

"What you don't know," Spock continued to say, "is that I actually, for lack of a better word, died many years ago. As most Vulcans do near their death, if they have the time to do so, they transfer their living spirit, their Katra, into the mind of another so that it can be transferred back to Vulcan."

"Let me guess; McCoy was that person?" Kirk asked.

"Yes indeed, he was," Spock said, in a soft tone. "After I returned to my own existence, I came to realize that apart of him, apart of who and what McCoy was, stayed with me. I am quite sure it was that essence of McCoy that gave me, over a time, a new perspective on life, so much so, that even my relationship with Sarek became more strained."

"Fascinating," Kirk said.

Spock lifted an eyebrow at Kirk's use of that word.

"My point is," Spock finally said, "I believe that there are events in life that will happen for reasons we can never really know; logic is not the only answer."

Kirk found it odd hearing Spock say such things, because, after listening to what S'vath had to say about the friction between he and his father, Kirk didn't see too much differences in their outlooks on life.

"Spock," Kirk finally came back with, "I have spent a good deal of time these past few days with your son, S'vath. I find him to be a most," Kirk searched for the best word, "complex individual. What you have just told me makes me believe that the two of you are not as far apart as you both might think, in your views of life."

"Ahhh," Spock said, "I surmise that S'vath has told you about Sybok, my half-brother."

"Not everything, but he told me enough," Kirk said. "He told me that Sybok believed that the truths of existence couldn't only be found with logic; that somewhere in the mix emotions played a bigger part. If McCoy affected you as much as you say did, then isn't that the kind of emotionality Sybok was talking about; and couldn't you see how a young impressionable person like S'vath could take to it?"

"Fascinating," Spock said softly.

Kirk's communicator beeped and then he raised it up and flipped it open.

"Kirk here," Kirk said into the communicator.

"Sir," Nog's voice replied, "what is your situation?"

"Not much to report yet Commander Nog, please standby," Kirk replied back, and then he shut the communicator. Then he looked at Spock. "Why are you here Spock, and with the Romulans no less."

"You might say that we have a mutual goal with the Romulans," Spock told Kirk.

"Spock," Kirk interjected, "I know that I've been out of circulation for quite sometime, but from what I can tell, the Federation and the Romulans are not allies in this time, though they are heading in that direction."

"That is quite correct," Spock said. "The mutual goal that I speak of is of a more specific one. I have been on Romulas for nearly three decades trying to sow peace between the Romulan and Vulcan cultures. I have made some progress, and have done so with help from my growing contacts in the Romulan military structure. In fact, it is through those contacts that I have been able to track certain elements in Starfleet that are directly involved with the threat against your life."

"Alright," Kirk said, "I can see where this is leading. Have they asked for the technology of this ship, the Diamond, in exchange for helping with my situation?"

"Not precisely," Spock replied, "however, they do wish for its destruction, which now," Spock said as he looked over at Maxwell, "I can understand."

"Why," Kirk asked, "why do you and the Romulans want it destroyed?"

Spock went back over to Maxwell and kneeled down, as did Kirk. Maxwell was alive, but just barely.

"Just as you beamed over," Spock explained to Kirk, "I was finishing my mind-meld with Captain Maxwell. Jim, in order for Maxwell's mind to control the functions of this ship, as well as those of the four support vessels, his mind had been prepared by most unorthodox means."

"What do you mean by that?" Kirk asked.

"Each of those support vessels," Spock continued to explain, "has their own energy levels that must be maintained, as well as the energy levels on this ship. From firing weapons, to movements through space, every aspect of each of these five ships is controlled by Maxwell's mind."

"So his mind was trained," Kirk concluded.

"No Jim, his mind was not trained in the traditional sense," Spock countered, "his mind was fractured, splintered if you will, into five distinct personalities."

"Are you saying that in order to control the USS Diamond, and its four support ships, someone would have to be a schizophrenic? Why not use a Vulcan, or another species with higher mental capacities?"

"Because," Maxwell said, as he opened his eyes, "they needed someone who would not be held back by over active restraint."

"We've stopped you," Kirk said to Maxwell.

"With help from the Romulans," Maxwell said, with indignation in his voice. "You're as much as a traitor as your Vulcan puppet master."

"You were trying to destroy the Defiant, and kill my friends," Kirk said right back at Maxwell.

Suddenly Spock keeled over in pain, grabbing his head as he did so.

On the Defiant…

S'vath was monitoring the tactical data at his post when suddenly he began to experience a piercing pain in the center of his mind. And then he realized that although his body was moving, standing up from his post on the bridge of the Defiant, the will to move and stand was not coming from him; someone else was in control of his mind!

Deep Space Nine…

A man stood on the upper level of the Promenade. The loud noises of the reconstruction of the destroyed areas of the space station could be heard in the distance. The man was dressed in civilian attire, and he looked out the massive viewing platform and watched as the wormhole opened, and then closed. He looked down at the ground as he felt a rubbing sensation and saw dark colored cat that meowed up at him.

The man lifted up the cat and held the now purring animal in his arms.

"Yes I know," the man, Gary-7, said to the cat. "Hopefully we won't have to wait too much longer."

Continued…


	38. First Strike

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**First Strike**

**Aboard the USS Diamond**…

Spock tried to stand, but it was obvious to Kirk that his old friend was in some kind of pain. Kirk reached out to steady the Vulcan, who was on his knees. Ben Maxwell looked at the struggling Spock and smiled.

"You can't stop us," Maxwell said softly. "Just let Toran guide you Ambassador Spock."

Kirk ignored the apparent ramblings of Maxwell, and helped Spock stand up.

"What's wrong Spock?" Kirk asked.

Spock shook his head, trying to fight of the pain.

"Captain, someone is trying to gain control of my mind," Spock said through gritted teeth. "And who ever this person is, they are a powerful telepath."

"Then why am I not affected?" Kirk asked.

"I think we now know why you are so dangerous to our unnamed enemy," Spock concluded. "It may also be easier for this telepath to gain control of minds that are telepathic as well; sort of like a back door entrance."

Kirk opened his communicator.

"Kirk to Defiant," Kirk said into his communicator.

"_Captain, Nog here, we have a situation on the Defiant," Nog reported._

"Let me guess; S'vath?" Kirk said.

"_Yes sir, it's Commander S'vath, he has barricaded himself in engineering," Nog told Kirk. "Chief O'Brien is trying to get inside, but it appears S'vath has the ship's computer under his control as well_."

"Stand by," Kirk said, as he closed his communicator, "Spock, is this telepath nearby, maybe aboard this ship?"

"That is very likely." Spock said.

Suddenly there was a bright flash, and it came from the main viewing screen. The Romulans ships had violently exploded.

"The Romulans," Spock said to Kirk, "they descend from common ancestors of Vulcan. It's possible that who ever is trying to control my mind had an easier time with theirs," Spock told Kirk.

Spock then keeled over in pain again.

"I can't hold out much longer," Spock said, as he closed his eyes and fell limp to the ground.

"You've lost Kirk," Maxwell said, from the ground.

Kirk kneeled over and grabbed Maxwell by the collar.

"Who is doing this," Kirk demanded. "Is there someone else aboard this ship?"

"You know I won't tell you," Maxwell said, with a smug look on his face.

Kirk decided to act on his own, drew out his phaser, and ran toward the Turbo-lift, and entered it.

**The Defiant…**

S'vath had been successful to a degree, in the battle that was happening inside of his mind. Although most of his actions had been taken over by a very powerful telepath, the mental exercises his father had taught him were paying off. S'vath knew he was in the engineering section of the Defiant, and had barricaded the door behind him. But after the door had closed, he had gained enough control of his own mind to press himself against the door, and forced himself not to proceed any further.

The impulses of command were surging through his mind.

_Induce an override of the warp engines; destroy the Defiant. Induce an override of the warp engines; destroy the Defiant. Induce an override of the warp engines; destroy the Defiant._

S'vath could sense his legs trying to walk toward the control panels that controlled the inter-mix of the warp engines, but S'vath reached down with his hands and held them back. The telepath seemed to have control, but not total control, of S'vath's body. But, as each second wore on, the more powerful the alien impulses in his mind became. And, as if a string had snapped in his mind, his hands let go of his legs. The telepath had won the contest. S'vath could only watch from inside his own mind as his body moved toward the inter-mix panels.

Outside engineering, Master-Chief O'Brien had accessed the main door's operation panel.

"Can you get this door open?" Nog asked as he stood behind O'Brien, watching him desperately work. "

"Nog, I'm trying," O'Brien replied. "The command codes have been rerouted, and if I go to fast and cause an overload, these doors will never open."

Suddenly Bakooth came around the corner holding a large weapon. It looked like a large rifle, and Nog guessed that had he, Nog, tried to hold it, he would have collapsed over due to the weight of the weapon.

"What is that?" Nog asked Bakooth, the large Chalnoth warrior.

"Door…opener…"Bakooth replied with his low gruff voice.

"Wait, let's give the Chief more time," Nog urged.

Bakooth didn't listen. He aimed the rifle at the door.

"Don't do this, Bakooth," O'Brien urged, as he continued to work, but saw Bakooth aiming the gun at the door. "If you fire that thing and the blast hits something in engineering, you could kill us all."

"We…die…anyway…" Bakooth replied.

Suddenly Amanda came running around the bend, and tried to stop Bakooth by grabbing his massive arms. He waved his arm, throwing her off of him and against the wall, crashing to the ground.

"You could kill him!" Amanda screamed, sprawled out on the floor. "S'vath's not in control of himself."

Bakooth didn't listen to her, and pulled the trigger. A beam of energy streamed out and blasted the door open.

**The Diamond…**

Kirk ran through the corridors of the Diamond's upper level, and finally came upon the door that was labeled Node-1. Kirk tried to enter the room beyond the door, but the door would not open. He then fired his weapon at the door's access point, blasting away the outer area, exposing the wires. The door opened quite easily. But Kirk was no fool; he knew that it had been too easy. Whoever was beyond that door wanted Kirk to enter, but why?

Kirk entered the compartment and, in the center of the room, he saw a man sitting in some sort of command chair. Kirk knew instinctively that whoever the person was, they were the telepath attacking the minds of Spock and S'vath, and had undoubtedly caused the crews of the Romulan crews to destroy their own ships.

"Who are you?" Kirk asked, walking further into the room, his phaser aimed at the stranger.

"My name is Toran," the stranger replied.

"Why are you doing this?" Kirk asked. "Are you responsible for the death of the Romulans?"

"Yes I am," Toran said. "They are the enemy, even in this time." Toran said, "and they must be defended against."

Kirk looked at the man, trying to get a read on him. He looked rather ordinary, and even friendly, on the outside. One would have never known he could have been responsible for so much destruction. Kirk looked around at the strange room, which seemed to radiate out from the center seat where Toran sat. There were all kinds of pulsating panels, and several banks of lights which seem to indicate power levels.

"What is this place?" Kirk asked, his voice echoing through out the circular shaped room that was nearly the size of the old Enterprise's bridge.

Suddenly, and without warning, Kirk's phaser shimmered away, leaving him defenseless.

"This place," Toran replied, "is the Monument."

"Are you human?" Kirk asked.

"No, Kirk, I am a Betazoid," Toran replied. "And yes, I can read your mind. Oh, I may not be able to control your mind as of yet, as I control Maxwell's, but that will come in due time, if you let me."

"Why would I let you control my mind?" Kirk asked.

"Because, despite everything else you may think; you want peace as much as I do." Toran explained.

"What does any of this have to do with peace?" Kirk asked, with a tinge of anger in his voice. "If you're responsible for hiring the assassin to kill me, then you must know the destruction he caused on DS9, and the loss of innocent life. Add the destruction of Romulan vessels, and you can see why I do not buy the kind of peace you are selling."

"Captain, just like any battle," Toran continued, "there will be losses, like the loss of pawns from that favorite of yours; chess."

"For what purpose," Kirk asked, trying to buy more time as he tried to think of a course of action.

"My world was conquered during the last great war; the Dominion War," Toran explained. "I watched, at a very young age, as my parents, and my little sister, were killed by Jem-Hadar soldiers just doing their duty in a time of war. It was then that I decided to end war."

Kirk thought about the entire set up of the Diamond.

"The four ships that supported this one, they were controlled by Maxwell's mind," Kirk said to Toran, as he stepped ever closer towards the command seat the Betazoid sat in. "But in order to do so, his mind had to be fractured into five separate entities."

"Yes, exactly," Toran replied. "Even though he had five distinct personalities, in reality, it was just one man who controlled all four ships with his mind. The Akira-class ship can hold a crew of up to six-hundred; there were none on those ships. So do the math Captain," Toran continued. "An entire fleet controlled by the mind of one man. If our enemies realized that their massive armadas, with all that life upon them, were up against our armadas with only a small fraction of life, if any, would they be so willing to attack us?"

"Do you really think that would work?" Kirk asked. "In fact," Kirk said, as he jabbed a finger in the air, "your fleets, which would risk very little life at all, could be used to start wars, not prevent them."

"No, that is where you are wrong." Toran said, "The fleets would only be used to defend the Federation, not expand it. Let the Romulans, Breen and the H'nai keep stay where they are; the so called fleets of one, as you called them, would be a deterrent from future aggressions against the Federation."

"And you would guarantee that?" Kirk asked.

"No one wants war, Captain; that is what I guarantee." Toran replied. "The reason you had to be eliminated is that for many years, all prospective Starfleet commanders have had to undergo intense mental evaluations. Luckily, for me, the responsibility of seeing to the fitness of their minds fell upon Betazoids; In time I made sure that the Betazoids who were responsible for approving those evaluations were hand picked by me. Even the experienced Starship personnel that undergo routine mental evaluation, which is a requirement they must follow every three years, were evaluated by my team of Betazoids. It took nearly six of your years to do, but eventually, every mind of every Starship commander had been evaluated by us."

"I see," Kirk said. "And since I come from a time when these types of mind evaluations were not yet used, you thought someone like me could pose a problem, because that seed was never planted."

"So we had to get rid of you," Toran explained. "And let's face it; you're not just a Starship captain from another time, you're the great Captain Kirk. Yes, I know, legends are usually more grandiose than reality, but still, once I learned of your existence, I had to take action, and so I did."

"But some of these starship captains you claim to control have helped me avoid your assassins, how do you explain that?"

"We don't outright control them," Toran said, "Most Starship commanders have strong wills, and there are far too many of them. We merely focused their minds from straying too far from their normal activities. Apparently I will have to revisit some of their minds. Can't you see Captain? Now that we have successfully mastered the Borg technologies, and one person can now do what it would have taken five, to five-hundred men to do, we will no longer need so many Starfleet commanders. A great man from your time, Dr. Richard Daystrom, he too shared this dream."

"I never met the man," Kirk said to Toran, "but I read about what he did, and loss of life his M-5 computer caused. He was out of his mind, just as much as you are."

"No, you are wrong," Toran said. "Now I see that there are others who might think like you, perhaps those who have aided you; like Jellico. I've already eliminated him, now I will have to revisit the minds of others as well it seems."

"And so you will just get rid of them?" Kirk asked.

"Precisely," Toran said.

"You do realize," Kirk countered, "that your fleets with unmanned vessels will only lead to more war, and more conquest."

"I have just told you, Captain Kirk, I do not want war. Neither I, nor the Betazoids who work beneath me, want war. We are a race of pacifists; we only want peace, and with fleets like this, under our control, we can ensure that peace."

"No," Kirk said, with even more anger in his voice, "Toran, listen to me, you have created the most dangerous method of conquest. Without the risk of losing life, because your fleets would practically be populated by unmanned vessels, you have created the perfect first-strike weapon."

"These fleets are controlled by us," Toran fired back. "We will only use these fleets to maintain peace."

"No," came from a voice behind Kirk. Kirk turned to see Maxwell, and he was holding a phaser. "Kirk is right," Maxwell said to Toran.

Maxwell fired his phaser, and the beam streaked past Kirk and struck Toran, killing him instantly.

Kirk felt relieved.

"A little close, for my taste, but good work," Kirk said to Maxwell.

"Actually," Maxwell said, as he aimed the phaser at Kirk. "I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation." Maxwell said, with smug arrogance. "You were right, about what you just said Kirk. As it turns out, I wasn't approached to join Project Diamond just because of my tactical superiority to those like Janeway, Jellico, Picard and Sisko; I was approached because, eventually, my superiors knew I would be able to overcome Toran's control and take over the Diamond from him. This Diamond fleet was just the first. Soon entire fleets of Diamonds will allow us to finally be rid of our enemies, and allow the Federation to exist without external threats."

"Or internal threats," Kirk said softly. "A ship like this would make that quite easy."

"Yes, that too," Maxwell said. "The Federation needs this kind of control in order to ensure its own survival. Borg technology, merged with telepathic control, will go along way into marshalling a new era in galactic peace."

"You're a raving lunatic," Kirk said. "And I will do anything in my power to stop you."

"Thankfully," Maxwell said with a sneer, "I'm the one holding the phaser."

And just as Maxwell was about to fire, a hand gripped his neck from behind. Maxwell dropped the phaser, and fell to the ground; out cold. Spock now stood where Maxwell had been standing before.

"I wish you would teach me that," Kirk said.

"I have tried," Spock said.

"How did you regain control of your mind?" Kirk asked.

"Apparently your conversation with Toran was affecting his rationality," Spock told Kirk. "I came to my senses on the bridge, and realized Maxwell had gone. Eventually I found my way here."

"We have to destroy this ship," Kirk said to Spock. "We're not ready for this kind of technology."

"Agreed," Spock said.

Kirk fipped open his communicator.

"Defiant," Kirk said, "what is your situation over there?" Kirk asked.

"_Captain," Nog replied, "the Defiant is counting down to a warp-core breech," Nog said, in a worried tone._

"How long do we have?" Kirk asked.

"_Ten minutes!" Nog replied._

…continued

Next time; the Defiant blows up and someone will die!


	39. An Afterlife

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**An Afterlife…**

The USS Defiant was counting down to a warp-core breech as Ambassador Spock, and Captain Kirk, who was propping up an unconscious Maxwell, materialized on the Defiant's Transporter pad. Dr. Bashir, Amanda (S'vaths' wife) and Nog were waiting for them.

"Dr. Bashir, keep this man sedated," Kirk told Bashir as he helped lay Maxwell down on the grav-bed.

"Yes sir," Bashir replied.

"It is good to see you again," Spock said to Amanda, as he held up his hand in the traditional Vulcan salute.

Amanda focused intently, and then she raised her hand, and then she smiled. She had rendered, for the first time ever, to her father-in-law no less, a proper Vulcan hand salute of her own.

"Most impressive," Spock said, with a slight smile.

"Thank you," Amanda said.

"What's the situation?" Kirk asked, as he and Nog strode out of the Transporter room with purpose. Spock followed directly behind them, as Amanda assisted Bashir with Maxwell.

"S'vath barricaded himself inside engineering," Commander Nog began to say.

"Under the control of the telepath, I assume," Spock interjected from behind.

"Yes Ambassador," Nog replied. "We were able to," Nog paused, "blast our way in and stop him."

"Blast?" Kirk asked, in a doubtful tone.

"It's a... long story," Nog continued, "but S'vath, while under the control of the telepath, initiated a warp-core breech and we can't seem to stop it."

Moments later, Kirk, Nog and Spock arrived at engineering, and stepped through the blasted open hole of the door. The metal around the rim of the blasted in opening was still sizzling with fragments of melted metal. Master-Chief O'Brien was at the controls, as was S'vath, and they were hurriedly trying every trick in the book to bypass the warp-core breech.

"Father," S'vath said, as he looked up and saw Spock. "I was unable to stop the telepath, this is all my fault."

"Non-sense," Kirk interjected quickly, "it was Toran's fault, the telepath who controlled your mind, and don't you forget that mister."

"Aye sir," S'vath said.

Spock joined O'Brien and S'vath at the engineering consol.

"We've tried everything," O'Brien said, in a slightly disappointed tone.

"Did you try inverse-phasing?" Spock asked.

"Yeah," O'Brien said, with a whimsical smile, "I even tried that, but it didn't work."

A worried look came over Kirk's phase; they were running out of options, in fact, there was only one left.

"Spock," Kirk said to his old friend, "we've got four minutes before the warp-core breech," Kirk said, looking at the digital time read out on the consol, "the only chance we have is the Diamond. The device that Maxwell wore, on the bridge, do you think you could operate it and control the Diamond?"

"With four minutes in the balance?" Spock asked. "There may not be enough time, Jim."

"Captain Kirk," O'Brien said, "if keep we realigning the anti-matter filters, every twelve seconds or so, we could delay the core up to another five minutes."

"Alright, lets do that," Kirk agreed.

"Sir," O'Brien added, "it would have to be done from that consol over there," O'Brien told Kirk, "and would have to be done manually, there is no automatic setting."

"You mean someone will have to stay behind to do the realignment," Kirk stated. "Are you sure there is no other way?"

"I'm positive," O'Brien said, with remorse in his voice. "And I'm not even sure it will work."

Kirk pressed an intercom button on the consol.

"This is Kirk," Kirk said, his voice echoing through-out the ship, "Dr. Bashir, Amanda, get yourselves and our prisoner to the Transporter room immediately," Kirk looked to the others in engineering, "I will stay and align the filters, everyone else, to the Transporter room, immediately."

"Sir, I will stay and realign the filters," Nog stated resolutely, "I have more training than you."

"This matter is not open for discussion, Commander Nog," Kirk said, "I am ordering you all to the Transporter room."

"Jim…let me…" Spock began to say.

"No," S'vath cut in, "this is my fault father. Let me do this!" S'vath pleaded.

"I mean it Spock, and S'vath. Get to that Transporter room; and that's an order," Kirk said with a smile. "I'm from another time and another place, so perhaps this is how the universe is adapting to my being here. Besides, both of you maybe needed to control the USS Diamond; now hurry and go!"

Spock attempted to step toward Kirk, but Kirk shot a quick glance at S'vath, who then placed his hand on Spock's neck, applying the Vulcan neck pinch. Spock collapsed, and S'vath held him up.

"Thank you," Kirk said, "now go!"

It was clear from expression on Kirk's face that he wasn't going to take no for an answer, and so, the others did as they were ordered and headed for the Transporter room. Moments later, Nog, O'Brien, S'vath, and Bakooth, who now carried Spock instead of S'vath, arrived at the Transporter room. The extra five minutes that Kirk would gain for them really meant there was just over five minutes until the ship would go up like an exploding star.

"Where's Captain Kirk?" Amanda asked.

"He's staying behind, so that we can all get off the ship," O'Brien replied, with anger in his voice.

"I've set the Transporter to automatic," Nog said, "We have to get over to that other ship and hope we can get out of here before this one explodes."

The others all got on the Transporter pad, and then Nog slid the controls up, and then he darted over to the pad.

Spock came to, as the others prepared to beam. He realized what had happened, but was still stunned from the pinch to do anything. All he could do was think about the friend he was leaving behind. Perhaps Kirk had been right. Maybe his appearance in this time just wasn't meant to be. He closed his eyes as the Transporter engaged; and then everyone on the pad shimmered away; or so it seemed.

All but one shimmered away and now that one person remained on the Transporter Pad alone; Bakooth. He took a small device out of his pocket, a Transporter inhibiter, and set in on the consol, and then headed for engineering as fast as he could.

Jim Kirk was doing as best as he could to realign the anti-matter filters. The commands were easy enough to input into the consol, but making sure it was done in a timely manner was the hard part. Thankfully, it was working. At that moment Kirk's attention to what he was doing was broken by someone coming through the smashed in door; it was Bakooth.

"What the hell are you doing, you big oaf, get back to the Transporter room and get off this ship," Kirk ordered.

Bakooth lumbered over to where Kirk stood.

"I…stay…You…go," Bakooth said.

"Bakooth," Kirk said, "I order you off this ship!" Kirk said with anger, as he pressed in another command into the consol to realign the anti-matter filters.

Bakooth took out a small data rod, no larger than one of his fingers, and held it out to Kirk.

"What is that?" Kirk asked. "What are you doing?"

"You will…," Bakooth said, "…remember!"

And then in a swift move, Bakooth slammed his two fists down on Kirk's neck, knocking Kirk out in the process. Bakooth took the data rod and slipped it inside of Kirk's pocket. With only one minute remaining, Bakooth took his communicator off of his chest, and placed in Kirk's pocket as well. Then the large Chalnoth warrior opened a communication channel on the consol next to the main intermix consol he was at.

"Beam…now!"

* * *

The others had made it over to the Diamond, and had materialized in the Diamond's Transporter room. Commander Nog had locked on to the Diamond's Transporter room transponder. With no time as to figure out why Bakooth had not made the Transport over, Spock, O'Brien and S'vath had left the Transporter room, running as fast as they could, on their way to the bridge.

Nog, Bashir, who was propping up Maxwell, and Amanda were about to leave the Transporter room when a voice came from Nog's chest communicator.

"Beam..NOW!" The voice of Bakooth growled.

Nog ran over to the Transporter controls and locked on to Bakooth's communicator signal, and energized. The body of Kirk materialized on the Transporter pad.

Spock put the device on his head, which was nothing more than a sleek black metal frame of some sort that clasped over his temples.

"Ambassador," O'Brien said, quite anxiously, "we don't have much time."

"Can you do it father?" S'vath asked, as he looked at the Defiant on the screen. "Can you get us out of here!"

Spock looked at his son, and shook his head slightly.

"Calm yourself, my son," Spock said, "Raising your voice will not improve our chances."

Spock closed his eyes, and suddenly the Diamond lurched, and then it lurched again. And just as the Defiant's warp-core breeched, the USS Diamond streaked away at high warp.

Spock had done it; he had gained telepathic control of the Diamond's helm and navigation, and had propelled the ship out of danger. At that moment, the door to the bridge swooshed open and Kirk and Nog ran onto the bridge.

"Jim!" Spock and S'vath both said excitedly at seeing Jim Kirk alive after all!

"How did you do it sir? How did you get off of the Defiant in time?" O'Brien asked.

"It was Bakooth," S'vath interjected, "that is why he didn't materialize on the Diamond with the rest of us."

There was sadness on Kirk's face, knowing that another person had risked their life to save his.

"He risked his life," Kirk said softly. "And I hardly even knew him."

"Sir," Nog said as he came over to Kirk. "I know that some hu'umans believe in chance, just as my people do. I know this may not mean much, but Bakooth and Commander Riker both saved your life. The odds of that happening are incredible, and strangely enough, I think it means something on a grander scale."

"I hadn't thought about it that way," Kirk said.

"Well I have," Nog said to Kirk, "and I think the two of them are together, right now, and wherever they are, they're already getting into trouble; I'd bet all my Latinum on it."

Kirk patted Nog on the back.

"Thanks," Kirk said to Nog.

There was a brief silence on the bridge, and then Kirk walked down to where Spock sat in the command chair, and who was still wearing the device on his head.

"Can you control the ship?" Kirk asked.

"I believe so," Spock replied. "I have control over the basic systems, however, some systems I can not access."

"What do we do now?" O'Brien asked.

"Shouldn't we just return this ship to Starfleet and say mission over?" S'vath asked.

"No, this isn't over yet," Kirk said.

"It isn't?" O'Brien asked.

"Toran was the telepath who controlled Maxwell, who in turn, controlled this ship, and it's supporting fleet." Kirk explained to Nog and O'Brien. "Toran's goal was to create entire fleets under the control on one individual, thus, he hoped, eliminating the need for war because other powers, like the Romulans, would not want to risk war against an opponent where casualties would be one for every ten-thousand Romulans."

"Okay," O'Brien said, "well then we won already; we have the ship now."

"Chief O'Brien," Kirk continued, "Maxwell overpowered Toran, and killed him," Kirk went on to say. "Maxwell insinuated that he had been planted all along in Project Diamond; with the goal of usurping Toran's so called peaceful goals. Maxwell's intentions were not his alone, he worked for someone else."

"Sir," O'Brien said softly. "We're only one ship. What you're saying would indicate the threat could be much larger than what we can imagine. How do we go against something like that?"

Kirk smiled as O'Brien, and then walked over to Spock.

"I assume you have already planned beyond this point," Kirk said to Spock.

"Indeed I have," Spock said.

"Alright," Kirk said, "Don't keep us guessing; where are we going?" Kirk asked.

Spock arched an eyebrow.

"We are no course," Spock said, as he paused for a second, "the Planet Killer."

Kirk's jaw dropped

"The what?" Nog asked for the others.

Continued…Kirk and Spock reunite with two old friends; Scotty and Sulu! You won't want to miss it! Meanwhile; what is Gary-7 doing on Deep Space Nine? Find out…next time!

...and don't forget to read DS9: Blood Island, as Sisko tries to find out who created a virus with the intent of killing Bajoran traitors!


	40. A Slight of Hand

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**A Slight of Hand…**

The Diamond came out of warp and instantly Nog opened his eyes as far as he could without causing them to roll out of their sockets. The Ferengi had read stories about the Planet Killer but hadn't realized how large it really was until seeing it first hand. As the Diamond approached the long dormant device, which had killed so many, being on the Diamond felt more and more like being a fly buzzing around an elephant.

James T Kirk felt the uneasiness as well. He remembered the encounter with the Planet Killer as if it were only yesterday.

Kirk looked at Spock.

"I suppose you never made it back here?" Kirk asked.

"Precisely," Spock said. "However, seeing it after all these decades, I can not help but wonder why I never came back to see it."

"I can tell you why," S'vath said from the tactical post, "We Vulcans are all about striving forward. You know as well as I do that grandfather would have thought your coming back here for nostalgic reasons would have been illogical."

Spock nodded in agreement.

"I can not deny that possibility," Spock said. Then he looked at Kirk. "Jim, from your perspective, the events surrounding what happened here all those decades ago happened only four years ago. The memories must be very strong."

"You were always the one for understatements," Kirk said.

Bashir was thinking back on what he had read about the Enterprise's encounter with the device.

"Captain Kirk," Bashir said, "is it true that you piloted a starship into the large orifice?"

Kirk nodded.

"Yes, it is true," Kirk said, "and I came within seconds from not making it off the USS Constellation in time."

"Four point two-five-seconds, if I recall correctly," Spock said.

"Well excuse me," Amanda said, as she came over from where was standing, "I have no idea what this thing is; so what is it?"

"What we are looking at was, in essence, a robotic device," Spock began to explained, "A device that fed on planetary debris to power itself. It destroyed several planets, and the ship and crew of the USS Constellation, until it was deactivated by what were quite unorthodox methods," Spock concluded, aiming the last couple words at Kirk.

"Poor Matt Decker," Kirk said, in a somber tone. "He had the right idea to stop it, just not big enough of a ship to carry it out." Kirk sighed, and then he looked up at Spock, who stood next to the command chair. "Alright Spock; why all the secrecy? Why have you brought us back here?"

Before Spock could answer, S'vath, who manned the tactical post behind where Kirk sat, cut in.

"Captain," S'vath stated, "sensors are detecting a Federation shuttle-craft at the far end of the Planet Killer; they are hailing us."

"Put them on screen," Kirk said.

The view of the Planet Killer was replaced by the smiling face of Captain Montgomery Scott; retired. Standing beside Scotty was a man of oriental persuasion, with a long white beard. But as Kirk stared closer, he recognized the older man; it was Sulu.

Scotty's eyes also stared closer as he recognized Kirk as well; a much younger Captain Kirk indeed.

O'Brien looked over at Bashir and smile whimsically at each other. When they were serving aboard DS9, years ago, the two had actually traveled back in time and had encountered both Kirk and Scotty.

"Kep'n Kirk," Scotty said excitedly. "Aye'a din'na believe the reports…"

"It is amazing," Sulu said to the much younger Kirk.

"And it is very good to see the two of you as well," Kirk stated with a smile. "It looks like you've both done very well, and that, more than anything, makes me happy."

"Kep'n," Scotty said, "I know 'ye not exactly the same man who came back all those years ago, but I want ya' to know that ye were always a good friend."

"Where are Pavel and Nyota?" Sulu asked.

Kirk's expression became somber.

"They didn't make it," Kirk replied. "Their signals were degraded, and when they rematerialized, they were…" Kirk trailed off, closing his eyes in the process; not wanting to discuss the grizzly condition Chekov and Uhura had arrived in the 24th century. "They will be missed." Kirk concluded. Then Kirk looked over at Spock. "What is going on here? How did they know to meet us here?"

"I sent for them," Spock explained. "And hopefully it was not a fool's errand."

"Ambassador," Sulu said, as he pointed an old twitching finger at the camera, "When have we ever let you down."

"Never," Spock replied. "Nor was I inferring that you had; I apologize for the miscommunication."

"Don't ya apologize to this old geezer," Scotty said to Spock, but aiming his words at Sulu, with a smile, "he forgot his prunes when we left his house and he's been snapping at everything thing ever since."

"Very well, then we shall beam you over," Spock replied. "Stand by," Spock added. Then he turned to Kirk. "Jim, I think you and I should proceed to the Transporter room alone."

"Alright," Kirk said, as he stood up. "I'll be at the Transporter room with Ambassador Spock. In the mean time, Commander Nog," Kirk said, with an intended pause, "you've got the con."

Moments later, Kirk and Spock had arrived at the Transporter room where Spock was soon standing at the Transporter machine.

"So, Spock; why all the cloak and dagger," Kirk asked as he watched Spock work the Transporter.

"Perhaps the expression, wait and see, would apply to this situation." Spock replied. Then he spoke; "Energize."

But it was NOT Scotty and Sulu who dissolved from the shuttle craft; instead it was Kirk and Spock who dissolved from the Transporter room on the Diamond!

Next time..ESCAPE!


	41. Mustache Twirler

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Mustache Twirler**

The instant Kirk and Spock were beamed off of the USS Diamond (_which I mistakenly referred to as the Defiant last issue, sorry about that_…), and aboard the shuttlecraft, the shuttlecraft streaked away at warp speed. The moment the shuttle was gone, the Diamond simply cloaked, and did not move; and how could it? No one who remained aboard knew how to telepathically operate the ship, other than Maxwell, who was now a prisoner.

On the bridge of the Diamond, everyone else was quite surprised as to what had just happened.

"Umm," O'Brien finally began to say, "Were we just bamboozled?"

"I am uncertain of that term," S'vath replied.

"It means, my husband; we've been tricked. But how could they do that to us?" Amanda asked. "Are we supposed to stay here, next to that Planet Killer thing?"

"Or," Bashir said, "Kirk was abducted by his friends. We can not be sure. But, then again, it does have the classic look of bamboozlement."

"Again with that word," S'vath said. "I will indeed double my efforts to learn more of my heritage," but as S'vath spoke, the sarcasm in his voice was unmistakable.

"The question is," Nog said, as he walked over to the Diamond's command chair, where Spock had left the device that, when worn, that could telepathically control the ship. "Can anyone of us use this and control the ship? Ambassador Spock was able to release control of the stations on this bridge so we could control the ship, but something tells me I bet he locked out the manual controls so we couldn't regain control of the ship too quickly?"

Everyone looked over at S'vath. He was Vulcan, and Spock's son, so he was, to them, the first choice to try and control the advanced ship.

"I must point out," S'vath said to the others, "that I am just three-quarters Vulcan. And, unlike most Vulcans, I have not spent my life trying to strengthen my mind."

"What about you Julian?" O'Brien asked Bashir. "Perhaps you're," O'Brien said, speaking in a general tone, not wanting to reveal the genetic history of his good friend, "best suited for this."

"That's right," Nog said enthusiastically, "your advanced genetics may give you the ability to communicate with the ship."

Nog had just given up the secret that O'Brien was trying to circumvent.

"What does he mean by that?" Amanda asked Bashir, "What is so special about your genetics?"

"Well, as my good friend here Nog has revealed," Bashir said with look over at Nog, "I am the product of illegal genetics. And while I thank him for his confidence, I am not too sure my enhanced abilities will help in this situation."

"Well," O'Brien said, "the way I see it, we have two choices. We can either use the mind of an untrained Vulcan, or the slightly advanced mind of a human."

S'vath thought for a moment, and then he spoke to the others, as they were speaking among themselves. Everyone listened as he spoke.

"Everyone, listen," S'vath said, "I may not know much about my Vulcan heritage," S'vath told them all, "however, I do know about my father and Captain James Kirk. When I was much younger, and Spock would speak of their missions, there was one thing I came away with more than anything else. When they were together, as they are now, and teamed with their shipmates, and we just saw two of them on that shuttle, they would solve problems as a team with very little outside help. I believe the reason we were left behind was because they no longer wanted to risk our lives and careers with this endeavor of theirs."

"What are you saying?" O'Brien asked. "They no longer need our help?"

"Think about it," S'vath continued. "Up to now our involvement could be attributed to being abducted, or, in my case, family devotion. Jim did seem genuinely worried as to how this could affect my career in Starfleet."

"He mentioned that to me as well," Nog said. "And he certainly didn't want you," Nog said to O'Brien, "to risk your family even more than you have already."

"So," O'Brien said to Nog, and the others, "we're supposed to just sit here and do nothing?"

S'vath walked down to the Diamond's command chair. Nog handed him the device, that when worn upon one's head, could control the ship.

"If my father was able to use this device, then I am quite sure, in time, so can we," S'vath said. "We have a choice; take this ship we're on and hand it over to Starfleet, or, try to pursue my father and Jim Kirk, and try to help them."

Suddenly, and without warning, a strange effect, which resembled a small, door sized atmospheric disruption, appeared near the Turbo-lift. And then, quite unexpectedly, a man stepped out of the whirling affect, with a Siamese cat sitting on his shoulder.

"Okaaaay," O'Brien said to the others, "this situation just got even stranger."

* * *

Scotty sat at the controls of the shuttle, which had originally been given to him by Captain Jean-Luc Picard years earlier. Scotty, with so much time on his hand, had refitted the shuttle with all kinds of new equipment, including new structural integrity buffers, engines, and even a bank of Romulan disrupters, all of which he had obtained on the black market with help from Spock, over the years.

Kirk, Sulu, and Spock, all sat in the passenger cabin.

"Okay," Kirk said to Spock, "now that we're all together, would you mind telling me why we ditched the others back on the Defiant?"

"Jim," Spock said, "I think you know the answer to that part of the question."

"Aright, it was a softball," Kirk replied, "I can understand not involving them in this any further. And while I don't mean this as an offense to you, Sulu, or even Scotty, but what the hell can three old codgers and a man from another century do in this time?"

"James," Sulu said, with the voice of an old Japanese Wiseman in full force, "in life it isn't always the speed of the eagle that can snare the worm; sometimes it can be the fingernail size of the worm's brain."

Both Kirk and Spock looked at Sulu with looks of subtle bewilderment.

"I have brought us all together," Spock said, "because I believe only those who are archaic as the three of us can bring this situation to close. During my mind-meld with Captain Maxwell, I learned much about those who he mentioned were behind this plot to supplant Starfleet commanders with men under their telepathic control, and eventually, the control of entire fleets to maintain not only galactic order, but the internal order Federation worlds. The Betazoid, Toran, could have provided more answers; however, as you know, he was killed by Maxwell."

"What did you find out, Spock?" Kirk asked, "Because, if I heard correctly, Maxwell did insinuate that he, and others in Starfleet, let Toran implement his plan of telepathic domination of Starfleet with the intent of eventually taking that control away from Toran, and then using it to further the plans of those whom Maxwell was really aligned with."

"And that is why I have brought us together," Spock answered. "The ultimate threat, I believe, is not coming from any faction of Starfleet, it is coming from outside; and outside influence, if you will. Maxwell's answers were not entirely forthright, due to the fact he was trying to feed us what you would refer to as red herrings."

Kirk didn't like the sound of that at all.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying old friend?" Kirk asked. "That Maxwell was purposely incriminating Starfleet?"

Spock nodded his head.

"Jim, Maxwell truly believes that his mind was splintered by Federation doctors, with help from the gifted Betaziod Toran. However, throughout the mind-meld, I sensed aspects of his memories that did not seem authentic. Call it intuition, if you will. Some aspects of his memories seemed artificial, planted there to provide answers should his mind ever be probed."

"How can you be sure?" Sulu asked Spock.

"As I said," Spock said to Sulu, "it is my intuition. Maxwell was trained by Toran, and Starfleet may even beware of Toran's aims; but circumventing that training to the degree Maxwell claims to have been doing was not ordered by Starfleet. I admit, my proof is far from certain."

"Could it be the Romulans?" Kirk asked. "They would be my first choice."

"They would be my first choice too," Sulu said, in agreement with Kirk. "That entire ordeal with the Romulan Senate being eliminated only happened a few short years ago. Perhaps this is another one of their efforts to subvert the Federation."

"And if not them," Kirk added, "then who else...?"

* * *

On the USS DIAMOND; adrift in space…

"Hello," the man said, as he lifted the cat from his shoulders and placed it on the consol next to him. "My name is Gary-7, and unless you do as I tell you; we could all be witnesses to the end of the United Federation of Planets."

-continued….


	42. Cat Play

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Cat play!**

**Featuring**

**William T Riker and**

**Benjamin Sisko**

The sunrise on Bajor, seen from the front porch of Benjamin Sisko's home, was always stunning, or so, that's what Ben always believed. In fact, instead of sleeping in, which most retired folks did, Ben Sisko always got up bright and early just so that he could brew a cup of coffee, flip some pancakes, and then sit back and watch the sun do its thing.

Kasidy Sisko, Ben's wife for many years, did not care to get up early, nor did their teenage daughter Rebecca. They were women, and if there was one thing Ben Sisko knew about women; they loved to buy shoes and sleep in. And that was fine with him. So, with a plate of pancakes in one hand, a cup of coffee in the other, Ben Sisko made his way to the front porch.

But he wasn't exactly alone, for as it would happen, the Sisko's had recently adopted a stray cat that had wandered on to their property. The cat had such a mish-mash of colors, it defied naming. Ben wanted to call the cat Swirl, because of its unique coloring. Kasidy favored calling the cat Abstract, but it was Rebecca who had won out. The stray cat's name became Klingon-Kitty. It wasn't the perfect name, in fact, Ben found it to be too fluffy, but, Rebecca insisted and so it was set in stone, such was the power a teenage girl had.

But there was Klingon-Kitten, sitting on the small table next to the rocking chair Ben sat in every morning to watch the sunrise. And, as usual, Ben had also prepared four strings of bacon. Two strings for Klingon-Kitten and two strings for him self. Ben sat back on the rocking chair, and placed the two strings of bacon on the chair for the feline to devour. And just as he was about enjoy his meal, in the distance: he saw the unmistakable shimmering effect of a Transporter signal.

The shimmering effect solidified into an old friend; Captain William T Riker. Sisko and Riker had become friends during the design of the Defiant many years ago on Mars. Ben Sisko was a different man back then, torn by the anger of losing his wife to the Borg. If Sisko had a friend in those times, it was William T Riker.

Riker came over to the porch, smiling at seeing Sisko feeding bacon to a cat.

"I think I've lived to see it all," Riker said with a chuckle. "As I recall, you hated cats back on Mars."

"Actually, I don't really care for them now," Sisko said as he smiled down at the cat, "however, this cat and I have become breakfast companions."

Riker looked at the round tummy on the cat.

"I can see that," Riker said, as he walked up the wooden stairs of the porch, and then pulled over one of the unused fold-up chair that was leaning against the railing.

"I'm sorry about Thomas," Ben said, in a somber tone. "He was a great man."

"There's no need to be sorry," Riker said, "he died saving someone's life. If I have the chance to go like that, that's the way I hope it happens."

Sisko stepped into the house, and brought out the coffee pot and another cup. As he poured Riker a cup, he looked at Riker.

"You're starting to sound like a Klingon, wanting to die with honor in some heroic act," Sisko said with a slight laugh.

Riker took the coffee offered to him, took a sip, and a strained look came over his face.

"For a man who claims to be a gourmet chef," Riker said, now with a horse voice, "you still can't make a decent up of coffee."

"Ahh," Sisko said suddenly, "there she is," he pointed towards the distance.

A pinprick of sunlight could be seen. Thanks to the morning haze, staring directly at the pinprick wasn't a problem. And as each second passed, the prick expanded, setting off steps of sunlight upon the valley in the distance; the view was stunning.

"I never tire of seeing of that."

"Ben," Riker said, as they watched the sun rise, "what the hell is going on with Jim Kirk? Admiral Janeway is being tight lipped about it."

"The last I heard," Sisko told Riker, "was that Kirk made it to Trianguli Gamma VI. Ever sense that time, Starfleet has done a very good job containing any information it may have."

"What about O'Brien and Commander Nog?" Riker asked. "I would think, you're being their former commander, Janeway would keep you filled in."

"Ever since I was accused of helping Kirk's wife, I haven't been briefed at all," Sisko said. "Janeway knows why I did it, and for appearance sake, she is keeping her distance."

"Did you help her?" Riker asked with a knowing smile.

"Of course I did," Sisko replied. "She is safe inside that Vulcan embassy, and will remain there until this is all cleared up." He poured himself another cup of coffee. "What about you," Sisko said to Riker, "why are you so interested in what Kirk is doing?"

"Oh I don't know," Riker replied. "I guess, just like you, when I was a kid, I was thrilled when I read about the exploits of the Enterprise. And now here he is, alive and well in our time, and I guess I want to help."

"William," Sisko said, "you're the Captain of your own starship. Your first duty is to your ship."

"I'm a starship commander without a ship. The Titan has put in for some refits, and I've got a month of leave stored up," Riker said. "I want something to do."

"Alright," Sisko finally said. "Go to DS9 and contact Quark. Tell him I sent you, and give him the following code; Grand Nagus. He is operating on point with this entire ordeal."

"You have to be kidding me," Riker said. "Quark is on point?"

"Yes, and he is taking his role very seriously," Sisko replied. "Apparently making sure Spock survives is a chief concern of his, considering all the business his association with the Vulcan ambassador generates."

Riker stood up.

"Very well," Riker said, as he downed his acid tasting coffee. "Do you want to come? It might be fun?"

Sisko shook his head.

"I can't," Sisko said, "Kasidy has me in total lockdown."

"I understand," Riker said with a slight laugh.

Riker reached down and petted the cat.

"You take care of yourself, and go easy on the bacon with this one," Riker said, "actually," Riker said, as he felt the cat's round tummy, "I think you better prepare for kittens."

A worried look came over Sisko's face.

"I'd guess," Riker said as he felt the cat's tummy, "seven or eight."

And with that, Riker stepped off of the porch and beamed away, leaving Sisko to worry about the impending arrival of Klingon-kitten's kittens.

Continued… 


	43. Back Tracking

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Back Tracking**

**Deep Space Nine**

Scotty brought the shuttle down through the giant hanger door, to a complete landing inside of the hanger deck of space station Deep Space Nine. As expected, a dozen or so security guards were arrayed in the hanger deck, readying to apprehend the fugitive James T Kirk. The doors of the shuttle opened and, moments later, Ambassador Spock, Montgomery Scotty, Hikaru Sulu and James T Kirk stepped out.

"Are you sure we're doing the right thing, coming back here like this?" Kirk asked Spock, as both men helped steady Sulu as they walked down the boarding ramp.

"Jim," Spock replied, "as I am sure you are well aware, it would be illogical to claim, with one hundred percent certainty that this endeavor will work. However, it is, as they say, to late to change our minds."

"It will work lads," Scotty said, from behind them, "we just gott'a stay thee course."

"I just want to say," Sulu said to Kirk and Spock, as they propped him up, "I want to thank you two for helping me walk down this ramp. You would think by this time ramps like this would be obsolete."

"Oh be quiet will ya," Scotty said. "This kind of exercise can keep ya' young; ya lazy old coot."

"Scotty," Kirk countered with a smile, "Sulu didn't take a shortcut to this time period like we did, so lets cut him some slack."

"Oh, I'ma well aware of that Captain, but what that old geezer there isn't telling you is that, back on the world of Chiisai, those ancient legs of his manage to walk three miles a day to prepare for the annual 15k charity marathon."

"15K?" Kirk asked, "At your age? You've got to be kidding me."

"Leonard always told us that all we needed was vitamins and wine, everyday, to live a long life," Sulu said with a smile, "and incase you hadn't noticed, it worked for both he and I, bless his soul; though in my case it is vitamins and bottle of Shimauta Awamori**."**

"Scotch is all you need," Scotty interjected.

"If I wanted scotch," Sulu said with a smile, "I'd just get some Root Beer."

Meanwhile, DS9's head of security, Jaden Weer, stood next to Captain Kira Nerys who in turn stood next to Admiral Kathryn Janeway at the bottom of the boarding ramp that the four legendary Starfleet officers were descending upon.

"I'm sorry about having to do this," Janeway said to Kirk and the others as they reached the bottom, "You know I have to follow regulations in this matter."

"It is the only logical thing you can do; Admiral." Spock told her.

"Admiral Janeway," Kirk said, "I hope you kept your part of the bargain. We only agreed to turn our selves in after you gave us your world."

"I understand," Janeway said back to Kirk, "but do not lose sight of the fact that you stole the Defiant, kidnapped members of Starfleet, and, if what you told me is correct, your actions led to the destruction of the Defiant." Then she looked to Jaden Weer. "Mr. Weer, please take our guests to the brig and hold them there."

"Consider it done," Weer said.

"Do you need help sir?" Kira asked, as she reached out to steady Sulu.

"Actually," Sulu said, as he pressed a button on a stick like object in his hand that suddenly morphed into a walking cane, "I will be just fine. Though I must admit, being asked to hold hands with a pretty woman at my age is genuinely a highlight of my day."

Sulu walked past Kira. The Bajoran commander of DS9 then turned her gazed toward Kirk.

"Where are Nog, O'Brien, Bashir and Bakooth?" Kira asked Kirk, with a tone of anger in her voice.

"We'll discuss this later, in your office," Janeway interceded with. "Have them brought there in one hour."

"Yes Admiral," Kira said, "one hour."

**Just beyond the Bajoran sector; a lone shuttle is in station keeping, surrounded by the blackness of space…**

Courier services were a hit and miss prospect, when paying them to transport goods, let alone spaceships. Riker had piloted a shuttle outside of Bajor's system to the prearranged coordinates he and the courier service had agreed upon. It had cost him several bars of latinum to pay for the endeavor, but it was worth it because with the Titan put in for refits, and with a month of free time on his hand, Riker decided to forgo the usual puttering around in shuttles to the more attractive prospect zipping around with the Celeritas.

There had been only two of the custom made ships built. The other one had been destroyed, ironically, by the USS Enterprise during the Romulan reunification plot many years ago. The Enterprise had encountered the tough little ship, which was owned by a Ferengi smuggler, at Starfleet wrecking yard. Riker was so enamored with the pesky little ship that, years later, he had sought out its builders, and was happy to find out that two such ships were built. Using most of the winnings from his Triple Dabo, Riker purchased the Celeritas from the privately owned company that had built her. Sure, the company had built the Celeritas, and other ships, for smuggling operations; but that didn't matter to Riker. In fact, he justified the purpose to his friends, notably Jean-Luc Picard, by claiming that since he now owned it, it was out of circulation and out of the hands of smugglers.

Riker normally kept the Celeritas in "storage" at the docking port just outside of Neptune's orbit.

Suddenly the sensors on the shuttle detected an approaching ship and, sure enough, the Celeritas and another ship appeared out of warp. The other had come so as to take the courier back to where ever they had come from. After paying the fee, Riker boarded the Celeritas, and began the process of towing the shuttle back to Deep Space Nine.

The USS Diamond came out of warp in a seldom traveled area of Federation space. Gary-7 sat in the command seat.

"We've arrived," Gary said to the others.

"How could you have learned to control this ship so quickly?" Amanda asked. "You're just a common man."

"So is Ben Maxwell," Bashir said to Amanda. "So, it can be done."

"True," S'vath said to Bashir, "However, Maxwell's mind, according to my father, was purposely fractured into five distinct personalities so that he could control Diamond and the other four ships."

"Correct," Gary said. "But if you think about, that could have been any of you. Human minds are so terribly underused; mine isn't."

"Are you saying that you have five personalities?" O'Brien asked.

"No," Gary said, "but what I am saying is that my mind has been conditioned to do what it took five of Maxwell's personalities to do."

"Mr. Gary-7," Nog said, "we've allowed you to take control of the Diamond, with your word that you are acting in the interest of the Federation. Exactly why have you brought us here?"

"James T Kirk is why I am here," Gary replied.

"Captain Kirk is involved with this?" O'Brien asked, with doubt in his voice. "We've already told you that Kirk, as well as Spock, and two of their other friends, abandoned us back where you found us."

"Alright," Gary said to them, "I will tell you what I can. My employers, who remain just as secret now as they were when I encountered Captain Kirk in the 20th century, on Earth, have a particular knowledge. Let me explain it this way," Gary said, "if you were to throw a pebble on a calm bed of water, you would see the ripples created by that pebble, as they expand outward. My employers can see time expand outward in the exact same way. Captain Kirk's transporter accident was an event that was not supposed to happen. In fact, it may have happened on purpose, but we have no proof of that; for now. For whatever reason, his duplication was not accounted for by," Gary paused for a moment, "universal means. And now his presence, in this time, is rippling throughout time in unexpected ways."

"And you want to stop him," O'Brien said with a smile, "how noble. Even if what you say is true, why don't you just find him and deal with him personally."

"I was on Deep Space Nine," Gary replied. "I was going to deal with the situation, but, as usual, Kirk did not act in a logical manner, as you three," Gary said, looking at Nog-O'Brien and Bashir, "are well aware."

"Well," Amanda said, "I don't care who or what you are; I don't trust you."

"Nor do I," S'vath said, kissing Amanda as he spoke, "What are you planning to do with Kirk when you find him?"

"What has to be done," Gary replied. "I am not going to harm the Captain in anyway, I assure you." Gary said to Amanda. "I have been sent to take Kirk back to point of the duplication, over a hundred years ago, and prevent that accident from happening."

"He would cease to exist," Bashir said. "That doesn't seem fair to _this_ Kirk."

"And even if you're right," O'Brien said, "and Kirk's existence is playing havoc with your employer's ability to forecast the future, then so what? Maybe it's best they don't have that kind of knowledge."

"I was afraid you would come to that kind of conclusion," Gary said softly. "That is why I have brought you here. No one will think to look for an invisible ship here. Kirk will send Starfleet to where he left you, but they won't find you, thus they will not believe his story. They'll attribute Spock and the other's involvement to blind loyalty."

"You're going to abandon us here?" Amanda asked.

"I'm afraid there is no other choice," Gary said.

"Look," Bashir said to Gary, "What does any of this have to do with saving the Federation, which is what you told us you were trying to do in the first place?"

"What you don't know," Gary said, "is that the Federation was on course to eventual galactic control, with technology like the technology that controls this ship. No, it wouldn't have been perfect control, but control none the less. And while my employers didn't what that kind of control in the hands of the Borg, or the Dominion, they were content with that controlling factor being the Federation. Kirk's reappearance has put that favorable future in jeopardy, and that is why he must be stopped. The future his reappearance is preventing is the future worth saving."

"Sending Kirk back to his own time won't change anything that has happened since his return," S'vath said.

"So far everything he has done can be contained," Gary said. "At least; that is what I have been sent to ensure."

Suddenly the swirling effect returned.

"Now, I have put the ship in standby mode." Gary explained. "You will not be able to regain control of the ship, but I have left the food replicators operable and the life support systems."

"How long are we going to be stranded here?" Amanda asked.

"Honestly, I don't know," Gary said to Amanda, "good luck to you all."

And then Gary-7 picked up his cat, stepped into the swirling motion and…was gone.

"We have to regain control of this ship," Nog said, the moment Gary-7 was gone.

"I agree," O'Brien said. "I don't feel safe just sitting out here in the middle of nowhere twiddling our thumbs."

"Miles," Bashir said to O'Brien, "if anyone can figure out how to regain control of this ship; it's you."

"Don't get your hopes up," O'Brien said with a laugh, "some of this tech is way above my pay grade."

"I hope not," Nog said. "Or we could spend the rest of our lives," Nog said as he stared at the main screen and its view of space, "trapped on a ship that no one can see!"

**Deep Space Nine…**

Gary-7 stepped through the swirling effect and was back on Deep Space Nine, in the same room he had been in earlier. He set the cat down, and then instantly the cat turned to a very attractive ebony color skinned woman.

"You can just strand them there," Isis said.

"Your mother was never this disobedient," Gary said to Isis.

"My mother would be saying the same thing that I am," Isis said. "How can you be so sure that you are doing the right thing?"

"You know full well that I don't decide whether or not what if my orders are the right thing to do," Gary reminded her. "My employers do, and you would do good to remember that. I will send a signal to Project Diamond as to where they can find the ship. They can then decide what to do with them."

"Project Diamond will probably just kill S'vath and the others," Isis said. "That doesn't seem right, does it?"

"It can not be helped, now," Gary said, "let us go find the good Captain and take him back home."

Isis morphed back into a Cat, and Gary-7 picked her up and exited the room.

* * *

Kirk and Spock were escorted by Jaden Weer into Captain Kira's office in Ops. Admiral Janeway was sitting behind the desk, which had once belonged to Captain Benjamin Sisko. Kira was not in the office, and was seeing to other duties.

"I'll be outside if you need me," Constable Weer said.

"Thank you," Janeway said to weer.

"This is very impressive space station," Kirk said to Janeway.

"The Cardassians maybe be horrific cooks, but they can make sturdy space stations," Janeway replied. "Alright," Janeway said, "we have a problem."

Kirk and Spock sat down.

"Let me guess," Kirk said, "the Diamond isn't where we said it would be."

"Correct," Janeway said, "And, as per your instructions Ambassador, we scanned for Z'1 neutrons on this space station; we found them."

"Interesting," Spock said. "Then our hypothesis was correct Jim," Spock said, "Gary-7, or someone who travels such as he does, is here on this station."

Janeway pointed at the monitor, which turned on as she did. The images on the screen were of the Promenade, and there were many people traversing the area. The monitor zoomed in on one individual, who was holding a cat in his arms.

"It is Gary," Kirk said.

"Now," Janeway said to Kirk, "how does this man figure into the whereabouts of the Diamond and its crew? I agreed to drop any charges against Obrien-Bashir, as well as your son and his wife, even though I don't think they were being forced to do anything, on the agreement you would deliver some answers. All you've given me is another mystery."

"That," Kirk said with a smile, "is going to take some explaining, but we don't have time. We have to find away to apprehend him, and trust me," Kirk told Janeway, "that won't be as easy as you think."

Next time…Jim Kirk and Gary-7 meet again!


	44. Bak'nor

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Bak'nor**

Jim Kirk was alive, and he was back on Deep Space Nine. News of that fact had spread across the various com channels, legal and illegal. Last reports on Kirk's status had reported about the legendary captain's theft of a Federation starship, but after that, Starfleet had clamped down on any new information. But with rumors of his resurfacing on DS9, it meant that Bak'nor could continue his voyage to Deep Space Nine. Bak'nor, who was a massive Chalnoth warrior, would be taking a gamble, coming after Kirk, but Bak'nor had no choice. The whereabouts of the Karom'thaiav medallion had to be known by Bakooth, and Bak'nor, who was Bakooth's older and hated brother, believed that Bakooth would have passed the information on to Kirk.

Bak'nor knew that his younger brother Bakooth knew where the medallion could be hidden after hearing his younger brother talking about it with Thomas Riker years ago. Now that Riker was dead, and out of the way, Bak'nor had planned on forcing Bakooth to tell him where it was; but now, that was impossible because Bakooth was dead.

Before Kirk's sudden theft of the Defaint, Bak'nor had made it as far as Bajor, on his way to DS9 to confront Bakooth. Bak'nor had to find the medallion for several reasons. Chiefly among those reasons was a large gambling debt he owed to the Orion syndicate.

He had bought himself an extra two months of time to pay off the debt after selling his wife and their two offspring to a pawning agency that would hold his family as collateral. Once Bak'nor had found the medallion, sold it to the Orion syndicate, and made his profit, he would pay off the pawn broker and get his family back.

If Kirk didn't have any information on the whereabouts of the Karom'thaiav medallion, then Bak'nor's mate and offspring would be sold to the slave smugglers. It was a risk he had to take, or the Orion syndicate would have killed him and his family anyway.

With his passage taken care of, Bak'nor boarded the Bajoran transport which would soon launch and head for DS9.

The Federation covered several thousand light years of space. With so many worlds with-in the borders of the Federation, it was impossible for Starfleet to cover every planetary system there was. Such was the case of star system L188. L188 was nearly four light years from the Romulan Neutral zone, and had no real value. There were four planets, and around the third planet from L188's lone star, was a tiny moon called L1880050. Under the surface of L1880050 there was a large cave that had one large section. Nearly three hundred bidders had arrived for the illegal sail of slaves, and were crowded into the cave waiting for the slave auction to begin. Most of the slaves would be used as manual labors on far off worlds, or they would used as slave slaves on others, but no matter which, the life of a slave was not enviable at all.

Finally the slave auction began, and several slaves were paraded across the make shift staging area. There were over fifty slaves for auction. There were humans up for auction as well as Klingons, Andorians, Hortas, R'ranths, and several other species. But it was the group of three Chalnoths that garnered much attention. The two younger Chalnoths, both young males, would grow into strong workers, making them very valuable. And the older female, no doubt their mother, would be great for breeding stock. The gathered throng of illegal smugglers cheered loudly as the auction began…

The husband of the female Chalnoth, as well as father of the two younger males, was indeed Bak'nor, who, himself, was light years away sitting on the transport on its way to DS9. Bak'nor had no idea that the pawn dealer he had placed his wife and offspring with had double crossed him, and had already put them up for sale on the black market. Bak'nor was blinded by the potential worth of the Karom'thaiav medallion, and soon he would find out; he wasn't the only one.


	45. Holding out for a Hero

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Holding out for a Hero**

**(please check out the new cover art at my profile. Sets the tone I think...)**

**(dont forget to check out my new "comedy" that is also a STAR TREK story..well sort of. Its centers around a failed TV producer who is seconds away from killing himself until STAR TREK enters his life...a "dark" comedy. Its called STAR TREK: FROM THE INSIDE OUT and can be found in the STAR TREK-ORIGNIAL SERIES...)**

Even though Gary-7 was an interesting human being, with technology that allowed him to travel great distances, he was, apparently, just a normal man. When Kirk and Spock first encountered Gary-7 in the late 20th century, they were able to contain Gary-7's movements. But much time had passed since that initial meeting, and as Captain Kirk had warned Janeway, there was no telling how advance Gary-7 had become since that time.

As Gary-7 walked through the Promenade on Deep Space Nine, the device in his front pocket chirped twice. The two beeps of sound were met with two meows from Isis, the cat that was in Gary-7's arms.

"Yes I know," Gary said to his cat, "we're being monitored. I have a feeling that Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock are well aware of our presence aboard Deep Space Nine."

The cat meowed once.

"Yes, I agree," Gary said to the cat, "I should just let them apprehend me. Instead of having to find Captain Kirk, he will bring us to him, which will make our mission here somewhat easier to complete."

The growled softly.

"Oh, of that I am well aware," Gary said with a smile. "You're mother was didn't care for the Vulcan either, and was weary of his unique abilities as well. But," Gary-7, "since time is not totally on our side, I suggest we take the bait."

"Now look here, Captain," Admiral Janeway said to Kirk as he prepared to enter the Turbo-lift on the Ops deck. "You're still in some trouble here, and I don't want you going off on some kind of wild goose chase until that is resolved. All I want you to do is apprehend this man…"

"His name is Gary-7," Ambassador Spock reminded her.

"Yes, this Gary-7 character, and that is all you will do, do you understand me?" Janeway asked.

Kirk gave her a slight nod of his head.

"Believe me," Kirk told her, "I have no wish to go anywhere with Gary-7."

"Captain," Spock interjected, "perhaps it is I who should confront Mr. 7," Spock suggested. "I must remind you that you've never actually met Gary-7 since we encountered him after your Transporter accident; thus I would be a more logical choice to confront him now."

"Spock," Kirk said, in a soft tone, "you're not the young chicken you use to be. I'll go down there and do what I can," Kirk said, "you're job is to get me out of there if he tries something unexpected."

Constable Jaden Weer, the Betazoid chief of security on DS9, shook his head in disagreement.

"Admiral," Weer said, "I am the head of security on this Deep Space Nine, so it is I who should be spearheading this apprehension."

"He has a point," Kira said, as she stood next to Janeway. "I think we should let the constable handle this," Kira said, "no disrespect to you Captain Kirk."

"None taken," Kirk assured Kira.

"Kira, I would normally agree," Janeway said to Weer and Kira especially, "but since Kirk, well at least the other Kirk who died on Veridian III, and Gary-7 had a history with this man; sending an unknown element, such as mister Weer, into this situation; we would be taking too much of a risk."

"A most logical decision," Spock said.

"Thank you," Janeway said.

Kira looked at Spock with a suspicious look.

"He's just saying that because Kirk is his friend," Kira pointed out.

"Captain Kira," Spock said, "I must point out that I would only use logic to arrive at any conclusion in such matters."

"I bet," Kira said softly.

Admiral Janeway offered Kira a knowing smile. It was going unsaid, but it was clear that Janeway and Kira, and Jaden Weer for that matter, were all along on some sort of ride that stretched back over a century between Kirk and Spock, and they were just observers of the legend of their friendship at work.

They all watched as Kirk entered the Turbo-lift.

"We will monitor what happens in Kira's office," Janeway said to Kirk. "If I see anything out of the ordinary, I will order Ambassador Spock to use the transporter machine and hold the both of you until I decide what to do you."

"Understood," Kirk said.

Kirk entered the Turbo-lift and a second later the Turbo-lift headed down to the lower deck, and Kirk prepared to confront a man who he had never really met before. Spock had debriefed Kirk as to who Gary-7 was and what had happened during their initial meeting on Earth in the late 20th century. Kirk knew he had to do this. Evidence was pointing to Gary-7 at being part of the Project Diamond attempt to take over Starfleet command. If Gary-7 was involved, then Kirk had to know and he had to know now.

And as if almost perfectly timed, the Turbo-lift arrived at the Promenade level just as Gary-7 was approaching it. Gary saw Kirk.

"Captain Kirk," Gary said, "and if I am correct, this is the first time we have ever met."

"True, it is," Kirk said, "but Spock has told me enough about your first encounter with my," Kirk paused, "brother."

Kirk and Gary-7 were both aware of the spectators that had gathered around them. Some of the civilians looked at Kirk as if they had recognized him, especially since Kirk was in his iconic uniform. Suddenly, Gary removed the device from his suit jacket pocket, which was a finger sized cylinder shaped item, and twisted it. Everyone came to a complete stop; as if frozen in time.

"What have you done?" Kirk asked.

"I have stopped time," Gary-7 replied. "Don't worry, it is only a localized effect, and it will only last for three more of your minutes. Oh, I must point out, do not get your hopes up; your friends up in Ops have been frozen as well, so they can not help you."

"Alright," Kirk said, "then why haven't you frozen me yet?"

"Because, Captain Kirk, I want to save you." Gary-7 said. "I have it with-in my power to undo the Transporter accident that not only created you, but killed your two friends; Uhura and Chekov. As to the why; your reappearance in this time is causing rippling effects throughout the rest time, and I have been sent here to stop it from continuing. Surely you can see the logic in that."

"No, I can't." Kirk said, with a tone of anger in his voice, "I have a wife and a new life in this time. I've been here for nearly three years, so where have you been for the past three years telling me my being here is wrong. And, on top of all of that, I think you, or those who employ you, are tampering with the Federation, which makes this even more my concern."

"Kirk," Gary-7 countered, "the turmoil that has affected this galaxy for the past century or so must stop. Due to advances in technologies from all quarters, these clashes will continue even more often, with much loss of life. My employers have decided that the Federation, even with all the imperfections it has, should be the lone galactic controlling factor. Certainly you can see the advantages the Federation would have in such a future."

Suddenly there was a bright flash, and Kirk and Gary-7 were joined by a third person, in the pocket of frozen time. The person was wearing a matching outfit just like Kirk's.

"Q," Gary-7 said, "I might have known you would have showed up."

"Oh stop whining," Q said to Gary, "and wow," Q said, looking at the outfit he was now wearing, "I really like these colors," and then he turned to Kirk, "don't you?"

Kirk could only stare at the strange man and wonder what was going on…

Continued….


	46. Man of the People

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Man of the People**

**Deep Space Nine**

"Why are you here Q?" Gary asked.

"Definitely not for the same reason you are," Q said to Gary.

"Even you must be aware of the fact that his," Gary pointed at Kirk, "reappearance in this time has disrupted future events. He can not be allowed to stay."

"Excuse me," Kirk said to the two Q, "but exactly who are you?"

"Well, to your small brain," Q said, "I am God. Jean-Luc was able to fathom who I really am, but knowing what I know about you, you're a few notches below his pay level too really understand."

"Well," Kirk said, "I am not sure what Captain Picard thinks about who or what you are, but what I think, as with most God-like entities I have encountered, is that you're probably a wayward child meddling in things he shouldn't."

"Very perceptive," Gary said to Kirk.

"In this case," Q said to Kirk, "I am trying to save your life" Q said to Kirk. "The man with the cat here wants to destroy you in order to restore the future he and others like him are trying to preserve."

"And propel the Federation into control of the galaxy," Kirk added, "I already know about this. Its his methods I do not agree with."

"I'm not going to let it happen," Q said, in a flat tone aimed at Gary. "It's too early for Federation control of the galaxy, and Kirk has only speeded up the Continuum's eventual involvement."

"So I assume the Q civil war is over," Gary said sarcastically. "So that means you will be continuing your quasi-control of this galaxy, if that's what you can call it."

"Your friends, the ones you left back on that Diamond ship," Q said to Kirk, "They have been stranded by Mr. Seven here. Part of this ludicrous attempt to unite the Federation under the control of moral minded Betazoids. I'd keep my eyes on him Jimmy boy, he isn't telling you the entire story."

"I did not strand them," Gary said, "I delayed their ability to interfere."

"Alright," Kirk said to the two super beings, if indeed that's what they were. "What now?"

"Q should step back, and let things unfold as they should," Gary said to Q. "It's our turn to try and do what he and the others like him could not get done."

"It's too late," Q said. "I've stopped your feeble attempts at galactic control. The Betazoids that were all involved have lost their telepathic abilities, I have seen to that. When I am done here I am sending you back to," Q said to Gary 7, "well, you know where. I want you to take a message to your employers; this time they are getting off with a warning. But you tell them that unless they want to reveal who and what they really are, they are stay out of the way."

"I will be back," Gary promised Kirk. "I can assure you."

Q snapped his fingers and then both he and Gary vanished, but to Kirk's amusement, the cat remained; and then the cat morphed into a striking female; leather catsuit and all.

"Why didn't he send you back with Mr. Seven?" Kirk asked.

"I don't know," Isis said with a playful tone in her voice. "But I'm glad he didn't; aren't you?" She flashed Kirk a coy smile.

Kirk chuckled.

Suddenly there was another flash, and then time began to movie again. Everyone one on the Promenade was stunned to see that James T Kirk, and the other man, Gary -7, had vanished and that a striking human female in a catsuit now stood in their place.

The sudden disappearance of James T Kirk did not go unnoticed by Admiral Janeway, Ambassador Spock and Captain Kira several levels up in Ops.

"Okay," Janeway said, "what just happened? Who is that woman and where is Captain Kirk?"

Spock arched an eyebrow in a most familiar way, and he could only reply with two words to Janeway's question;

"Where indeed"…

* * *

ONE MONTH LATER…

Project Diamond had been exposed, with crucial information provided by Ambassador Spock, and well as information that had been garnered by Chancellor Martok. The USS DIAMOND, with assistance from the Romulans, using their superior cloaking technology, was found. An agreement was reached and a combined Federation/Romulan fleet gutted the USS Diamond by destroying the ship together.

On a more personal front; Bashir and O'Brien and Nog were sent back to DS9 where, one week after arrival, Bashir and his wife, Ezri Dax, relocated to Earth. O'Brien returned to Earth as well to continue his assignment at Starfleet Command.

Captain Maxwell was arrested, again, and placed into custody at a maximum penal colony. Elements of the admiralty that were involved with the attempt to create fleets of telepathically controlled fleets were themselves removed from their posts.

But one question remained; where was James T Kirk? Isis, the strange woman in leather, might have known, but she had vanished soon after the events on DS9. Spock, Sulu and Scotty had tried searching the Promenade for residual Transporter use, or other uncommon forms of travel, but no clues were found. It was as if James T Kirk had vanished as swiftly as he had appeared. Eventually, with no answers to find, Spock decided that there were events happening beyond their control. The three Starfleet veterans decided to stay together for a short time, and headed to Trianguli Gamma VI; and why not? There was a mystery on that world concerning the crystals that had appeared on that planet not long after the destruction of Vaal, and who better to solve it than them?

Myran, Kirk's wife, decided to remain on Bajor, after being invited to live with the Sisko's. Ben Sisko had assured her it was the least they could do for Jim Kirk, since he had saved Rebecca's life. And, there was another surprise; Myran was pregnant with child.

* * *

Ben Sisko sat in his rocking chair on the porch of his home on Bajor. It had been exactly one month since Kirk had been seen, but Sisko had not given up hope, neither had Myran, who sat next to him in another rocking chair.

"He'll be back," Sisko said softly. "And believe me," Sisko said, with a broad smile, "I have something of a knack about seeing the future."

"Emissary," Myran said, "if you say it then I know it's true."

Continued…..

NEXT TIME...JAMES T KIRK: TNG takes a dramatic turn as Kirk, and his new buddy Q, share some Tacos and Corona beer, all in the name of good fun...but when Kirk discovers the data-storage device Bakooth left for him, things become quite...strange...


	47. The Desert Baby

**James T Kirk; The Next Generation**

**The Baby Desert**

Dust was blowing in his face and he didn't like it. Not only was it caking on his face, it was also making it hard to keep his eyes open. But what he had seen of his surrounding, he was pretty sure he wasn't missing anything. Out of habit and with little else to do, he began talking to him self as he pushed himself onward through the desert setting all around him.

"Captain's Log; day 34." He paused, as he forced his yes open to gaze out upon the unknown world he was on, "Condition is Supplemental. It has been just over a month, since I arrived on this world, with its bitter hot sun and three moons being my only companions. One moment I was standing on Deep Space Nine, listening to Gary-7 and another man named Q bickering about galactic concerns. Then the next moment I was here, with only a backpack of bare necessities, including water and food rations, to get by on."

Deciding to take a break, Kirk sat beneath a large rock and drank some water. His supply of water had been easy to maintain, thanks to the Atmosphere-condensing device that was included in his backpack. At night there was usually fine mist, or fog, that was easy to turn into water, not a lot of water, to be sure, but enough to augment what little water he had.

It was the food, which consisted of food packs, that was running out. There were small sized rodents, from time to time, and Kirk was prepared to capture and kill them, if he had to, and eat them, but he was trying to delay having to do that because he wasn't sure how their meat would settle in his system. Having so little water, and suffering from food poisoning, would be dangerous, and a very unappealing way to die. Kirk estimated that he had three more days of food left, and then he would have to cross that bridge.

"The days on this world, at my best guess," Kirk said, continuing his mental log, "last nearly twenty-three earth hours. But, again, I have no idea what world I am on or why, if there is even a real reason, I was brought to such a place. I can only hope that Myran, me sweet wife Myran, will hold out for me, because, I swear, I will find my way back to her."

It was then, as he sat in the dirt and dust, that Kirk saw a strange outline beneath the fabric of his pants. He reached inside his pants and found what appeared to be some sort of data storage device. His pants had become quite worn out, ever since he had arrived on the desolate world, and he had never noticed the finger sized storage device before.

"Well hello there," Kirk said to the rectangular object he retrieved from this pants, "what are you; my little friend?"

Suddenly there was a bright flash, and Q suddenly appeared. He still wore a uniform like Kirk's, but Q's was freshly cleaned.

"You sent me here, didn't you?" Kirk asked. "Why? I have a wife back there, back where I was, and now you've taken me from her. If I could punch you, I would," Kirk paused due to fatigued, "but I'm too exhausted."

"I'm sorry about that," Q said, with genuine remorse in his voice. "Apparently my grasp of future events hasn't quite been the same since the Civil-war," Q explained. "I sent you there for a reason, I assure you, but unfortunately you've really just spent the last month doing nothing of real importance."

"And that's about to change?" Kirk asked. "I can tell you right now," Kirk said, "I am not going to do a damn thing."

Q snapped his fingers, and a modern-era (24th century) Tricorder appeared.

"I would have given you one from your time, for good old time sake," Q said with a smile, "but these new ones are just far more practical."

"What do you want me to do with it," Kirk said, "eat it? I'm starved!"

Q looked at the haggard and worn out state of Kirk, and decided to fix it.

"That's right," Q said, "you're probably getting sick of those rations. Tell you what," Q said, "I'll reward your diligence right now," Q said.

The powerful being snapped his fingers and then Q and Kirk vanished as then reappeared inside of an old Mexican style cantina, with a loud mariachi band playing in the distance. Several local flavored people were dancing and having a good time. Kirk was no longer in his very dirty and dusty uniform, in fact, Kirk was now sitting at a table, which had plates and silver wear set about, with Q, and Kirk was wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with Iowa State Rules across the chest, with matching shorts and sandals.

Kirk was too bedazzled to say anything, so Q continued the banter. Kirk was just too hungry and tired to protest.

"Let me see," Q said as he picked up the menu, "they have beans, rice, Tacos and Burritos, and," Q said, "Corona beer."

Q snapped his fingers and then a plate of various Mexican food items appeared, with four bottles of chilled Corona next to them.

"I'm not really hungry," Kirk lied, not wanting to give Q the sense of victory.

"Oh please, don't pout," Q said, "Picard tried pouting on occasion, and it was quite unbecoming. I went ahead and got you their supreme sampler plate, and trust me, it wasn't cheap," Q said, "try the enchiladas, they're quite tasty I hear," Q suggested, as he dug in and began to eat the food.

Kirk gave in and decided to enjoy the meal, with Q even sampling some of the food himself.

"Gods eat?" Kirk asked, as he watched Q finish a Taco.

"Well, not all of them," Q said. "In my case, I once had the pleasure of being a human, in fact, Picard use to have a little wind up robot, Data, and it was my so called human guide. You can say that I became quite interested in eating, and have nibbled on and off ever since; though it is a nasty habit," Q added, with a small burp escaping his mouth.

"So what exactly is going on here?" Kirk asked. "What world was I on and why did you send me there?"

"That little data-doohickey that your friend, the one who looked like a monster straight from hell gave you; it should interface with that Tricorder quite well," Q said, pointing at the two objects on the table.

"It isn't going to blow up, is it?" Kirk asked, as he wiped his hands, and picked up the two objects, looking at them.

"I hope not," Q said.

Kirk studied the data-storage device and connected it to one of the Tricorder's outlets. It fitted perfectly.

"What am I going to be looking at?" Kirk asked.

"Just watch," Q said, as he started in on another Taco…

**Bajor…**

Commander Beverly Crusher placed her hand on the stomach of Myran, Jim Kirk's Bajoran wife. Crusher had come to Bajor, out of a favor from Captain Picard, to check up on Myran's progress. After arriving on Bajor, Crusher beamed over to Sisko's scenic house that had a wonderful view of the Kendra Valley.

Myran was laying on a bed, which Crusher was sitting on the side of.

"You really did a great job on this house," Crusher said to Sisko, who was sitting on a chair in the guest room Myran was staying in. Sisko had turned the chair in the other direction, so as not to invade Myran's privacy during the examination.

"Thank you, it wasn't as easy to build as I had hoped, but thankfully I had help from my son, Dr. Bashir and others." Sisko said, "Now tell me, Commander, has there been any word on Captain Riker's disappearance, and does anyone believe it could be connected to Kirk's own disappearance?"

Crusher didn't respond immediately, instead she had words for Myran.

"Myran," Crusher said, "I know you don't want anyone to use modern technology while examining you and your baby, but trust me, it would be far more practical than measuring you stomach's growth, and kneading it like bread."

"I know Dr. Crusher," Myran said, "But I told myself that if I ever had a child, I would bare it in a traditional way."

"Myran," Sisko offered from where he sat, "you're at an age in life where most Bajoran women, in the olden times, did not bare children. Since you are at an untraditional age, why not let the doctor use untraditional methods to see to safety of your child."

"I will do so, but only if you ask me to; Emissary," Myran replied.

Sisko looked back at Crusher, who then nodded her head.

"Then, I think you should," Sisko said, "and I give the child my full blessing."

Myran smiled at Sisko, then looked up at Crusher and nodded.

"Okay," Myran said to Crusher, "go ahead and use your Tricorder."

As Crusher took a moment to set up the device, she looked at Sisko and answered his earlier question.

"I asked Jean-Luc that same question, about whether or not the two disappearances were related, and he said that it hadn't been ruled out." 

"What about Spock?" Sisko asked. "Certainly he hasn't given up on finding."

"At first we thought he had given up, and that he and Mr. Sulu and Montgomery had decided to go their own ways," Crusher said, "but we were wrong. Apparently the three of them have gone to Trianguli Gamma VI, along with Spock's son and his wife, to work on the mystery there. As for Admiral Janeway, she is still pretty sure that Q has something to do with this. She had encounters with that," Crusher decided to censor herself, "distasteful pest many times, and recognized the flash effect when time had stopped on DS9, which was the very second Kirk vanished."

"And no," said Kasidy's voice, as she brought them tea, "You're not going anywhere to help anyone. You are now the stand-in father for that baby, and you are going to stay here and help Myran; and that is that."

Sisko knew when any chance of debate was over with his wife Kasidy. He took his tea and sipped on it…

Continued…


	48. Since I Can't Give You the Moon

**James T Kirk; The Next Generation**

**Since I Can't Give You the Moon...**

Kirk downed his second beer, closed his eyes to savor the cold taste as it flooded down his throat, and then he opened his eyes to find himself back in the desert of the strange world he had spent the past month on. Gone was his worn torn uniform, and in its place was standard civilian attire. Q was gone, but the Tricorder, with the data-device attached to it, remained in Kirk's hand.

The image on the Tricorder's screen was unmistakable; unmistakable because, when he was a child, Kirk had read many books about treasures. Not too many people in the 23rd century, or even the 24th century, read books, but Kirk had. Whether they were the tales of Allan Quartermain, as written by H. Rider Haggard's, or the thrilling adventures of Dirk Pitt, spun from the mind of Clive Cussler, Kirk had read his fair share. And if there was one thing Kirk recognized from his memories of those exciting books was the description of a good old treasure map, which was exactly what was on the screen of the Tricorder.

"So," Kirk said to him self, "I guess this is Q's way of telling me that I have to follow the clues on this treasure map, and find this medallion. I'll either find the damn thing, or start talking to myself."

Kirk pressed a button on the Tricorder and then the image of the treasure map was replaced by an image of the medallion. Kirk did his best to sound out letters on the screen that denoted what the medallion was called.

"Karom'thaiav," Kirk said in a clumsy way. Then he said it again and again. Finally, Kirk looked up at the sky, "Q, if you can hear me, you're asking me to find an object that I have never seen and have no idea where to look for. Why don't you just snap your fingers and send me to where ever it is."

No answer came, and Kirk had a feeling Q had really left him in the middle of nowhere. What was Q's game in all of this, Kirk wondered. And then, quite unexpectedly, there was a loud sound, very similar to that of a clap of thunder, or, as Kirk's trained ears heard it more specifically; a sonic boom.

* * *

**Deep Space Nine…**

Admiral Kathryn Janeway watched as the image of Captain Picard's face faded from her monitor. She was in her office, her new official office, aboard Deep Space Nine. Due to the rash of events happening in that sector of space, Starfleet had seen it best to post one of its more experiences admirals aboard DS9 for crucial oversight. Janeway had made it clear to Captain Kira that she, Admiral Janeway, was not there to overstep Kira's post. In fact, the running of the space station, and its standard operating procedures, were still the responsibility of Kira, as well as her Starfleet crew. Janeway's office was located in another section of the space station, so as not to be an affront to Kira's position on Ops.

One such matter that Starfleet was keenly interested in was the on going mystery of Captain Riker's disappearance, as well as Captain Kirk's disappearance. Janeway had just assured a worried Captain Picard that she would see to both matters, personally. The USS ENTERPRISE had been given its new mission, which would take her into a large unexplored area of the Beta Quadrant to open up relations with the H'nai, a mission that would mean the Enterprise would be out of direct communication with Starfleet for nearly nine months.

The door to Janeway's office chirped, and the Admiral pressed a button on her desk. The door opened and then Captain Kira, and DS9 security, Chief Jaden Weer, stepped in.

"Nerys," Janeway said, as she sipped on her tea. "Thank you for coming, and thank you too," Janeway said to Jaden. "Starfleet is really on me for any kind of update we can give them on William Riker and James T Kirk. Is there anything new?"

"Very little," Jaden said. "Other than your eye witness account of the Q effect," Jaded was referring to the bright flash that usually accompanied an appearance or disappearance of Q, "we have little to go on."

"Except for this," Kira said, as she handed Janeway a data pad which displayed a Chalnoth on it.

"Bak'nor," Janeway said, as she read the data pad's information. "It says here that he was the brother of the late Thomas Riker's first officer; Bakooth." Janeway read what little biographical info there was on Bak'nor. "Alright, I give up," Janeway said, "what has this got to do with William Riker and Kirk?"

"According to travel records on Bajor," Kira reported, "Bak'nor arrived there, and then booked passage here, to DS9. His arrival here was recorded, and we have absolute surveillance data proving he really did arrive."

"And…?" Janeway asked.

"He is no longer aboard," Jaden replied. "Nor do we have any official record of his leaving. He may have stowed away on any number of ships, but my Security team is very diligent with their work. I don't think he left via another ship, because there is no sign that he did."

"Maybe he is still aboard," Janeway concluded.

"Earlier today I ordered a search for him, and he was not found," Jaden. "His relationship to Bakooth can not be a random act; I believe he was here for a reason."

"What makes you think he wasn't here to pay respects to his brother?" Janeway countered with.

"Admiral," Jaden explained, "Bak'nor arrived on Bajor before any news about Bakooth's death had been released."

"Then maybe he was coming here to meet with his brother, didn't know about his death, and then headed back home." Janeway offered.

"No," Kira said softly, "I knew a lot about Bakooth, because of my relationship with Thomas. Trust me when I tell you Admiral, Bakooth wanted nothing to do with his older brother, Bak'nor. In fact, I had the impression had Bak'nor ever came back into Bakooth's life; one of them would have left that reunion dead."

"Look," Janeway said, after a moment of thought, "I really appreciate your work on this. But honestly, I don't see where you're going. And I definitely see nothing that connects it with either Riker or Kirk."

"I agree Admiral," Kira continued, "It is a stretch. But William Riker and James T Kirk have an indirect connection, and that connection is Bakooth. William Riker was the one who originally introduced Thomas to Bakooth five years ago. And, of course, Bakooth died, and the last person to see Bakooth alive, according to Ambassador Spock, and others, was Kirk."

"Chalnoths have a custom," Jaden finally said. "Before they die, and if they can, they tell the last person they are with their deepest secret." Jaden looked to Kira, then back to Janeway. "Bak'nor now knows that Kirk was there when Bakooth died, and perhaps Bak'nor concluded that Bakooth told Kirk this final secret."

"And," Janeway followed the line of thinking, "you believe Bak'nor had his sights set on Kirk, and maybe even Riker, to find out Bakooth's so called last secret."

"Yes," Kira said, "but I know what you're going to ask; what about the Q flash you saw?"

"You're very smart," Janeway said with a warm smile. "I do not believe that Q has put him self between two estranged Chalnoth brothers and some deep family secret. You have to admit, it seems a bit far-fetched. Now," Janeway said, "I won't say that your theory is totally without merit, but it needs some proof. Find me that proof and I swear to you, I will put the entire weight of Starfleet behind your investigation."

Moments later Jaden, and Kira, left Janeway's office. They realized that, currently, their theories were a bit thin, but they were determined to find out more information. Once they had left Janway's office, there was a bright flash and Q appeared, sitting on Janeway's desk.

"Alright," Janeway said, as she pivoted her chair to face Q. "I did what you asked, only because you assisted us with ferreting out the whole Project Diamond fiasco."

"I knew I could count on you Kate," Q said with a whimsical smile. "We always made a great team."

"Q," Janeway said, "I have your word that I won't regret my role in whatever you have going on with Kirk and Riker."

"You have my word Kate," Q said, "Even though," he said in a more serious tone, "I can not give you the moon, I can give you this…"

And with that, Q was gone, and in his place was a plate of food consisting of two Tacos and a side of refried beans.

"Ole," Q's voice said in a passing tone.

Janeway thought for a moment. Not revealing her deal with Q was one of the hardest choices she had ever made. But Q's help, in the aftermath of the Project Diamond ordeal, had given Q a marker to play in his on going games with Picard and Janeway, and Q had chosen to play it. For now, Janeway would honor that deal, and said as much in her own private log for posterity. Then she picked up a taco and bit into it.

-continued

Rebbca Sisko and Myran face danger on Bajor while mysterious happenings on Trianguli Gamma VI befuddle Spock, Scotty, Sulu and S'vath!


	49. Crash Landings and Pedicures

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Crash landings and Pedicures….**

The small shuttle craft was zooming down through the atmosphere, its braking thrusters having fired only moments before. To someone on ground it might have appeared as a very large falling boulder from space; but with a sleek surface and matching nacelles. But in actuality, there were two occupants inside of the shuttle, and as the shuttle fell towards an eventual rendezvous with the planet, they were locked in mortal combat; against each other.

Aboard the shuttle, William Riker flung himself into Bak'nor, hoping beyond hope that the sudden move would knock the Chalnoth of his feet and to the ground, but, Riker's weight and total mass wasn't nearly enough. Although the shuttle was falling from space, the artificial gravity made a fist fight in such a situation not so hard to fathom. Bak'nor laughed at Riker's feeble attempt, and raised his own boot, readying to smash the human's head. Riker, flat on the ground, frowned up at his enemy.

"Damn," Riker said, "I thought for sure the flying Kirk maneuver would have done the trick."

"Me…not…Gorn," Bak'nor said, knowing of the famed move as well. "me….Challllllnoth!"

Bak'nor slammed his boot down, targeting Riker's head as he did, but the slight hesitation had given Riker time to roll to the side, and to his feet. Before Bak'nor could regroup and attack again, Riker stared out the window at the fast approaching surface of the planet. There was no time for fighting.

"Bak'nor!" Riker finally barked, "I'm quite sure you will be no good to your mate and offspring if the two of us die, and we will, when we smash into the surface of this planet. I suggest a temporary cease of hostilities until we make it safely down to the ground, then we can continue this fight."

"No…tricks…human," Bak'nor countered, "Thomas…Riker…break deals with…Bak'nor…"

"I give you my word as a Starfleet officer, I won't try any tricks," Riker assured Bak'nor.

"THOMAS…RIKER…WAS…STARFLEET OFFICER," Bak'nor said in a rage, as he lunged for Riker.

Riker had predicted the move, and easily side stepped the attack, though the tight space in the shuttle's cockpit seemed to be getting smaller by the moment. Luckily a stroke of luck had been handed to Riker. Earlier in the fight, when Riker had drawn his hand phaser, Bak'nor had swatted out of his grasp. But now, as fate would have it, Riker's foot was inches from the weapon. Before Bak'nor could regroup and attack again, Riker reached down and snatched his phaser back up, and just in time. Bak'nor was quicker on his feet than he seemed, and had turned around, and was preparing to slam both of his large fists on Riker's shoulders. But Riker, ever diligent in hand to hand combat, fired the phaser.

Bak'nor fell back, and was out cold. Riker, having no time to do anything else, jumped into his seat and did his best to level the descent. The landing wasn't going to be pretty, and he knew it. And, as the shuttle sped toward the rough terrain below, Riker said the two words that always seemed appropriate for such instances.

"Holy cow!"

The shuttle slammed into surface, which was nothing more than in the center of an arid desert. Riker, who had fastened his seat's restraint belt, and had looked it around Bak'nor legs in the process, closed his eyes as the impact came.

And then silence came…

Now, during all of that, Jim Kirk had seen the shuttle craft falling from the sky, and had taken cover near an out cropping of rocks. From his vantage point it had appeared as if the shuttle was going to be obliterated upon impact with the hard desert floor. But at the last instant, the unknown pilot had slowed the rate of descent and had managed to level out the shuttle. A large thud, followed by the unmistakable sound of a scraping mass, followed the impact. After the dust had settled, Kirk ran over to the crash site to help incase there had been any survivors.

**Bajor**

**The market square at the Ashalla city center…**

There was something quirky about pregnant women, no matter what world they came from, at least in Sisko's view of the subject, and their need to have their toenails and fingernails painted. Sisko gazed through the window of the boutique he and Kasidy had left Myran and Rebecca at, and watched as both prepared to have their nails done. In the 24th century, such grooming could be achieved in the privacy of one's home, with all kinds of computer programs and devices; but for whatever reason, most women still prepared to have it done manually; and by someone else.

"Are you sure you don't want to join them?" Kasidy Sisko asked, as she stood next to her husband.

"Umm, no," Ben Sisko replied with an embarrassing smile, "I was just making sure they were being properly taken care of. I'm trying to take my role as midwife seriously,"

"Yeah, right," Kasidy said, with a knowing smile. "Now look, we don't have all day to do this so let's get over to that clothing store and get Jake a new sweater; and I don't mean one of those replicated ones either. When he gets here next week, he's going to get cold after sunset and I don't want to here about it."

The married couple headed down the market square, and towards the clothing store. The Bajorans who crowded the market knew very well that they were in the presence of the Emissary of the Prophets, but they all went out of their way to not crowd his privacy.

Inside the boutique, Myran closed her eyes and enjoyed the deep rub on her feet. Being pregnant, and Bajoran, she knew that the swelling of her feet would continue, such was the life of a Bajoran woman. But she didn't mind for knew that someday Jim would return, and she would bare him the wonderful miracle growing inside of her.

"Isn't this wonderful?" Rebecca asked as she too closed her eyes and prepared to have her own nails done as well.

"Yes, but I wish Jim was here to see this," Myran said.

"Now you listen to me, girl," Rebecca said, "my father told me most of Jim Kirk's adventures. That man has more lives than a cat, I'm sure he's going to pop-up at anytime; you just have to hold on and just enjoy the next hour or so without any worry."

Both women closed their eyes, and snuggled into the comfort of their reclined chairs so as to, as Rebecca put it, enjoy the time. They even had cucumber slices placed over their closed eyes, so as to give their eyelids treatment as well. And it was when their eyes were closed, covered with the slices of cucumbers, that two men entered the back of the boutique. And they were not there for Brazilian wax jobs!

Continued….


	50. Motives Squard

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Motives Squared**

Jim Kirk ran over to where the smashed shuttle had come to a skidding stop. A thick cloud of dust, and the obvious smell of shorted out components and other electronic, greeted his every breath. Fearing that the shuttle was still a threat to explode, Kirk rushed over to the smashed in entrance. As he reached the door, he could hear someone on the inside of the door trying to pull it open as well.

"Is there someone out there?" A voice asked, nearly shouting.

"Yes," Kirk replied, "I'm going to use a piece of debris I found out here and try to pry the door open," Kirk yelled back. "Try using your manual override as I try," Kirk added.

Kirk wedged a piece of metal to where the door met the hull, and then he pulled back as hard as he could, and just as he hoped would happen, the door slid open; but not all the way. But it was enough room for the passenger to stick part of their body through. Kirk blinked his eyes twice because the man who appeared in the doorway was a dead ringer for Thomas Riker.

Thomas Riker, whom Kirk had known for only a short period of time, had assisted Kirk in the rescue of Benjamin Sisko's daughter, Rebecca. She had been kidnapped by a renegade Klingon, and Thomas Riker wasted no time in volunteering to rescue the young girl, and lost his life during the effort.

"Jim Kirk?" Riker asked, "Umm, wow," Riker said, "I didn't expect to see you here. Look, we can catch up in a moment, but I have a wounded passenger. Can you lend me a hand?"

"Sure," Kirk said.

For nearly twenty minutes Kirk and Riker worked together, and removed the food and water packs that were in the shuttle, as well as Bak'nor, who was still alive. They also removed the medical kit, and set up camp near the out growth of rocks Kirk had taken cover during the crash landing. After seeing to their efforts, and opening a food pack, Kirk and Riker finally had a free moment to speak.

"Jim Kirk," Riker said with a smile. "I can't believe I'm really talking to you."

"Let me guess," Kirk said, with his own smile, "you must be William Riker. I knew your," Kirk paused, trying to find the right word, "brother Thomas for only a short time, but I could tell he was decent man."

"Thomas was far from decent," Riker said with a knowing smile, "but thank you for the sentiment Captain. I've heard a little about you as well, and your remarkable rebirth. So let me get this straight; your Transporter signal was sent into the future, and you and your deceased comrades arrived here three years ago, in this time, and you managed to keep your existence a secret."

"That about sums it up," Kirk said, as he nibbled on the hydrated food.

"And then you got caught up in that Project Diamond caper," Riker continued, "and found yourself here; how?"

"A being named Q," Kirk replied.

"Now that makes sense," Riker said, with an understanding tone in his voice. "This has the touch of Q to it."

"You know him?" Kirk asked.

"Do I know him?" Riker asked, rhetorically. "He offered me entrance into his club of super beings. At first I accepted, but saw how power could really corrupt absolutely, so I eventually turned him down. We've had many run-ins with him in the past. Why did he send you here?"

Kirk handed Riker the Tricorder that Q had given him at the cantina. Riker looked at the image of the object on the screen. Riker looked up at Kirk.

"Q called it the," Kirk thought for a moment, and then continued, "He called it the Karom'thaiav medallion. Does that ring a bell?"

Riker put on his best poker face, and did something that normally he did not do; he lied.

"No," Riker said, "it doesn't. Did he say anything more about it?"

"Only that I needed to find it," Kirk said.

But Kirk knew there was something more going on than Riker admitted. Bak'nor was a Chalnoth, as was Bakooth. And it was Bakooth who had given Kirk the data-storage device. Kirk deemed it to be more than just mere coincidence that another Chalnoth would show up on the very world Q sent Kirk to find the medallion. Riker wasn't being forthright, which meant, to Kirk; danger!

**Deep Space Nine**

Admiral Janeway and Captain Kira were going through Starfleet Com messages, in Kira's office in Ops, when suddenly the door opened and in walked Commander Christina Vale; the first officer of the USS Titan. She had just arrived on DS9 via one of the Titan's shuttles.

"Commander Vale," Janeway said, with a warm smile, "I just received a message that you had arrived. Isn't the USS Titan holding…"

Commander Vale cut Janeway off, so as to deliver a most distressing message.

"Admiral," Vale said, "due to the whole Project Diamond ordeal, I decided to give you this message in person."

"Have you found Captain Riker?" Janeway asked, with hope in her voice.

"No, and it gets worse," Vale replied. "Commander Troi; she's gone missing too!"

A look of anger came to Janeway's face. She was confident that Q had nothing to do with Riker's or Troi's disappearances, but what else was going on? Janeway didn't like mysteries, and now she had an all new one!

Continued….


	51. Inspiration

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Inspiration**

As night came, Riker and Kirk prepared for some shuteye. They had decided to divide the night up into two watches, with Kirk taking the first four hour watch while Riker slept. Bak'nor, who was still sedated, due to the injuries he sustained during the shuttle crash, was given an extra blanket or to so as to make sure he didn't lapse into shock. With Riker and Bak'nor soon lost to their sleep, Kirk took that time to walk around the area.

Just in case one of the rodents that Kirk had seen earlier came near the camp, he had a hand held phaser on his belt. A nice sized boulder, nearly twelve feet high, provided an easy to reach perch from which to stand guard, so Kirk scaled the rock, and took a sat down. He gazed up at the stars in the sky. With none of the world's three moons in the sky, it meant the sky was clear and millions upon millions of stars could be seen. He wondered if one of the stars he was looking at was the sun in Bajor's system, and if Myran was staring up at it as well. He hoped so, because he missed her.

Kirk had not seen Myran since he had stolen the Defiant during the Project Diamond caper. But Spock had told him that Sisko was taking care of her, and not to worry. But even knowing that Sisko was protecting Myran, it didn't mean Kirk stopped worrying about her; and why not? She had been the center of his life for the past couple years.

The other Jim Kirk, the one that had died on Veridian III, had no doubt made many friends, and, to that end, many enemies as well, in his life. Kirk could only wonder what kind of life he had lived, who he had known, women he had loved. According to old archival news Kirk had come across in the antique shop he owned on Timus Prime, David Marcus, his own son, had been killed by Klingons during a dispute on a planet called Genesis. Jim Kirk had only seen his son once, after his birth, and had, at the urging of the child's mother, Carol Marcos, stayed out of the child's life.

Suddenly there was a bright flash and Q was instantly sitting next to Kirk.

"You're still here?" Kirk asked. "I thought God was a busy man."

"Well, I was in the area," Q said, as he handed Kirk a vanilla milk-shake, "and I thought I'd drop in."

The vanilla milk-shake was very smooth as Kirk sucked it down with a straw.

"So," Q said to Kirk, "I take it you're not to trusting of Riker, and his friend."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"As I am sure you are aware, being a God and all," Kirk said with a smile, "I was given that data chip by another Chalnoth; Bakooth. Riker's brother, Thomas, was friends with Bakooth, and now this Riker is friends with another Chalnoth. I don't think that is just by chance."

"Listen Kirk," Q said, "the Karom'thaiav Medallion is very valuable to me," Q explained, "And I can guarantee that there are others out there trying to find it, and are willing to kill, if it will bring them closer to it. Consider it a galactic version of your own world's myth about the city of El Dorado, and its hidden treasure."

"Oh come on," Kirk said. "El Dorado?"

"You do know of it?" Q asked. "I found it to be a wonderful tale when Vash told me about it when we were in the Gamma-Quadrant together."

"Who is Vash?" Kirk asked.

"Oh, don't mind her," Q said, "We were over long ago. But she told me how, on your world, people searched forever trying to find the lost treasure of El Dorado."

"The man who wrote the first tale about it, Sir Walter Raleigh, was lunatic," Kirk admonished Q, "he spoke of headless men protecting that city and its treasure, which was never found. I hope you're not saying we're going to encounter headless Klingons while looking for this medallion of yours."

"One can never know," Q replied in a mysterious tone.

"So explain to me again why you just can't tell me where it is, snap your fingers and put me there, so this can all be over with?" Kirk asked.

"That isn't the way things works, Kirk," Q said. "Picard knew enough to just follow my rules without complaint, so why can't you?"

"Picard, from what I know, wasn't married, I am. I just want to go home and be with my wife," Kirk said.

"She's pregnant," Q suddenly said with a whisper. He snapped his fingers, and instantly he and Kirk were puffing on cigars.

Kirk felt his heartbeat speed up.

"Myran is pregnant?" Kirk asked excitedly, after he inhaled and exhaled from the cigar. "How can you be so sure?"

"That God thing; remember?" Q asked. "So, I suggest you pick up the pace and find that medallion. Then I'll take you home so you can cut that little bugger's umbilical cord yourself."

And with that; Q was gone; as were the cigars.

Kirk soon found himself in the silence of the night, but with a new reason to push on and do as Q had asked. He wanted to be with his wife during this time; and finding that medallion was going to be the only way to do that.

* * *

Somewhere…

The cave was cold and dingy. And even though it was deep inside of a mountain, far from any source of natural light, there was still a strange golden glow. At the center of the cave was a stack of rocks, and next to the stack of rocks were the skeletal remains of seven bodies. At the top of the stack of rocks, nearly six feet of the ground, was the source the glowing light; the Karom'thaiav Medallion!


	52. The Missing

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Missing**

**Bajor…**

Several Bajoran civilian security officers combed the boutique for any kind of clue they could find. A very concerned Benjamin Sisko, and his wife Kasidy, were beside themselves as yet again their daughter, along with Kirk's wife Myran, had gone missing. Ben and Kasidy had returned to the boutique, having been successful in finding a sweater for Jake, who wad scheduled to arrive on DS9 in three days. But as Ben and Kasidy approached the boutique they had left their daughter Rebecca and Kirk's wife Myran at, they saw that the boutique had been sealed off, and several Bajoran civilian officers were buzzing about.

Arriving on the scene was DS9's chief of security Jaden Weer. Ben and Kasidy stood outside of the boutique and could only watch through the giant window as Jaden was briefed by the security officers.

Constable Jaden Weer had been dispatched to Bajor by Captain Kira and Admiral Janeway the moment the news of Rebecca's and Myra's disappearances had been learned of. Jaden, finished with the briefing, came outside and joined the two Siskos.

"Constable," Ben Sisko said, "what can you tell us?"

Jaden Weer, the Betazoid security chief of DS9, chose his words carefully, knowing full well how agitated parents could be come when dealing with the ongoing emotions of having a lost child.

"The two women who were seeing to Rebecca and Myra were distracted when they overheard the sound of a crying baby from one of the holodeck massage rooms. There had been no customers using the holodeck rooms all day long, which was why the two workers became concerned. So, they both left to check on the child; but there was no child. And, when they returned, Rebecca and Myra were gone."

"We already know this," Kasidy said, with a slight tone of anger in her voice. "Mr. Weer, I must remind you that our daughter was recently kidnapped by Klingons, maybe this is related."

"Kasidy; there is no proof of that," Ben told her, "however; I have already sent a message to Chancellor Martok for any help in that regard."

"Ben," Kasidy said, "we don't know anything. So I am not ruling the Klingons out."

"There's more," Jaden continued, "the security team has detected recent residual Transporter use in the boutique. I looked at the scans and I am quite confident the Transporter signal came from planet side. And," Jaded said, "The investigators also found this found this."

Jaden handed Sisko a piece of black fabric with three golden letters embroidered on its smooth surface. The three letters were the same and sewn in five different languages; one on top of the other. The third row of three letters was the one written in English.

B. O. K.

"B, O, K," Sisko read out loud, "does this have any meaning to you?" Sisko asked Jaden.

"Strangely enough, I think it does," Jaden said, his voice betrayed his worried.

"Then tell us what it means," Kasidy insisted.

"After James Kirk took the Defiant," Jaden explained, "Kira assigned me the task of familiarizing myself with all things that had to do with Kirk. It was a very detailed task, as I'm sure you would attest to," Jaden said to Sisko. "So I read up on Jim Kirk's career, which was really, the other Jim Kirk's career. Not only did I read about his career, but any related topic."

"What does this have to do with our missing daughter?" Kasidy came back with.

"Apparently," Jaden continued, "about a hundred Earth years ago, or so, a strange occult movement started. Its members were few and far between, and they were seen as a non-threat to anyone since, well, the inspiration of their beliefs had believed to be dead."

"Kirk," Sisko concluded.

"Yes, Kirk," Jaden said. "Apparently, many decades ago, Kirk was believed to have been killed aboard the USS Enterprise-B. Not long after his so called death, an occult sprang up worshiping the man. The group was comprised of all kinds, and the followers came from worlds that Kirk had visited and saved during his various missions. As time passed, and Kirk was believed to be killed on the Enterprise-B, the group seemed to fade into the mist of history."

"Until now," Kasidy said, with a whisper. "Again, how does this have anything to do with Rebecca?"

"It doesn't," Jaden said. "But; it does have something to do with Myran. According to Starfleet intelligence, the BOK, which is an acronym for the cult's name, the Brother of Kirk, resurfaced after the news about Kirk's real death on Veridian III. Over the years since that time it has been festering, and then, the news about this other Kirk, being alive and well, has brought the group even further out of obscurity." Jaden explained.

"So they were really after Myran," Sisko was able to deduce. "And Rebecca got caught up in it."

"Not only did she get caught up," Jaden said, "she put up a good fight, no doubt trying to save Myran from her attackers."

"We've got to find them," Kasidy said.

"We will," Jaden told her confidently.

Jaden turned to walk away, and got to the door, when Ben Sisko came up to him.

"My wife is not taking this well at all," Ben Sisko told Jaden, "and I can sense that you're not telling us everything."

"Ben," Jaden said softly, "there is strong evidence suggesting that the cult knows of Myran's pregnancy; and that they see her child as some sort of messianic child of their God; James T Kirk."

"Then the child's life could be in danger," Sisko said, agreeing with Jaden's line of reasoning in the process. "We have to find them, and fast," Sisko added.

-continued


	53. Don't Open too Many Doors

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Don't Open too Many Doors**

Deep in a forested area he stood on a tightly woven futon, which more or less, resembled a blanket. The early morning sky was only just barely showing the signs of daylight in the far distance. The futon was soft on bare feet, keeping them safe from the harshness of the ground beneath it. In his youth, standing on a blanket during his morning meditation was not necessary. But, as he was nearing one hundred and fifty years in age, Hikaru Sulu thought it best to take such precautions.

Scotty on the other hand, who sat on a nearby log as he ate some exquisitely prepared pancakes and syrup made for him by S'vath's wife Amanda, wore a pair of comfortable moccasins that were a gift on his birthday many years earlier by Leonard McCoy. Scotty watched his good friend Sulu slowly try to sit down on the blanket. Due to Sulu's age, the old codger couldn't just sit down and get up like some spring legged chicken; it took planning and time.

"Yuh need some help o'va there?" Scotty asked, with his Scottish accent in full tilt. "I wudd'na want yuh to crack a bone."

"No, I do not need your assistance. The exercise can yield its own reward." Sulu said.

"I can always take yuh back home to Chiisai. I'm pretty sure Demora isn't too happy with yuh buzzin' about the galaxy again."

"No, I do not yet wish to return to Chiisai," Sulu said, after a moment's thought. "I am very well aware of the fact that this could be my last venture into the unknown. I favor the chance to spend that time with you, Mister Spock, and the young people we have met so far. I feel alive again," Sulu said. "And I want to keep feeling alive longer."

"I'll rememba' that when they thread rubber bands threw yuh bones to keep them upright," Scotty said with a slight laugh.

Finally, with his rear end on the blanket, Sulu began his deep breathing exercises. He also noticed Scotty eating the pancakes. "I thought Dr. McCoy warned you about eating those cursed things."

Scotty swallowed a mouth of pancakes before continuing.

"Lad, me mum lived to be a hundred and ten, and she ate'em everyday," Scotty said, with pride in his voice. Besides," Scotty added, "Amanda made them with some kind of new flour that can provide the same taste but with only a third of the calories."

Scotty watched as Sulu did his breathing exercises.

"Oh, by the way, I got a message from Miles," Scotty said, as he took out a data-pad from his pocket, "there still be no sign of the capt'n," Scotty reported as he read the pad. "And Miles still wants us both to come to Earth and give some speeches at the academy."

"I do not truly understand; why do we not go try and find the captain?" Sulu asked, as he exhaled a deep breath of air.

Suddenly a third person emerged from the trees.

"As I explained," Spock said, as he unexpectedly came out from the surrounding foliage, wearing his morning robe, and carrying his own blanket. "I believe this new Jim Kirk is not unlike the one we knew before; an unexpected force of nature."

"That sounds kind'a strange com'in from a Vulcan," Scotty said, with a tinge of doubt in his voice.

"Mister Scott," Spock said, as he spread out his own blanket next to Sulu's, "as you well know, I have long since evolved past the belief that logic is the only answer to the universe. There are some aspects to the universe, and Jim Kirk is one of them, that just defy any attempts at explanation."

Sulu breathed in and then breathed out, as he watched Spock sit next to him and did his own Vulcan breathing exercises.

"Spock," Sulu began to say, "If this had been the Kirk who died on Veridian III," Sulu pressed further, "would we be trying to find him?"

"Perhaps," Spock said without any hesitation. "And as to why? Because the Jim Kirk that died no Veridian III was on our plane of existence, this new Kirk is not." Spock explained.

"Spock," Sulu said, "the Kirk who died on Veridian III, Mr. Scott, and this new version of Jim Kirk, all arrived in this time in unconventional ways, and yet you don't consider the new Kirk an equal?"

"Even though the Jim Kirk who died on Veridian III, and our Mister Scott here, arrived in the future by unconventional ways, as you put it, they are the same two people who experienced everything we did up until the point they both disappeared." Spock explained. "This new Jim Kirk never encountered his adult son, or brought two whales into the future to save Earth, or so on and so on. We must avoid hampering this new Jim Kirk from finding the destiny that awaits him. He must be allowed to live his own life, and in a way that only Jim Kirk can."

"Then why did you try to save him in the first place?" Sulu asked.

"He's got'ya there," Scotty added.

"I did not say we would not help this new Jim Kirk, at the most dire of times. I am only saying that we allow this new version of Jim Kirk a chance to solve problems in his own unique way." Spock explained. "It is an intangible conclusion set of priorities, however, I think you both know of what I am speaking of. Consider it our own version of the Prime Directive, however, in this instance, aimed at an individual."

Sulu and Scotty nodded. Jim Kirk, the one who had died on Veridian III, had an uncanny sense of landing on his feet no matter the situation. The new Kirk, who was several years younger, had to be allowed to find that ability as well. The unspoken aspect of Spock's conclusions was very direct as well. The new Jim Kirk would no doubt out live Spock, Sulu and Scotty. It meant there would come a time when Jim Kirk would not have his old generation of friends to rely on; the new Kirk had to be allowed to forge new relations and he had to find his own path to walk.

"By the way," Scotty said to Spock, "have yuh read the reports about that star showing signs of going supernova somewhere near the Neutral zone. According to this news data, it could be very destructive."

"I am indeed monitoring it," Spock replied, as he did some stretching, "In fact," Spock added, "I meant to discuss a topic that I am finding most interesting; Red Matter. What do you know about it?" Spock asked his two friends.

* * *

Two miles away from where Spock and the others were discussing the subject of Kirk, S'vath was on the ground, on his stomach, and he was staring at one of the crystals.

The crystals had begun to grow on Trianguli Gamma VI not long after the Vaal mechanism had been deactivated by, of all people, Kirk and Spock, over a hundred years earlier. And due to the unique aspect of the world, and its native population, the Federation ordered the crystals as being unique forms of life, and that they were not to be disturbed in any way.

The crystals were actually growing, and always had. The tallest of the crystals were nearly six feet tall. They radiated with a soft blue glow, and tiny lines inside the crystals, which resembled veins, had been measured by Starfleet scientist over the decades. It was an accurate way to judge a crystal's growth.

But as S'vath was on the ground studying the crystal before him, he found himself trying to solve a new puzzle. At the base of the crystal, and all the crystals that had been studied in the past day, there was a color change to the veins. They were no longer a lighter bluish hue from the rest of the crystal. The new veins, which were very thin, were a dark brown. And, when using his Tricorder to figure out measurements, S'vath was able to approximate when the new colored veins had started to grow. He rechecked his figures, and the results were the same.

The new brown tinted veins were in their second week of growth; which coincided precisely to when Kirk had arrived weeks earlier.

- continued


	54. Imminent Front

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Imminent Front**

When the next day arrived, Riker and Kirk decided to comb the crash area. In order to transport Bak'nor, who had been injured during the crash, it was decided they should make some sort of stretcher. Bak'nor was, in Kirk's best judgment, in shock, or even worse, in a coma. And unless they got the massive Chalnoth real medical aid, he would soon die.

The cold night had given way to what appeared would be another hot dry day. Kirk had lived through nearly an entire month of them on the forsaken world, and didn't relish the thought of another. But at least, now, he wasn't alone; though he didn't quite trust Riker. The two had collected all of the food and water rations and had stacked them in the center of their camp. Riker snatched up one of the water packs and strapped it to his belt. They two men headed for the wreckage, walking side by side/

As the two men searched the wreckage they found several large flat hull plates that were excellent candidates for what they needed. The two Starfleet trained officers gathered their pieces, as well as thin cables and other binding materials, and under the shade provided by the outgrowth of large rocks, they began to construct a stretcher. A light breeze had been blowing which managed to keep the heat around 37 Celsius; hot, but not deadly.

"So," Kirk said to Riker, as they were putting the stretcher together, "exactly what world is this?"

Not even Q had told Kirk what world he had been brought to. Kirk had given the world his own pet name; Armpit VI. But now, finally, Kirk hoped to know the real name of the world he had called home for over a month.

"M-16678," Riker replied with a smile. "And if you're hoping for rescue, I doubt it's going to come anytime soon. This entire sector of space is largely, if not unexplored, not important to any of the major players. You said that Q brought you here; did he tell you why?"

It was a direct question, but Kirk wanted answers too and decided to cut through the doubt that the two had of each other.

Riker sipped from the packet of water that he had taken from the stack of rations, waited for Kirk's answer.

"Captain Riker," Kirk replied, "We need to stop playing games with each other. I think we're both here for the same reason; to find the Karom'thaiav medallion. I was brought here by Q to find it, and as to why he chose me, I have no clue. Now, if this world is as remote as you say it is; then I think you're arrival is far from a random act."

Riker thought for a moment, and then he nodded his head.

"You're right, of course," Riker finally said. "I should have been upfront with you, and I'm sorry."

"No offense taken," Kirk said with a smile. "Now, please, tell me why you are here, and why are you with him" Kirk said, motioning to Bak'nor.

Riker looked over at Bak'nor, then back at Kirk.

"Bak'nor is the older brother of Bakooth," Riker began to explain. "The two of them never got along, and, from what Thomas once told me, they actually hated each other. Bak'nor suspected that Bakooth knew about the medallion and where it might be. After Bakooth died, Bak'nor figured that he passed that information, the whereabouts of the medallion, to you."

"What is so important about this medallion?" Kirk asked.

"Oh, you know, the typical answer," Riker answered, "the supposed treasure it leads to. There are legends that the medallion may also have mystic properties that are limitless."

"Alright," Kirk said to Riker, "hidden treasures are good enough of a reason as any, I guess, but how did you get involved. You're a Starfleet officer, Captain of your own ship; why would you risk your career on something as fool hearty as this?"

"Apparently Bak'nor is in debt to the Orion Syndicate," Riker explained. "They sold his family into slavery and will only let them go if he delivers the priceless Karom'thaiav medallion."

"Again; that explains his being here, but not yours." Kirk said softly.

"My wife," Riker said, with anger in his voice. "Bak'nor had her kidnapped and will have her killed unless I help him find the medallion."

Jim Kirk did not like the sound of that at all.

"Then I want to help," Kirk said, with resolve in his voice. "So why this world then?"

"Apparently," Riker said, "there are old legends that tell of the medallion falling to this world. Those legends are hundreds of years old, and attract all kinds of treasure hunters. For most of the year this world is shrouded in ice. But when its orbit takes it closer to the three suns that dominate this system, a warm season comes, and with it, most surely, a new crop of treasure hunters. So trust me; we won't be the only ones looking for that medallion."

"Well," Kirk said, as he took his Tricorder out and handed it to Riker. "I think we may have a head start."

"What is this?" Riker asked as he began to look at the image on the screen.

"The data-rod attached to that Tricorder is what Bakooth gave me, right before he died aboard the Defiant," Kirk explained. "What you're looking at is a treasure map, and I believe it will lead us to the Karom'thaiav medallion and its accompanying treasure."

"Interesting," Riker said, as he reached for his water, or at least, appeared to reach for his water. Instead, he pulled out a hand phaser and aimed it Kirk.

"I'm sorry I have to do this," Riker said to Kirk.

"We can do this together. We can find the medallion and save your wife." Kirk said, "It doesn't have to happen like this."

"Yes it does," Riker said softly.

Riker fired the phaser, and the beam threw Kirk to the ground; out cold!

Several hours later Kirk felt the splashing sensation of water on his face. He forced his yes open, and immediately felt pain ripple throughout his body; no doubt the effect of being stunned by Riker's phaser. A numb stinging like sensation tingled throughout his body. And then another splash of water came. He looked up and saw Q standing over him, holding a bucket of water.

"Stop with the water," Kirk demanded. "I've been stunned by a phaser, so calm down and give me a moment."

"You gave Riker the treasure map," Q said, with disgust in his voice. "You gave up the only advantage you had."

Kirk was able to sit up, even though his head felt like someone was pounding on it.

"Riker's wife is in danger," Kirk replied. "And if using that treasure map will help him find the medallion, and save his wife; then good for them."

"Maybe I didn't explain myself," Q began to say.

"No, I guess you didn't." Kirk fired back. "Riker's doing this to save his wife which I'm sure is far more important than anything you are trying to accomplish."

"I wish it were that simple," Q said, "but it isn't. If you allow Riker to find that medallion, and he gives it to Bak'nor, and it eventually ends up in the hands of those who are behind all of this; then everything, and I mean everything, will be destroyed."

"Then do something about it Q." Kirk said. "Right now, I don't believe you."

"I wish you hadn't had said that," Q said, "it really breaks my heart that you, or even Picard, think I am just a cold blooded God who doesn't care for his sheep."

"Well," Kirk said, as he finally stood up. "I don't care if you're a God or an oyster; I'm not going to stop a man who is trying to save his wife."

"And if it were your wife who faced danger," Q said, ominously, "you would try to save her no matter what?"

Kirk's face came enraged with anger as he reached over and grabbed Q by the neck and pushed him up against the rock wall.

"You better leave my wife out of this Q!" Kirk said, with force. "She has nothing to do with this at all; leave her alone."

"I am only trying to make a point," Q said. "If you allow that medallion off this world and into the hands of those who want to use its power, then everyone you know, including your beloved wife, will face certain doom. You have to find it before Riker does or, trust me; my warnings will become as real as the sand you are standing on."

And with that, there was a flash of light, and Q was gone.

Kirk looked around. Riker and Bak'nor were gone, but an unmistakable track, no doubt caused by the stretcher being pulled by Riker, could be seen heading out of the camp. Kirk didn't necessarily believe anything Q had just said, but he did know that Riker faced dangers up ahead, and for that reason, Kirk followed the track.

Continued…

Next time; The Brotherhood Of Kirk!


	55. Universal Savior

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Universal Savior**

At first Rebecca Sisko thought she was dreaming. But as she started to come out of a deep sleep, the strange sound she heard, which sounded like a low chant of some kind, became louder as reality invaded her mind. She decided to keep her eyes closed as she tried to figure out what had happened. But what ever had happened did so without her seeing it because the last thing she recalled was having two slices of cucumbers place over her eye lids.

She and Myran, Jim Kirk's wife, had been enjoying an early afternoon of pampering. Myran, who was Bajoran, and who was also pregnant with Kirk's child, had never enjoyed a beauty session. She had never had a manicure, or a pedicure, nor had she had neck and shoulder massage. These kinds of creature comforts had never been known to With the Bajoran culture ever so slowly allowing outside cultures in, the women of Bajor were now beginning to enjoy what all women craved (in this writer's opinion, having been married for many years) being pampered.

But Rebecca now became worried. She wasn't worried for herself. Being the daughter of Benjamin Sisko, she had been raised to make sure that those around her were safe as well. And, being that Myran was pregnant, Rebecca was worried more for the Bajoran woman's survival than her own. It was time to open her eyes and face the chanting voices.

Rebecca opened her eyes, and saw that she was inside the blankets of a comfortable bed, which was inside of a large room which was decorated with candles as well as various flower arrangements. For some unknown reason, her clothes had been removed. As best as she could tell, and hoped, she had not been violated in any way. So, she wondered to herself, where was she; and where was Myran?

Her first clue came when she opened her eyes slowly and saw five humanoid figures, in white robes, standing over another bed. Myran was on the bed, and her pregnant stomach was exposed. Because she was only just a month pregnant, Myran's tummy wasn't that much larger than usual. And then, quite unexpectedly, Rebecca watched as one of the humanoids rubbed some kind of oil on Myran's stomach. Rebecca was about to spring into action when suddenly she heard a strange rumbling sound near her bed. She looked down and saw what appeared to be a large living rug. Rebecca recalled her father telling her about Hortas. Apparently a family of the beasties had once been aboard DS9 (author's note; one of my favorite DS9 books from years ago.)

Suddenly the monster backed up, revealing a word that had just been etched into the ground. It was the word W E L C O M E.

It was then that one of the humanoids came over to Rebecca's bed.

"What is the meaning of this!" Rebecca demanded. "That woman over there is my friend and she is pregnant. If you do anything to her, I will kill you!"

And Rebecca meant it. She had inherited her father's compassion, but her mother's temper.

"My name is Labootu," the man said. His hair was very puffy, and full, and he wore strange ornamental makeup around his eyes. "I come from the world of Vaal, the world your people call Trianguli Gamma VI. My friends," Labootu said, as he motioned to the others, "come from other worlds."

"Alright," Rebecca said, as she clutched the blanked up around her neck, "what does this have to do with Myran or me?"

"Your friend, Myran, carries the child of our savior inside of her," Labootu said.

"The child of your savior," Rebecca repeated softly, and then she came to the strangest conclusion. "Your savior is Captain James T Kirk."

The moment Rebecca said the sacred name of James T Kirk, Labootu, and the others who were gathered around Myran's bed, all knelt down to their knees and then kissed the ground. Labootu then looked up a Rebecca.

"Yes," Labootu said, "James T Kirk is our God, and his child will be our child as well. We worship everything that is Jim Kirk. He saved our various worlds from their own shortsightedness, and for that, we owe him our lives."

"Your various worlds," Rebecca repeated Labootu again, "how many are you?"

Labootu and the others stood up again. Labootu spoke with great pride in his voice.

"Where we once numbered in the hundreds, we now number in the thousands." Labootu said with a warm smile. "When Jim Kirk was known to have been resurrected on Verdian III, our following, which had dwindled over the decades before then, saw resurgence. He perished on that world. But then, recently, when Jim Kirk was resurrected again, after much prophesying that it would happen; our fellowship was reinvigorated."

Rebecca looked at Labootu, and the others, and came to the worrisome conclusion that they believed everything Labootu had just said. They were an occult. Unfortunately, since her father was the Emissary of the Bajoran people, he had dealt with occults before, and had told Rebecca about them.

"What are you doing to her?" Rebecca asked, as she saw one of the other humanoids, who appeared to be a Native American from old Earth, spreading some sort of massage oil on Myran's exposed tummy.

"That woman's name is Ambathey," Labootu explained. "Her people were once taken from Earth, and placed on another world. Their new world would have been destroyed had Kirk not arrived there and saved them from an approaching asteroid."

"What is she putting on Myran?" Rebecca asked.

"Ambathey is a mid-wife," Labootu continued. "The ceremonial herbs and other natural ointments she is applying to Myran will keep the child inside safe from disease and evil spirits."

"Where are we?" Rebecca asked.

"We are still on Bajor," Labootu replied.

"You do realize that my father is Benjamin Sisko, and he will stop at nothing to find us," Rebecca said, with confidence in her voice.

"They will find you eventually," Labootu said, with a warm smile. "But not until after the La'bat is performed."

"What is the La'bat?" Rebecca asked.

Labootu places his hand on Rebecca's shoulder, as if he were a father figure to her.

"In order to ensure the safety of the Meh'tahq, the son of our savior, we will remove the child from its mother in a ceremony we call the La'bat," Labootu said, with reverie in his voice. "Then we will take the child to our retreat in the stars, and raise it until such time as they are ready to rule the universe."

"What about Myran?" Rebecca asked. "What will happen to her if you remove the child form her?"

Labootu shook his head, and his voice took on the tone of deep sorrow.

"The mother will have to sacrifice her life, in order to ensure the eternal soul of the Meh'tahq. A small price to pay, but it must be done."

Rebecca knew there was only one other question to ask. She didn't want to ask it, but she knew she had to.

"When is this La'bat ceremony going to take to take place?" Rebecca Sisko asked.

Labootu smiled, and then stood back up, after having knelt down at Rebecca's bedside. He looked at a time piece on the wall nearby, and then he looked over at Myran's exposed tummy.

"Soon," Labootu said, "very soon."

Rebecca felt a chill of cold fear race about her body….

Continued….


	56. From the Tree of Knowledge

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**From the Tree of Knowledge**

Dinner time had come to Starfleet camp on Trianguli Gamma VI. The food was being served inside the main galley, and the forty or so members of the Starfleet science teams, as well as Spock, Scotty and Sulu, were gathered about the large dining area as the various tables.

There were all kinds of conversations taking place, including one about the local indigenous population and their improving health standards. Because of their unique knowledge about the Federation, normal duck-blind procedures were not followed on Trianguli Gamma VI, which meant there was a more active interchange of culture, though the science team practiced constraint as a stated protocol.

Scotty and Sulu waited in the buffet line, and finally the line began to move. So, with his tray in hand, Scotty looked at the various food items that were available. Replicated food was out of question, due to regulations, and out right preference to freshly prepare food. This meant that a real cook and kitchen crew prepared the evening menu of items. Several food handlers stood on the other side of the arrayed food items, ready to serve the hungry group.

"We should have gotten here earlier," Scotty complained to Sulu. "The good stuff is almost gone."

"Good things come to those who wait," Sulu replied in his now typical 'wise sage' voice.

"Now that looks good," Scotty said, as he eyed a serving plate that had two final slices of lasagna. "I'll have some of that," Scotty said to the server.

Sulu reached out his cane, and gently put the tip on the server's hand.

"No he won't," Sulu, who was right behind Scotty in line, told the server. "He will have the eggplant next to that dish."

"Are you daft?" Scotty said to Sulu.

Sulu, scratching his long gray beard, would not budge with his obvious attitude on the subject.

"Doctor McCoy told you to give up foods like pasta," Sulu said. "I'm just trying to make you follow the diet he suggested to you."

Scotty paused, and then he finally gave in, realizing that his friend was only trying to help.

"Oh alright," Scotty said, in defeat, "Give me the eggplant will yuh?"

The pleasant looking lady served Scotty the eggplant, as well as a small plate of grapes.

"Are you happy now?" Scotty asked, as he slid his plate down the line to the next station; drinks.

Scotty took a cup of water, and then looked back to see Sulu getting the final two servings of Lasagna put on his plate. Needless to say, Scotty was not a happy camper; he had been swindled!

Meanwhile, across the room, Spock sat at a dining table with S'vath, and S'vath's wife; Amanda. Even though S'vath and Amanda had been married for sometime, Spock had spent most of that time on Romulas, and now greatly appreciated the chance to visit with his son and daughter-in-law. They were discussing the interesting data that S'vath had collected about the crystals, and how S'vath had concluded that, at the base of all the crystal growths, which were usually light blue in color, there were now signs of a brown hue, and how the growth seemed to date back to when Jim Kirk had been on the planet weeks earlier.

"S'vath," Spock said, "the growth data; are you confident of the preciseness of the growth time-tables?"

"Quite confident, father," S'vath replied. "And the data we have dates back to the first science colony that came to this planet three months after the Enterprise's initial visit."

"What you are implying is that there is a correlation to the new color pattern growth with the arrival of Jim Kirk a few weeks back. How do you account for that?" Spock asked.

"Isn't it possible," Amanda said, wanting to be part of the conversation, "that there are unique properties to Jim being that he is a Transporter duplicate?"

"Jim's duplication is not unique," Spock replied to Amanda. "In fact, Jim has been duplicated before."

"I didn't know that," Amanda said. "You mean this has happened to Jim before?"

"Yes," Spock said. "In that case, his psyche had been divided in to two totally different beings; two Jim Kirks. One of them contained the aggressive elements of Jim's mind, while the other contained his logic and compassion. Eventually we were able to reverse the accident, and merge them back together."

"Fascinating," S'vath said.

"And then there is the late Thomas Riker," Spock continued. "I have spent much time familiarizing myself with the various scientific tests that were conducted on Riker, and no evidence was discovered that seemed to indicate unique attributes. Even his temporal DNA remained exactly as it was before his duplication."

"Father," S'vath said, after sipping from his tea. "The growth pattern on the crystals is verifiable. It is definitive, and it started when Jim arrived here; and it hasn't stopped. How do you explain that?"

Spock thought for a moment.

"I can not," Spock said. "I wish to study these crystals myself. When is the next time I can join you on one of your expeditions?"

"Tomorrow," S'vath said.

"Honey," Amanda said, "you and I were going to go to the lake tomorrow." To make her point even more clearly, Amanda placed her left hand, which was under the table, on S'vath's groin area.

"Perhaps the day after tomorrow," S'vath corrected himself.

"I understand," Spock said.

The rest of the evening proceeded as normal, and after dessert had been served, everyone soon filtered out and headed for their quarters. Spock, Sulu and Scotty walked together toward the guest quarters.

"So," Scotty said to Spock, "what is on our agenda tomorrow?"

"I must point out," Spock said to his two old friends, "you both are under no obligation to remain here on Trianguli Gamma VI."

"Spock," Sulu said softly, "Mr. Scott and I have known you long enough to tell when you are suspicious about something. You're staying on this planet because of those crystals, aren't you?"

"Yes," Spock admitted.

"Even though Sulu and I were sitting a couple of tables away, I still heard' yuh talking to yuh son," Scotty said to Spock. "Do yuh think the captain' being here a few weeks ago is related to the strange growth on the crystals?"

"It is possible," Spock finally said. "And I am compelled to stay here until I find out why."

"Then as long as ye be stay'n here," Scotty said with a smile, "then so are we," Sulu said, finishing Scotty's sentence for him.

Spock nodded his head in silent approval. The three friends reached their three separate quarters and retired for the evening.

Four hours later, in the deep of the night, S'vath climbed out of bed. Amanda slept silently, with the contented look of a satisfied woman on her face. S'vath dressed and then, as quietly as he could, he left their quarters. Although is actions were his own, he felt as if he were being drawn somewhere. He soon made his way through the thick foliage and arrived at his destination; the long dormant artificial serpent head of Vaal.

And then, for the first time since the Enterprise had rendered the device obsolete a hundred years in the past, the two eyes on the serpent's head slowly began to glow again. Vaal was alive!

Continued!


	57. Grol's Law

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Grol's Law**

Planet M-16678 may have been off the beaten track of galactic importance, but when the planet came close to the two stars that dominated its solar system, and turned the cold desolate world into a more habitable one, many treasure hunters, in all shapes and sizes, arrived for the yearly treasure hunt.

Many of the old timers knew each other from past hunts. And it didn't really matter if they were human, Klingon, or one of at least fifty other races; it was the thrill of the hunt that always brought them back. The Karom'thaiav medallion was priceless, and most of the treasure hunters had very little in the way of wealth; making for a great tandem of conflicting realities.

In the grand scheme of Federation worlds, material wealth was supposedly a thing of the past; but the Karom'thaiav medallion proved other wise since most of the treasure hunters hailed from Federation worlds. Knowing that by finding a simple medallion could turn a peasant into a King; it was more than enough to inspire risk takers.

It was night time, and James T Kirk stood outside a very loud establishment. Kirk had been able to follow Riker's tracks to what appeared to be the only city, or more precise, the only town on the entire planet. Kirk felt as if he had gone through a time machine because there were all sorts of riding animals tied up to the railing outside what was obviously an establishment not unlike those featured in many of the adventures of Alan Quartermain, of which, as a teenager, Kirk had read many. Loud music and laughter came from inside, and the entrance were two large double doors. Somehow, being that he was looking for lost treasure on a world in the middle of nowhere, finding such a place, in such a situation, didn't seem to surprise him at all; he has seen stranger.

Kirk stepped through the double doors and his eyes were greeted by a large crowd of various alien species, all of them sharing a basic look; scoundrels, and all of them very loud. Luckily Q had given Kirk an outfit more befitting of the setting. He wore a khaki pants, a khaki safari shirt, a brown shoulder bag, a holster with one gun, a ratty looking brown jacket and a brown fedora with a black band around it. In other words; he fit in quite well. If someone had accused Kirk of being a scruffy nerf-herder, Kirk wouldn't have blamed them.

There were other humans, to be sure, but there were also Klingons, Gorns, Tellerites, Andorians, but there were other races that Kirk didn't recognize off hand. The bar area was also covered in a fine haze, which was more or less a cloud of toxic second hand smoke from the various cigars, cigarettes, bongs, and other paraphernalia that was scattered about. There was a main bar to the back, which Kirk headed for, being that he was thirsty.

Four cages hung from the ceiling, each containing erotic dancer gyrating to the music that was blaring. One of the cages contained two Romulan females performing erotic acts on each other with various objects, while another cage had a Klingon male doing unspeakable acts with a pair of Tribbles, which were screeching through it all. Kirk shook his head, and sat at one of the barstools, next to a Gorn who was being easily entertained by the Klingon and the Tribbles. There were three bartenders behind the long counter. One of them wore a sombrero and made his way over to Kirk. Kirk recognized the man as he got closer; it was Q.

"It's about time you showed up," Q said, as he placed to Corona beers on the counter. "What took you so long? Picard is twice your age, and even at his advanced age, he moves faster than you!"

"Riker," Kirk answered. "He attacked me, knocked me out, and took the treasure map."

"I told you not to trust him," Q admonished Kirk.

"Hey, listen to me," Kirk said to Q. "I told you earlier; Riker is trying to save his wife, and so is Bak'nor. They are playing for larger stakes than I am."

"Trust me," Q said, his voice becoming deeper with seriousness, "your stakes are just as high."

"That's the second time you've implied that something is happening with my wife Myran," Kirk said, in just as a serious tone. "I'm going to do a damn thing until I know what you mean by that."

"I don't have the power to just snap my fingers and make everything right," Q said, "Well, actually, I could. But its frowned upon at my level, but, I am giving you the chance to, how is it said; oh right, I am giving you the chance to kill two birds with one stone. Help me get that medallion and I will help you with what ever situation your wife should find her self in."

Kirk drank from a bottle of beer and then nodded his head.

"I just want assurances from you that nothing will happen to Myran until AFTER I have found your cursed medallion." Kirk was in no mood to barter, and Q could tell.

"Alright," Q said, "You have my word. Now listen up; the treasure hunt will officially start tomorrow. So you better get a good night's sleep."

"Q," Kirk said softly, "I don't have the treasure map any more; Riker has it."

Q smiled.

"Don't worry," Q said. "But if you should get it back in your possession, take better care of it."

"And how am I supposed to get it back into my possession in the first place?" Kirk asked.

At that moment a four foot tall Tellerite walked up and tapped Kirk on the lower back just as Q walked away.

"Human," the Tellerite said. "My name is Grol, and I make it a point to know all the hunters who come to M-16678 to find the Karom'thaiav medallion. I don't recognize you; who are you? Where are your travel papers?"

Kirk felt a slight tug in the pocket inside his jacket. He opened the jacket, reached in, and pulled out an electronic card device and gave it to the Grol; the Tellerite sheriff. Grol looked at the data, and then looked at Kirk.

"Alright Mr. Jim Ford," Grol said, "Your paper work is in order. But I don't trust humans, and I never have. I'll be keeping my eyes on you; and please shave. You're starting to look like a human/Klingon hybrid, and I hate those!"

"Thank you," Kirk said, as he put the ID back into his jacket pocket. "By the way, you wouldn't happen to know if two of my friends have arrived yet."

"What do they look like?" Grol asked.

"One would be a human, with a beard," Kirk said, "the other would be a Chalnoth named Bak'nor, and he's about eight feet tall."

Grol looked closely at Kirk before answering.

"I happen to know where those two are," Grol said, his voice denoting suspicion.

Ten minutes later, Grol escorted Kirk into the local law enforcement building. Kirk followed Grol through the doors, and through a maze of hallways before coming upon the brig, which included three jail cells.

"WAKE UP!" Grol yelled into one of the cells.

It was dimly lit inside the brig, so at first all Kirk saw was to shadows. And then Riker and Bak'nor stepped out from the darkness, behind the cold bars of the jail.

"Jim," Riker said, with embarrassment in his eyes and a sheepish smile. "What a shock it is to see you here!"

Kirk cracked a very sardonic smile.

Continued…


	58. Womb to Womb

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Womb to Womb**

Rebecca Sisko, with two connected shackles around her ankles, sat at a dining table inside the hidden lair of the Brotherhood of Kirk. She had been allowed to wear a robe, but nothing else, for modesty. The shackles were attached to the chair she was sitting in, making escape impossible.

The lair, as best as she could make out, had been relocated and she and Myran were taken to an area inside an abandoned cave. Rebecca didn't know for sure, but based on the ragtag nature of the cult, and their apparent lack resources, she was quite confident they were still on Bajor. The cave walls were quite dense, and because of that, it probably rendered it hidden from sensor detection.

At that moment Labootu came in and sat at the table with Rebecca. Labootu had a worried expression on his face.

"I must ask for your assistance with your friend Myran," Labootu said.

Rebecca had just spread butter across her Hom'ba (the Bajoran equivalent to croissant.) and chuckled at what Labootu has just said. She took a bite of the pastry, and then looked at Labootu with a look of contempt on her face.

"I'm not helping you do anything," Rebecca said, as she ate a slice of the Hom'ba. "Perhaps you haven't been keeping up with the latest events, but I'm a prisoner here."

"If you do not help your friend," Labootu said, ignoring Rebecca's statement, "she may die. Certainly, we both do not want that to be her destiny."

"Her destiny probably didn't include being kidnapped by bunch of outcasts," Rebecca said.

"Be that as it may," Labootu came back with, "unless you do what I ask, she, and the baby I might, will die."

Rebecca took another bite of the pastry, and then sipped from the glass of water provided for her.

"What's wrong with her?" Rebecca asked point blank.

"Ambathey…" Labootu began to say.

"You mean the Native American witch doctor," Rebecca jabbed back with.

"Think of her as you wish," Labootu, "but Ambathey has brought many children into this life on many worlds. She has concerns that the unborn infant, the Meh'tahq, may have health concerns ."

"Does Myran know this?" Rebecca asked.

"Yes," Labootu answered, "and Ambathey wants to give Myran some herbal medicine that will help the infant, and the mother I might add, pass through this fragile period of the pregnancy. Myran refuses to take the medicine."

"Mister; can you blame her?" Rebecca asked with a sardonic laugh. "You kidnap her, bring her to this place, tell her that her child is some sort of God, threaten to take the child when it's born, and you wonder why she doesn't trust you? For all we know, you might be trying to poison the baby. I wouldn't trust you either, in fact," Rebecca added, "I don't."

"Then," Labootu said, with sadness in his voice, "the Meh'tahq will perish," and then he added, "and so will your friend."

And with that, Labootu reached out, and holding a strange pouch in his hand, he squeezed it and a mist of power came out of the pouch. Rebecca had breathed some of it in, and then she began to lose grip on reality, and closed her eyes.

* * *

**DEEP SPACE NINE**

Admiral Kate Janeway sat in a briefing room on Deep Space Nine, along with Captain Kira, and Commander Christine Vale and they all paid close attention as Jaden Weer gave the summary of his report.

"And so, to summarize, according to the latest communication from Star Fleet security," Jaden said, "there is no updates on the missing statuses of Captain Riker, Captain Kirk, Commander Deanna Troi and, now, Kirk's wife Myran and Benjamin Sisko's daughter; Rebecca."

"Are these abductions related in anyway?" Kira asked.

Jaden pressed a button and an image of Bak'nor came on the screen.

"This is Bak'nor," Jaden, the Betazoid Constable of DS9 stated, "as you know from my last report, security devices on one of the upper docking rings detected his arrival on DS9. Since that time, my security teams have swept DS9 from top to bottom, and the Chalnoth is no longer aboard this space station, nor do we have any record of his departure."

"Then, if he isn't here, then how did he get off the station?" Commander Vale (the Titan's first officer) asked.

"According to our dock master," Jaden replied, "Commander Riker docked this ship," an image of Riker's private starship, the Celeritas, appeared on the screen, "and while Riker was only aboard Deep Space Nine for just over an hour, we believe he left," images of the Celeritas departing are shown on the screen, "and upon his departure, we believe Riker transported Bak'nor off of DS9. Now," Jaden continued, "we know from our informant (Quark of course) that Bak'nor has a sizable debt owed to the Orion Syndicate. They could be players in the abduction of Commander Troi."

Janeway sipped from a cup of tea.

"Alright," Janeway finally said, "let me see if I have this straight. Bak'nor came to DS9 to retrieve something. We don't know what that something was, but Bak'nor believed it to be with Bakooth; his dead brother. Bakooth died on the Defiant, and Bak'nor now believes that what ever Bakooth had, he passed on to Jim Kirk, who was the last person to see Bakooth alive. The Orion Syndicate wants what ever Bak'nor is after, so they abduct Troi so as to get Bak'nor to get Riker to help him find whatever this thing is."

"That is a bit of a stretch," Kira said. "But, then again, I am starting to believe that when Jim Kirk is involved, reality doesn't always factor in."

"Very true," Janeway said. "I've read up on Jim Kirk's career, and while most of it covers the career of the other Kirk, who died on Veridian III, they both seem to be magnets of the most peculiar events I've ever read about. But while I see the connection to Kirk-Riker-Troi and their disappearances, I don't see that connection with Kirk's wife and Sisko's daughter."

"As you know," Jaden said to Janeway, "I went to Bajor. The abduction of Kirk's wife is no doubt the work of the B.O.K.; the Brotherhood of Kirk."

"Excuse, but what is the Brotherhood of Kirk?" Commander Vale asked.

Jaden went on to explain the history of the cult movement that had grown out of the worship of Jim Kirk as a deity. Vale and Kira shook their heads at the unbelievable information about such a cult.

"I believe," Jaden finally said, "that Myran and Rebecca are still on Bajor. We have pretty much ruled out their being transported off the planet. Thanks to you Admiral, there are three Runabouts orbiting Bajor, using their advances sensors, in an effort to find them. If Kirk's wife is only pregnant by two months, then I believe the child is safe for now."

"What does that mean," Janeway said, "safe for now?"

Jaden produced a data-pad, and showed it to them.

"I took the time to read about the BOK," Jaden told them. "They believe that a male descendent of Jim Kirk will be the Meh'tahq, or as they call it, the savior of the universe."

"A Bajoran woman's pregnancy will last nearly twelve Earth months," Kira told Janeway and Vale, "so we have at least ten months to find the baby, its mothers, and Ben's daughter."

"Actually," Jaden said, with remorse in his voice, "we have four weeks."

"Four weeks?" Kira came back with. "Why do we have only four weeks?"

"According to this," Jaden said as he held out the chip, "the Meh'tahq must be removed from its mother, purified, and then placed inside the womb of a Mugatu."

"And what is that?" Kira asked.

"The Mugatu," Vale explained to Kira, "is a primate that exists on the planet of Neural."

"Another one of the worlds Kirk visited, and left an impression," Jaden added.

"Are you telling me," Janeway said, with a slight tone of fear in her voice, "that in four weeks this cult is going to take that child out of Myran and put it inside of a Mugatu?"

"Yes," Jaden said. "And in that process, they will also drug Myran so that she will die when the baby is removed. They believe the Katra, the living spirit of the mother, will enter the Mugatu and help keep the child alive."

"Myran is not Vulcan," Kira said, "why do they think she has a Katra?"

"Does any of this make any sense?" Jaden replied to Kira. "They believe the she has a Katra and are willing to kill her for it."

The room was silent, and then finally Admiral Janeway spoke.

"We have to find her, and Rebecca, before it comes to that." Janeway said.

"How do we do that?" Kira said. "They could be hiding anywhere on Bajor."

"I understand that Kira," Janeway said. "To avoid our sensors, they must be hiding in some sort of natural environment, in a cave, or something like that. You spent many years in the Bajoran resistance, so you must have some idea as to where some of the better hiding places would be."

"It would be a miracle to stumble upon one of the thousands of underground caves they could be hiding in," Kira said with little hope in her voice.

"Kira," Janeway said, "you, and the rest of the resistance fighters who are still alive, have to come together on this and right now. With Jim Kirk M.I.A., it's up to us to find his wife and unborn child. And if I know Ben Sisko, I am quite sure he will do anything to find his daughter; help him."

And with that the meeting adjourned and Kira, Christine Vale and Jaden Weer all left the briefing room. Once they were gone, there was a bright flash, and Q appeared on the other end of the briefing table from Janeway, in his Admiral's uniform.

"Alright Q," Janeway said, "What is going on?"

"The ordeal with Kirk's wife is none of my affair," Q said. "However, I will tell you that Riker and that bucktooth-varmint of his are with Kirk."

"Just what are they doing?" Janeway asked.

"I assure you that it is nothing tawdry," Q insisted. "Well, yet. But once Kirk has completed his task, I'll bring him back to find his missing wife."

"She only has four weeks, Q," Janeway stated with a little force in her voice. "And then that occult is going to slice that baby out of her womb. Are you going to stop that from happening?"

"Kathryn," Q said, with seriousness in his voice. "The aftermath of the Q civil war has created a set of rules that I must follow. And involving my self with saving Kirk's wife is prohibited."

"But using Kirk on one of your silly errands isn't?" Janeway asked. "Isn't that just lucky for the Continuum?"

"As someone once said," Q said, with vagueness in his voice, "it is what it is."

And then, in a flash, Q was gone.

Continued…


	59. Heart of Darkness

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Tools…**

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

Montgomery Scott opened his eyes, and he felt refreshed. He breathed in some fresh air, and then sat up in bed. The early morning light was still a few hours off, but Scotty could sleep no more. His many years in Starfleet had made him accustomed to, at most, five to six hours of sleep. And, since he usually dozed off while going over the schematics of ancient sailing ships or modern starships, around 10pm or so, it meant that getting up at 4am was routine.

He stepped out of bed, and waddled in the dark towards the table in the center of his quarters so as to find his glasses. He switched on the lamp stand that sat on the table, and before reaching for his glasses, he looked around and was amazed at how well his eyes could see on that morning, sans the glasses. As it had turned out, Scotty was determined to be just as allergic to modern vision corrective methods as Kirk had been. A good pair of glasses did wonders for him, but on this morning, before putting his glasses on, he was seeing things from across the room that he hadn't been able to seen for decades.

"Maybe eat'n all them carrots has finally paid off," Scotty said to himself.

It was at that moment, when Scotty looked down at the table, when he knew something was very strange. He had reached for his glasses and had decided not to put them on, and had rested his hand on the table. But there was a very strange look to his hands; they were young appearing; very young.

Stunned at what he saw, Scotty pulled his hand back. And then, as curiosity gripped him again, he looked at both of his hands, putting them right before his eyes. And Sure enough; both of his hands looked as they had looked decades earlier; when he was a younger man. Then he looked down again and noticed that the girth he had put on his waist over the years was gone as well.

If his hands were younger, and he was lighter in weight, then what about his face? He placed his hands on his face and sure enough; the wrinkles he had felt for so many years were now gone. But the touch of his own hands upon his face had gone for enough; he needed to see what he was feeling with his hands, with his eyes!

Scotty left his glasses on the table, and headed over to the tiny bathroom that was included in his quarters. There was room for a sink, and a place of a hairbrush and other grooming items. But what Scotty saw in his face made him forget all about that; what he saw was a much younger man. Scotty estimated that he looked as he did during first or second year of the Enterprise's original mission.

"It must be a," Scotty smiled at the sight of look of youth in the mirror, "blessed miracle."

And why not, Scotty asked himself in his mind. If Jim Kirk could look young all over again, then why couldn't he, and, more the point, why couldn't Sulu or Spock.

It was at that instant that Scotty hustled away from the mirror and towards the entrance to his quarters. If being on Trianguli Gamma VI had somehow made him look and feel younger, then perhaps the same thing had happened to Sulu, or Spock. They were both far older than Scotty, due to the fact that unlike Scotty or Kirk, Spock and Sulu had lived all the way to the modern era without the help of a Transporter gimmick.

Scotty stepped outside of his quarters. The first whispers of dawn were starting to stream over the distance hills, and then suddenly Scotty heard a strange sound; it was a yell, and it was getting closer. He turned and saw, quite by surprise, a figure in dark clothing running directly toward him. Before Scotty could do anything, the sudden stranger leaped into the air and tackled Scotty, throwing him to the ground. Before Scotty could scramble to his feet, his unknown attacker rolled up and squatted on Scotty's chest, keeping him on the dirt ground.

"You are yuh!" Scotty demand, "let me go before I clobb'a yuh!"

"Scotty," the attacker answered, "it's me…Sulu!"

Scotty looked up at his attacker, and sure enough, the smiling face of Hikaru Sulu was staring down at him. Not the 147 year old Sulu, but the young Sulu whom Scotty had known all those decades ago.

"Sulu," Scotty said, "would yuh let me up?"

Sulu rolled off of his old friend, and Scotty stood up.

"It looks like it happened to you too," Sulu said. "Montgomery, look at us!" Sulu said, excitedly, "We're young again. Sorry about running down on you like that and tackling you but I've so wanted to do that ever since I got old and could barely walk."

"Well, yuh could have warned me," Scotty said. "How could this have happened?"

"I don't know," Sulu said, "However, I'm sure if Spock were here he would say it was…"

"…Fascinating," Spock said, as he walked up to the two of them. And just like his two friends, Spock was no longer his aged self; but the young Spock they had known over a century ago.

**Bajor**

A Star Fleet search operation was being ran from Ben Sisko's home. Several security teams had gathered, including two teams of Klingons. They had been sent to Bajor by Chancellor Martok to assist in the search for Ben Sisko's daughter, and Jim Kirk's wife. The Bajoran government had given the go ahead for the teams to search the several mountain ranges where it was determined the two hostages, Rebecca and Myran, were being held. Sisko and Captain Kira, who had been sent by Admiral Janeway to assist Sisko in anyway, were giving out the team assignments.

Sisko, who worried very much about his daughter, took a moment to sip from a glass of water. Far in the distance he saw two people standing on a hill. Sisko could not make out who they were, so he picked up one of the high powered binoculars that were sitting one of the tables. Sisko put the binoculars to his eyes and, after focusing them, he couldn't recognize the first person he saw, but he recognized the person's species. They came from the planet Trianguli Gamma VI. And then he adjusted the binoculars to see who the other person was and instantly a cold chill spread through Sisko's entire body. The face of the second person was one Sisko recognized immediately; Gul Dukat!

Continued…


	60. The Cat and the Cradle

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Cat and Cradle**

**Planet M-16678**

Jim Kirk had tracked Commander Riker to the only town on the planet M-16678. The town came to life just once a year as treasure hunters from all over the known galaxy flocked to the planet in search of the Karom'thaiav medallion. The medallion was priceless, and rumors of its existence somewhere on the barren world had been rampant for many years. Even the so called omnipotent beings known as the Continuum showed interest in possessing the ancient medallion. Why such beings such as the Q couldn't just find the medallion themselves, and had hired someone like Jim Kirk to find it, peeked Jim Kirk's interest. Apparently there was more to the medallion than met the eye.

Kirk stared at Riker and Bak'nor, on the other side of the jail bars, and smiled at them.

"What happened to you two?" Kirk asked.

Riker, scratching his beard, shook his head.

"We came to the town, went to the local bar, and Bak'nor here started innocently dancing with one of the waitresses; a Pakled female name Wotmo. Things got dicey when Wotmo's jealous wife, a large Klingon woman named Minthaq, showed up and picked a fight with Bak'nor."

"Sounds innocent enough to me," Kirk said, and then he looked at Grol, the Tellerite Sherriff of the town, who stood, at best, four feet tall. "You arrested them for that?"

The Tellerite shook its furry head, and then replied.

"Witnesses say that the massive Chalnoth started the fight," Grol replied. "A fight, I might add, that caused damage well over two strips of latinum."

"That doesn't sound like too much to me," Kirk said to Grol.

"It isn't. The reason we" Riker continued to say when Grol cut him off.

"The damage is not why your two friends are in custody," Grol came back with. "The death of the Klingon female is."

"You…killed the Klingon woman?" Kirk asked Bak'nor. "And here I thought you were on this world trying to find that medallion so you could save your wife and child from slave traders. The next thing I know you're dancing with a woman, and killing her wife? What's the matter with you?"

Kirk, Riker and Grol all looked up at the massive Chalnoth.

"Bak' nor…have…desires," Bak'nor said. "Needs… sexual inter…"

Kirk raised up his hand.

"Stop right there," Kirk said, "I don't care to hear about your mating habits."

Bak'nor looked down at the ground in shame.

"Me...sorry..."

"Jim," Riker said. "You've got to pay my bail so I can find the medallion, and give it to Bak'nor's employers so I can save my wife."

"What about him?" Kirk asked the sheriff. "Can he go?"

"That all depends on how much the local law minister sets his bail at." Grol replied.

"Who is the local law minister?" Kirk asked.

"That happens to be me," Grol said.

"Well, alright then," Kirk said, "how much."

Grol thought for a moment, as he looked at Riker.

"Luckily for you both," Grol began to say, "I hate the pungent smell of humans. Your bathing habits leave much to be desired," the tiny sheriff said. "I set this human's bail at one bar of gold pressed latinum."

"ONE ENTIRE BAR!" Riker came back with. "That's highway robbery."

Suddenly, and without warning, the brown duffle bag around Kirk's shoulders became heavier, though he was able to hide the strain on his back. Kirk had a pretty good idea at what had just happened. Q was no doubt aware of what was happening. Kirk reached into his bag and pulled out a bar of latinum and handed it to Grol.

"Will this do?" Kirk asked.

Grol opened the jail cell and let Riker out.

"You are out on bail, and because I like your friend here," Grol said, motioning to Kirk, "I will also consider it payment for your crime. All charges will be dropped."

"What about him?" Riker asked, motioning to Bak'nor.

"The sentence for murder on M-16678 is death," Grol said. "His execution will take place in three days."

"If…Bak'nor die…"Bak'nor said to Riker, "you…never…find…wife."

* * *

Several minutes later, Riker and Kirk made their way down the dusty path back towards the saloon. Night time had come, and the dimly lit street lights provided very little light at all. Kirk and Riker hadn't said much since leaving the sheriff's office, when suddenly Kirk spoke.

"Why did you ambush me and take the map?" Kirk asked.

"I think you know," Riker finally answered. "My wife's life is on the line here Jim. I know Q has sent you to find the medallion too, but trust me; I have dealt with Q many times. He's a liar and he is only out for the selfish interests of him and his fellow Q."

"Then," Kirk said, "Let's find the damn thing and give it to the people who have your wife."

Suddenly there was a flash, and Q appeared. He was wearing a poncho and a sombrero and a very tacky holster with two silver guns.

"Q," Riker said, with a tone of displeasure in his voice.

"Hello to you too," Q said. "If you had taken up my offer and had joined the Q, you could have already saved your mind reading babe by now."

"Enough of this Q," Kirk said. "I'm not going to find the medallion and give it to you when the life of his wife is on the line."

"And I already told you," Q said to Kirk, "that your wife's life is in as much danger as well. So you have a choice," Q said to Kirk, "save his wife or yours."

Riker shook his head, and looked at Kirk.

"It's a no win scenario Jim," Riker said, "It always is with this clown."

"I don't believe in the no win scenario," Kirk said to them both. "You," Kirk said to Q, "have the power to do anything and yet, for some unknown reason, you won't snap your fingers and make that medallion appear around your neck. That tells me one thing; the medallion has dominion over you and your kind, making it very priceless indeed."

Riker laughed.

"What are you laughing at?" Q asked.

"Here we are Jim and I, our wives are missing, we're talking to a being with God like powers, and none of it makes any sense," Riker said, as his laugh became louder. "I'm sorry; it must be all the stress."

Jim Kirk, seeing Riker laugh, began to laugh too. First it was a small laugh, but then it got louder. Riker and Kirk were laughing hysterically and then Q started to laugh too. The three were laughing with each other, slapping each other on the back, when finally it all ebbed.

"Q," Riker finally said, as he dried the tears of laughter from his eyes, "what do you think the Calamarain would pay for that medallion."

"You wouldn't dare," Q said, as his own laughter had expired.

"Try me," Riker said, as the tone of the conversation became serious again. "I'm playing this game for the life of my Imazdi. I'm pretty sure who ever employed Bak'nor would love to be put into contact with a buyer for that medallion."

Q thought for a moment.

"Oh well, alright," Q said. "Find me that medallion and I'll do what I can to help both of your wives. But cross me again," Q said, "and they will die. Both them, and the offspring they bare." There was a flash and then Q was gone.

Riker and Kirk looked at each other. Kirk had already known he was going to be a father, but Riker had just found out.

"Did he say what I think he just said?" Riker asked, with a smile on his face.

Suddenly two small flashes appeared in front of their mouths, and instantly they both had a lit cigar sticking out of their mouths.

Continued…


	61. Monkey's Wrench

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Monkey's Wrench**

**Bajor**

During the Cardassian occupation of Bajor, the Bajoran resistance made ample use of the many mountain ranges on the planet. Maze upon maze of caves crisscrossed inside the mountains, proving hiding places that the Cardassian overseers could never quite fully discover. The different cells of resistance fighters would move from cave to cave, or from one mountain range to another, always one step ahead of the pursuers.

Dukat, the Cardassian Gul who over saw much of the occupation, and who had seeming died inside one of the fire caves, walked outside the entrance to one of the caves. Labootu walked by his side.

"I cannot stay here much longer," Dukat said to Labootu. "The Starfleet scanners will eventually detect my Cadassian life signs."

"Was it wise to have let your adversary see you such as you did?" Labootu asked.

Dukat smiled his devious smile, and then he looked over at Labootu.

"My friend Labootu, Benjamin Sisko is more than just an adversary," Dukat said with respect in his voice, "he is also my soul mate." With each word that he spoke, Dukat's voice became more filled with genuine hatred. "In a different reality he and I could have been friends."

Labootu could hear the twisted sound of Dukat's voice, and came to the conclusion that Dukat was insane, though Labootu would never say such a thing out loud.

"So far my associates of the Brotherhood of Kirk do not know of my agreement with you," Labootu said. "We need to make sure that no connection can be made between us for now."

"Oh, trust me," Dukat said, as she clapped his hands together, "I do understand the need to be discrete," Dukat said. "I just hope that your Vaal will keep up his end of the bargain."

Labootu nodded his head.

"Vaal will honor his commitment to you, and the Pah'wraiths, Dukat. However for this to be successful, the Brother of Kirk must extract the power that dwells within Kirk's unborn child," Labootu said. "If we are discovered before that happens, then your plans to seize control of the wormhole and destroy the Celestial Prophets will be destroyed as well as Vaal's plan to return paradise to my world."

"Years ago," Dukat said, "had someone come to me with such a fantastical plan; I would have had them executed on the spot." Dukat said. "However, I have seen much in my life to make me believe in nearly the impossible; which this certainly is."

Labootu prepared to enter the cave that would lead him to the current hiding place the Brotherhood of Kirk had moved Myran to.

"You are confident the Bajorans or Starfleet will not find us?" Labootu asked Dukat.

"Just use the maps I have given you," Dukat replied, "and they will never find you."

"And what of Jim Kirk; what if he returns?" Labootu asked. "Vaal has of yet no idea where Kirk is. But should he return, he will no doubt be angry about the abduction of his wife and unborn child."

Dukat laughed a sinister laugh.

"Do not concern yourself with the human named Kirk," Dukat insisted. "If he returns," Dukat made a fist, and then fury fired from his eyes, "I shall destroy him."

"What about Sisko's daughter?" Labootu asked in a dismissive tone. "Keeping her with us will only anger Sisko. And now that he has seen you, it will no doubt inspire him to look even harder. We should return her to him."

"Absolutely not," Dukat spat back. "Sisko will indeed become more distracted with finding his daughter. And now that he has seen me, he will no doubt seek guidance from the tyrants inside of the wormhole. The more they refuse to assist him, the more they will push him over to my side. And when that happens, when Sisko comes to me," Dukat said with a fiendish smile, "I will at last have vengeance on the Emissary and his Prophets!"

Rebecca Sisko could always tell when her captors had changed locations. The new cave they took her and Myran to would be cluttered, and the sleeping areas would have to be remade. Myran was always kept in some sort of bed, while Rebecca, during the day, would have one of her legs shackled to a chair, with a long of chain to allow her some form of exercise. Rebecca had not even seen Myran since the abduction, and hoped that the woman was being taken care of. At that moment, Labootu walked into the cave and sat next to Rebecca.

"Every time I come see you," Labootu said, "I can see your eyes darting about for any sign of escape. Even if you were to somehow remove the shackle, and get outside the cave, there would be no rescue. The animals that scurry about outside would see you as nothing more than sustenance to feed upon."

Rebecca smiled at Labootu.

"Then why not just let me go then. I'll take my chances out there, in the mountains. Or heck," Rebecca added, "why not just kill me."

And for the first time, Labootu gave Rebecca an eerie look, which was strange, coming from a person who came from Trianguli Gamma VI. The people of that world were known to be among the most peaceful in the galaxy. But it didn't phase Rebecca.

"If I could kill you, I would," Labootu said. "Vaal restrains me, however," he leaned down and picked up a boulder the size of his hand, "if I could crush your skull with this I would."

"Then do it," Rebecca said, with defiance in her own eyes, and tilting her head in a more open position for the boulder to strike. Then she looked up at Labootu. "Hah! You won't do it because you are a puppet. Someone controls your actions; I think you're a coward!"

Labootu stood up and let the boulder drop out of his hands.

"Your time will come," Labootu said with a smile.

"You know where to find me," Rebecca said to his back as he stomped away.

Unknown to Rebecca and Labootu, their conversation had been monitored by Q. He had listened from behind a twist in the cave walls that obscured him from their view. Q looked worried. He was trying to keep tabs on the overall situation of the universe, but beings like Rebecca Sisko were like the proverbial monkey's wrench. And if she didn't keep her mouth shut, she would ruin everything!

Continued…soon


	62. The Bedmates of Time

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Bedmates of Time**

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

Could it have been true? Had Spock, Sulu and Scotty found the preverbal fountain of youth? As the three friends made their way through the jungle, just as morning began to invade the sky, Spock, as usual, had his doubts about what had happened to them, where as Sulu and Scotty reveled at being young; again.

"Mist'a Spock," Scotty said, "yuh got some pull with Starfleet, being an ambassador and all, don't yuh?" Scotty asked, as he held looked over at Spock, who was holding a tricorder

"To what end?" Spock asked, as he analyzed the data on his tricorder.

"Well," Scotty went on, "they got that old Constellation class starship at that museum, so I was thinking; what if the three of us, and the Captain, all got back together, puledl that ship out of mothballs, and go back to doing what we were meant to do?"

A smile came across Sulu's face.

"I like that sound of that," Sulu. "I haven't said warp point two, warp point three, warp point four in nearly a century."

"No one could countdown to warp better that you, lad," Scotty said with deep respect in his voice.

"So, wow about it Spock?" Sulu asked.

"I must point out that we have very little data to go on," Spock told them. "The apparent change in our physical appearances may not be permanent." Spock explained.

"Don't go bursting me bubble," Scotty came back with, "are yuh telling me I'm going to revert to me old age?"

"I cannot be sure either way," Spock replied, "however, the fact that Mr. Sulu and I, who both aged through normal means, and you, after being stuck in a transporter buffer, seemed to have reverted back to earlier ages at the same rate, tells me that there is more going on here than, as they say, meets the eyes."

"I've thought about that too," Sulu said to Spock. "Do you think any of this is related to the Captain's return?"

Spock shook his head.

"I rather doubt it," Spock said. "This other Jim Kirk was created via a duplication effect, and rematerialized three years or so ago."

"I think our being young again has something to do with the strange blue crystals on this planet," Scotty offered.

"As do I," Spock said. "And as for the three of us reuniting with the Captain to embark on another five year mission," Spock added, "I would favor such an endeavor."

Both Sulu and Scotty smiled at Spock's admission to their shared past, and perhaps, shared future.

Finally, after walking for nearly twenty minutes, the three former shipmates of the Enterprise emerged from the jungle setting and approached the serpent head known to them as Vaal. As they did, S'vath exited the large mouth of the serpent head.

"What is he doing here at such an early hour?" Scotty asked.

"I could ask the same thing about us." Sulu countered.

"Good point," Scotty replied.

S'vath came over to them.

"S'vath," Spock said to his son, "it is good to see you; however, I thought your schedule today would have taken you to the southern part of this hemisphere."

"My plans have changed," S'vath said. "And so have yours."

"What does that mean?" Scotty asked. "And what's inside that giant serpent head anyway?"

Scotty took a step toward the serpent head, but S'vath blocked Scotty's way.

"I am sorry Captain Scott," S'vath said, "however; I cannot allow, or any of you, to enter Vaal."

"And why is that?" Sulu asked.

Suddenly, Spock noticed the eyes on the serpent headed glowed back to life.

"Vaal has reactivated itself," Spock said. "What do you know of this?" Spock asked his son.

"I cannot say father," S'vath said, "however, what happens next must happen."

And with that, the two eyes of the serpent fired two beams of energy. The energy beams created a bubble of fluctuating energy that contained Spock, Scotty and Sulu.

"S'vath," Spock said, "what is happening? Has Vaal captured your mind?"

"Father," S'vath said, "I know it may seem that way. However, trust me; it will all make sense. I will see you on the other side. Just remember this; you must make sure that the Karom'thaiav medallion is never found."

And with that, the energy bubble containing Spock and the others dissolved and then the three men inside of the energy bubble were gone.

S'vath made his way back to the serpent head, and entered the large opening of the mouth. He made his way back through a winding tunnel towards an opening in the side of the cave wall which had never been found until now. Earlier, Vaal had been able to communicate with S'vath, and had brought him to the secret alcove inside the cave. No one had entered the well hidden section of the cave for over fifty-thousand years, and S'vath understood why.

Inside the cave were four pods, each the size of a man. The pods were made of a substance which neither S'vath nor his tricorder could ascertain. But the material the pods were made of was not nearly as interesting as who was inside the pods. Four very interesting people; and S'vath could only wonder what would happen next if and when the four pods opened up. And, according to Vaal, it would happen very soon.

* * *

**DEEP SPACE NINE**

Admiral Kate Janeway had just received and had read the news of Picard's promotion to the Admiralty, and that he was on his way to help Janeway deal with the myriad of mysteries and events that had been swirling about ever since the return of James T Kirk from the ashes of history. Suddenly there was a flash of energy and Q appeared over her shoulder, and read the data concerning Picard.

"Great," Q said, "they're sending that do-gooder here."

"You should know that when he arrives," Janeway said, as she shifted her chair so she could see Q, "I am going to let him in on my recent dealings with you."

"Why?" Q asked. "You can't handle the job, so you want a man to take over for you?"

Janeway chuckled.

"Not exactly," Janeway replied. "But Jean-Luc does have his way of getting under your skin. You see, Q, I think there is more going on here than what you're willing to tell me. I'm making a bet that Picard can get more out of you than I can."

Suddenly there was a bright flash, and then the visibly worried looking Q vanished.

-continued


	63. An Impossible Tale

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**An Impossible Tale**

**Planet M-16678**

Jim Kirk and William T Riker materialized aboard the Celeritas. Riker was very proud of the ship, and took Kirk on a real quick tour of the vessel. It had been built for smuggling, and was a tough little ship. (Readers; the ship that attacked the Enterprise at the Starfleet wrecking yard in "Unification". This is the sister ship to that one.)

"I have to admit," Kirk said, as they ended up back where they had started, the bridge, "this is great little ship. How much did cost you."

"Now that," Riker said with a smile, as he handed Kirk a drink, "is another story. Let's just say that I'm really good at Dabo. It's a game of chance that, thankfully, has favored me several times."

"The game with the large wheel," Kirk said, recalling watching the game being played upon his first visit to DS9 with Myran.

"I'll show you how to play someday," Riker said to Kirk. "By the way," Riker said, as he eyed the rack of poker chips that were on one of the recreation tables in the sitting area, "I hear you played a pretty mean game of Texas Hold'm."

Kirk smiled.

"It seems like ages ago since I last played," Kirk said to Riker.

"I know the feeling," Riker said. "Now, let's get what we came here for. The rest of the treasure hunters have no doubt started the annual search for the medallion. According to my calculations," Riker said as he and Kirk made their way through the corridors of the ship, "in one or two days, transporter activity will be nullified as we enter an unstable area of this solar system. So, we won't be able to get back up here at least until that time."

"That doesn't sound good," Kirk said, "we're not going to be able to cover much ground on foot."

"Oh, trust me Jim." Riker said with a devious grin, "we won't be traveling by foot."

The corridor brought them to a small hanger bay which had one standard shuttle and another vehicle that had four wheels. Kirk had seen pictures of such craft, and believed they were once called "dune buggies."

"What the heck is that?" Kirk asked, upon seeing the strange vehicle.

Riker walked around the vehicle, as did Kirk, admiring the rugged looking craft.

"One of Starfleet's greatest gadgets; they call it an All Terrain Special Tactics Deployment Vehicle." Riker said.

"Sounds like a Starfleet name," Kirk said. "What do you call it?"

"I call it," Riker said with wide smile, "the Mona Lisa."

"I see," Kirk said, understanding the logic of calling a vehicle by a woman's name, and in this case, a masterpiece of a woman's name.

"What kind of fuel does it run on?" Kirk asked.

"Solar power mainly," Riker replied. "And if it needs it, a large thruster engine right here that my friend Miles O'Brien and I installed."

"O'Brien," Kirk said, recognizing the name, "a good man. I had a chance to meet him during that Project Diamond fiasco."

"Yes, he is," Riker said, with respect in his voice. "I'll go ahead and drive it into the shuttle, and then we'll take it down to the planet."

"Where will you leave the shuttle?" Kirk asked.

Riker thought for a moment.

"I'll just have it return here on remote control," Riker said. "No need to leave a Federation shuttle craft down there for those rift-rafts to find."

"I see your point," Kirk said.

Moments later, just as he said he would, Riker backed the ATSTDV, the Moan Lisa, into the shuttle with Kirk standing inside the shuttle giving hand signals. Then, knowing that time was ticking by, Riker packed up some food and drink supplies, as well as some weapons and digging equipment. With that done, Riker and Kirk got inside of the shuttle craft and were soon soaring down to the planet below.

Riker was at the helm and Kirk kept tabs on the navigation consol.

"Wil," Kirk said, as the shuttle made its way down, "why don't you just beam Bak'nor out of that jail cell? How do you expect to find your wife without him?"

"When the time comes, we'll get him." Riker replied. "He's going along with this, supposedly, because his own wife and child are being held captive by the Orion Syndicate. But sometimes I get the impression that saving his family is secondary to the wealth the Karom'thaiav medallion could bring him."

"You don't trust him," Kirk said. "That's probably wise. Had it been Bakooth, I would have."

"Bakooth got Thomas out of so many scrapes," Riker told Kirk, "and yes, had he been here, Bakooth would have been totally trustworthy."

Kirk noticed the display on the consol that showed the estimated time of arrival to their landing point was nearly fifteen minutes away.

"Q had been very sketchy with me about the Karom'thaiav medallion," Kirk said finally. "Why doesn't he just snap his fingers and get it him self."

"First off," Riker replied to Kirk, "don't trust Q. In one of our early encounters with him it cost us many of our shipmates. He has been a thorn in Captain Picard's backside for many years. And as for the medallion," Riker said, "I remember Jean-Luc telling me about it some time back."

"What did he say?" Kirk asked.

Riker made a few adjustments on the control consol, and then continued.

"He told me once," Riker went on to explain, "that there is evidence of some galactic-wide war over fifty-thousand years ago. Apparently archeology finds all over the galaxy point to this possibility. Myths passed down through the ages, from various cultures across the galaxy, say that the Karom'thaiav medallion was one of three artifacts, that if brought together, could give its possessors unlimited powers."

"What and where are the other two artifacts?" Kirk asked.

"One of them is called the Thamiliv Spear, and," Riker continued, "it is kept in the hall of champions on Quo'nos, the Klingon home world. They came into possession of the spear after conquering the HerQ. "

"And the third, where and what is it?" Kirk asked again.

"And that's the mystery," Riker said, with a wide grin. "No one knows where it is. It is believed that who ever finds the Karom'thaiav medallion will also find the one map, or clue, that will lead them to the third and final object; the Tear of PiyaQ'mev."

"The Tear of PiayQ'mevy" Kirk repeated softly. "What is that?"

"This is where the story gets a bit," Riker thought for a moment, "far-fetched."

"Okay," Kirk said with a slight chuckle, having found the story outlandish already. "Tell me."

Riker turned to face Kirk in his seat.

"The theory goes like this," Riker said. "When all three objects are brought together, it will go like this. The Karom'thaiav medallion will be place around the person's neck. Then, they will hold the Thamiliv Spear in one hand and the Tear of PiayQ'mevy in the other." Riker's eyes became really serious as he told the story. "Then that one person, who the myth calls Meh'tahq, will have dominion over the galaxy; more powerful than all the Q put together, or so, that's what Jean-Luc said."

"Wil," Kirk said, "you sound like you really believe this hokey story."

Riker began to chuckle.

"Actually," Riker said, "I was channeling my inner Picard. That's how he told the story to me, and yes, I think he might believe this mumbo jumbo." Then Riker's eyes and demeanor changed to that of hardness. "But I don't care about that crap at all," Riker said finally. "I just want to bring my wife home."

There was silence as each man realized they shared a common truth.

"And as for Q not snapping his fingers and just snatching it from where ever it is?" Riker finally said, "I don't know and I don't care. If he says he can save Deanna and your wife as well, then we have no choice but to do as he says and find the medallion."

"Agreed," Kirk said, as he held out his hand to Riker. Riker shook it.

Continued….


	64. No Time like the Present

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**No Time like the Present**

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

S'vath made his way out of the Serpent's head. As he exited he found his wife, Amanda, standing outside.

"Amanda," S'vath said with a smile, "why have you come? For our baby's sake you should be getting as much sleep as you can." He reached out his hand for the customary finger touching that Vulcans engaged in; their form of kissing.

But Amanda was human woman, and very much filled with passion, and never really cared much for the finger touching. She pushed S'vath's extended hand to the side, and hugged her husband instead.

"I had a terrible dream," Amanda said. "I had a dream that you were dead. And all our friends and family were at your funeral."

S'vath patted her on the back.

"Death dreams are not uncommon, for humans," S'vath told her. "Do not take much stock in them."

"Honey," Amanda said, "I know what dreams are. But it doesn't mean I cannot be scared or rattled by them." She looked over at the Serpent's head, and then back up at him. "What were you doing in there?"

"Nothing to concern yourself with. I just…"S'vath was saying, when suddenly the ground trembled.

"What was that?" Amanda asked, clutching him ever tighter.

Suddenly the communicator on S'vath's chest chirped. S'vath tapped it.

"S'vath here," he said.

The voice on the other end belonged to Lt. Kacit, the Cardassian science officer.

"_Commander," Kacit said, "we have detected a planet wide seismic event."_

"Yes," S'vath replied, "Amanda and I just felt it. Kacit, did you say it was planet wide? How can that be?"

"_I am not sure; however, I am here in the crystal field outside the camp when the tremor struck and got a signal from Lt. Robbins that it was planet wide. Commander," Kacit continued, "the crystals began to glow a bright light right before the tremor."_

"That is odd," S'vath said, as he held Amanda close to him.

And then another tremor stuck the planet. And then Amanda noticed the eyes on the Serpent head; they were glowing brightly.

"S'vath, look!" She said to her husband.

S'vath turned to look at the Serpent Head just in time to see each eye emit an energy beam that streaked off into the sky and tremendous speed.

"Now that," S'vath said, with a tight smile on his face, "was very fascinating."

"S'vath," Amanda said, "Stop trying to sound like your father! We should inform this to Starfleet. We might even want to get off of this hell hole if that thing," she said, motioning with her hands at the Serpent head, "is coming back on line."

It was then that S'vath held his wife closer at what they saw next; literally hundreds of natives of Trianguli Gamma VI stepped out of the jungle, and now surrounded the Serpent's head. And, as they drew closer, S'vath and Amanda could hear them chanting in a low tone.

"What are they chanting?" Amanda asked S'vath.

S'vath listened carefully. He had studied the native language enough to have a passing understanding of what they were saying.

"Well?" Amanda asked. "Can you understand them?"

"Yes," S'vath said. "It translates as this; the glory era will return with the," S'vath paused as thought of how to pronounce the last word, and then he repeated the phrase again. "The glory era will return with the rebirth of the Meh'tahq."

"What is the Meh'Tahq?" Amanda asked.

At that moment, inside the hidden tunnel within the Serpent head, the four stasis chambers slid open and the four occupants opened their eyes.

**Bajor; Inside one of the caves that the Brotherhood of Kirk was using for a hideout… **

Rebecca Sisko could only listen as Myran's screams of agony came from deeper in the cave. Rebecca was in a fetal position against one of the walls of her cell, and cried as she heard Myran's screams. Rebecca knew there was nothing she could do, buy pray. Although worshiping a God or Gods was frowned up, some people, and Rebecca was such person, would still pray in times of need.

Rebecca knew what was happening. Labootu had told her that the Brotherhood of Kirk was concerned that the authorities would find them soon, thus it had been decided to remove the fetus from Myran's body. The operation, which had to be done without any sort of pain killers, would result in the fetus being transferred to a stasis chamber. And due to the lack of modern technology, the mother, Myran, would die from the massive loss of blood that result from the fetus's removal.

The operation had begun only moments before, and then the relentless screaming began. Rebecca closed her eyes as the screaming became louder and louder.

**Kendra Province; The home of Benjamin Sisko…**

Benjamin Sisko watched as the Starfleet Tactical Operations Team prepared for action. Orbiting sensors had detected a cave in the southern hemisphere of Bajor that, according to the sensors, was the location of recent transporter activity. The team knew that the BOK was transferring to different tunnels nearly on a two hour basis, in order to evade detection. If that time table was still being used, the next beam-out would be in ten minutes or less.

Kasidy stood by Sisko's side.

"Oh Ben," Kasidy said to her husband, "Tell me that they will find them this time. Can't the Prophets tell you that much?"

Sisko closed his eyes, hoping that the beings that existed inside of the wormhole, the Celestial Temple of the Prophets, would send him any sign that the ordeal was over. And then, for just a moment, he saw an image of Rebecca; she was crying. Sisko opened his eyes.

"Well?" Kasidy pleaded. "You saw something didn't you?"

Sisko nodded his head.

"Sir," Lt. Norris, who commanded the tactical team, said to Sisko. "We're ready to go in. I still don't think you should accompany us; I cannot guarantee your safety."

"I'm going anyway," Sisko replied. "My daughter and the wife of a good friend are being held by these people; and I want to know why," Sisko's deep voice boomed.

"Very well," Norris said, as he handed Sisko a polarized vest for protection. "Just put this on for added protection."

Kasidy watched in fear as Sisko put the vest on over his shirt. She knew that danger involved, but also knew that Benjamin Sisko, her husband, was strong and resilient.

**Deep Space Nine…**

Admiral Picard sat in Admiral Janeway's office and listened as she finished briefing him about her recent encounters with Q. Janeway was standing near the observation window that had a grand view of space.

"What does Q have Kirk and Riker doing?" Picard finally asked. "And if it's that important to him, why doesn't he just do it himself?"

"He won't say," Janeway replied. "And, because of his help with the Project Diamond mess, I have given him a long leash on this one. Though, I must admit, I am reconsidering my judgment doing so."

Suddenly, and without warning, the space station began to rumble. Janeway pressed a button and the face of Captain Kira appeared on the screen.

"What is causing that rumbling sensation?" Janeway asked.

"We're not sure," Kira said pausing for a moment as Nog, Kira's first officer, handed her a data pad. "Well, this may explain it," Kira said, after reading the data pad. "According to our sensors," Kira said to Janeway, "a highly charged particle beam with unique subspace properties just entered the Bajoran system, and the beam's unique subspace wave is what we just felt."

"Where is the beam heading?" Picard asked.

"Directly toward Bajor," Kira said, with a worried tone in her voice.

-continued


	65. When Life and Death Collide

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**When Life and Death Collide**

**Planet M-16678**

William Riker drove the ATV (All Terrain Vehicle) as fast as he could through the rough desert surrounding. He had aimed it toward an outcropping of hills in the distance that resembled the area on the ancient map with was displayed on Kirk's data-pad. Riker had retracted the roof of the vehicle, which made it very loud, very windy, and very exhilarating as well.

Night time was approaching, which meant soon they would power down the vehicle. Riker started looking ahead for a good spot.

"I have got to get me one of these things," Kirk said with a smile.

"WHAT?" Riker replied. "I can't hear you."

The wind was indeed loud.

"I SAID," Kirk continued, "I HAVE TO GET ONE OF THESE FOR MYSELF."

"I KNOW A SUPPLIER WHO CAN HOOK YOU UP!," Riker said loudly. "HE STILL OWES ME A FAVOR OR TWO!"

The ATV careened through a stream of fresh water, causing a splash in its wakes. Kirk looked back at the massive spray of water behind them. Riker pointed up at the sky in the distance. There were two small fly craft, no doubt treasure hunters as well.

"They're pretty close, think they suspect we know where the treasure is!" Kirk asked.

"I doubt it," Riker said.

"Look," Kirk suddenly said, pointing to the land vehicle that had been flanking them earlier. "That vehicle is still in our area. I don't think that is by chance!" Kirk said over the wind.

"You're right," Riker said. "I think it's time we find out who that driver is!"

Riker decelerated the vehicle and brought it to a stop, as did the other vehicle. The other vehicle wasn't as modern looking as Riker's, but even still, it had managed to keep pace. Kirk and Riker climbed out of their ATV and approached the other vehicle, which had four large letters scrawled across the very back of its back panel; J E E P.

SUDDENLY THERE WAS A FLASH…AND RIKER AND KIRK WERE GONE!

**Bajor**

The armed Starfleet tactical team beamed into the deep cavern of a cave setting. Benjamin Sisko was with them as well, and they all drew their weapons.

"HELP" A voice cried out.

Sisko didn't need anyone to tell him who the voice belonged too; it was Rebecca's voice. Sisko and the team ran toward the scream and found a wire mess net across a small alcove. Inside the alcove was Rebecca, in a white robe.

"DAD!" Rebecca screamed with joy upon seeing her father.

Sisko ran over to Rebecca and held her tight as the tactical team continued their search for Myran and possible hostiles.

"Dad," Rebecca said through her tears, "they were crazy! We have to find Myran. They were going to take her baby out of her!"

"How are you?" Sisko asked.

"Dad," Rebecca said, "I'm fine, really."

Lt. Norris ran into the alcove.

"Sir," Norris said, "you better come with me."

Sisko, holding Rebecca's hand as she walked beside him, followed Norris through the winding cave.

"What is it?" Sisko asked.

"We cannot find any hostiles," Norris reported, "no doubt they have moved on. But we did find…" Norris trailed his voice off as they entered a large area of the cave.

Rebecca turned her head away, and hugged her father after seeing the horrific scene.

Blood covered the ground, and in the center of the room was a slab of flat rock that Myran's was on. The front of her midsection had been surgically cut open, and she was dead; her eyes opened, staring blankly upward. Suddenly there were two flashes of light and then James T Kirk and William T Riker appeared.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Kirk screamed as he saw his dead wife on the slab of rock.

Norris, trying to preserve the crime scene, tried to stop Kirk, but Kirk pushed the man to the side as he ran to Myran and began to hug her bloodied body.

* * *

The area was nothing more than absolute white, and the whiteness was more like eternity. And in the center of the all white universe was Q. A voice spoke from the whiteness.

"Speak…" the deep voice said.

"I want to save the woman," Q said.

"Her mortal life is no more important than any other mortal's life…" the deep voice countered.

"I gave my word to Kirk that nothing would happen to his wife. To you and I that may sound more like words to pet ant, but none the less. You can all see the near future as I can. You know what is to come. Let me save his wife at least; that's all I ask."

There was silence.

"We fought a Civil War," the deep voice said, "a war over such interference. We cannot go back on our principles for merely one mortal."

"Go to hell!" Q said. "I fought in that war too! We have Kirk doing our bidding, trying to stop what is to come. He doesn't know that his son could possibly be the instrument of universal destruction. If we are to ask him to kill his own son, and we will, then we owe him this retroactive payment."

"What gives you the right…" the deep voice said.

"I'm not asking for a right," Q said, "I'm asking to do the right thing!"

* * *

Sisko held his crying daughter and stared over at the grieving Kirk. Riker came over to Sisko.

"Where have two been?" Sisko whispered. "Starfleet has no idea where you are."

"Something to do with Q," Riker said, as he looked over at Kirk. Riker felt a tear in his own eye, and dabbed it. "I think after what has happened here, Kirk will probably be out of action for a while."

Suddenly there was a flash and Q stood in the alcove.

"Q!" Riker said loudly, "you better have an explanation for this!"

Kirk, upon seeing Q, flung himself at the omnipotent being, landing a blow to Q's face, and smashing him to the ground. Riker, Norris and Sisko pulled Kirk off of Q. Q stood up and dusted himself off.

"I had that coming," Q said to them. "Kirk, I am truly sorry for what has happened here."

"You're sorry!" Kirk screamed, as Sisko and Riker held him back. "You lied to me! You said she would be safe!"

"Jim," a soft voice said from behind Kirk.

Kirk whirled around to see Myran. She was alive, and her violent wounds healed. Kirk, with absolute joy in his eyes, ran over to her and hugged her. Riker, Sisko, Rebecca and Norris all smiled at the sight. Riker walked over to Q.

"You did a good thing," Riker said. "Probably the nicest thing I've ever seen you do. But why?"

"I had my reasons," Q said softly. "I made a deal with the Continuum. In exchange for saving her life I have given up my powers for eternity."

"They did that before," Riker said, "and they gave them back to you. Perhaps they will again."

Q shook his head.

"No, not this time," Q replied. "Not only did I have to exchange my powers, I had to exchange my life." Q said.

And with that, Q fell to the ground. Riker knelt down to aid Q, but the once omnipotent being's body was lifeless. Riker felt for a pulse; Q was dead. But what did that mean? And with that, Kirk and Riker vanished with to bursts of light.

* * *

Once again Kirk and Riker were on the desert Planet M-16678.

"Are you okay?" Riker asked Kirk.

"I don't know," Kirk said softly. "I just saw my wife dead a few moments ago, and suddenly she was alive. To go from one extreme to the other," Kirk said, "it's times like these when I envy Spock."

Once again they were standing behind the other ATV vehicle and then the driver and passenger of the other vehicle climbed out, and to Riker's and Kirk's surprise, both were wearing snug fitting coveralls; and were women! The two women were wearing helmets and took them off. Riker immediately recognized one of the women because they had met before. He smiled and said her name with a suspicious sigh.

"Vash…"


	66. Awakening

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Awakening…**

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

Inside the Serpent's head, down the winding cave tunnel, and inside the hidden alcove….

The hidden alcove was obscured in complete darkness. There were no sounds, and no wisps of life; just pure darkness. And then, without warning, the four life-sized canisters hummed to life and lights through-out the alcove, on various control panels, began to glow. A hissing sound was made as each canister slid opened and the four beings inside the canisters began to live again.

They each opened their eyes. It had been over fifty thousand years since they had done so. They had each just concluded fifty thousand years of existence inside specially made stasis chambers. It had been a gamble, back then, but it seemed to have work. They each pivoted slowly in their chambers, and just sat quietly. Finally

"My mouth is so dry." Sulu said, being the first to talk.

"Yes," Spock replied. "That would be a logical sensation after so much time in stasis."

"Mist'a Spock," Scotty said, "Has it really been fifty thousand years?"

Spock arched an eyebrow.

"Negative," Spock replied, "If the program worked entirely then it has been fifty-one thousand four hundred fifty two days and seventeen hours."

"Amazing," Sulu said. "If that's true, then we spent five years back there, but from this perspective, it has been only, at best, one standard hour."

"I am impressed," Spock said to Sulu, "your time dilation figures are nearly flawless."

"So," Scotty said, with a whimsical sound in his voice, "when the Enterprise visited this world a century ago, unknown to us then, we were also inside of this cave?"

"Please Mr. Sulu and Mr. Scott," Spock said, "I would ask you both to save your paradox questions until after we have completed our task. Explaining the R'lath Time Curve would take several days, and we have, as it is fond to say, too much on our plate to tend to."

"So what do we do now?" The question came from a fourth voice.

The three former Starfleet officers were dressed in native clothing from eons in the past. They all looked over at the fourth person in their group; a young man with Bajoran ridges on the bridge of his nose. It was for him, for his protection, that Spock, Sulu and Scotty had risked their lives.

"How do yuh feel laddie?" Scotty asked.

The young Bajoran/Human hybrid smiled at his older friends. His name was Mathew Kirk. But he had another name as well, it was a title in fact; Meh'Tahq.

**Planet Vulcan…**

The vast parch land stretched out for as far as the eyes could see, such was the view from the home that was contained inside a large mountain face. Its owner, T'pring, stood by the large window and stared at the vast space before her. She had done quite well for herself, over the years. But it had not been an easy climb to the top.

After her treachery against Spock, her mate, had been revealed, T'pring had spent several decades repairing her honor. Spock had actually helped her in that regard on many occasions. Even before his death, Sarek, Spock's father, had been helpful with opening doors to T'pring that might otherwise have stayed closed.

She had never married Stonn, the Vulcan she chose over Spock for her own reasons. It had appeared that Spock's final words to Stonn had been prophetic as well. As the years passed, Stonn did not seem to want to be with T'pring, as Spock suspected would happen. In more recent times, Stonn had been killed during a Jem'Hadar attack on a vessel Stonn was a passenger on during the Dominion War.

While Vulcans are said to not harbor feelings of resentment toward those who have done questionable acts, T'pring never attained the height of power and she had coveted, and she knew this was due to her actions decades ago during her ceremony with Spock, and choosing Kirk as her champion.

Also, in more recent times, she and Spock had decided to put their differences aside and chose to have a child. They had been paired together as children due to their complimentary DNA. Having a child, they both decided, had always been a logical choice. So they agreed; the child would be reared by both parents, on a mutually agreed to time table. T'pring carried the child to full term until it was born and given the name of S'vath. The name S'vath was chosen in honor of a common descendent both Spock and T'pring were related to in Vulcan's distant past.

As T'pring stood and stared out at the vista beyond her windows, her servant, a Vulcan female named T'vae, entered the main living room.

"You asked me to come for you when the visitor arrived," T'vae said.

"Thank you," T'pring said, not taking her eyes off of the view. "Please bring my guest to this room."

T'vae bowed her head and left to fetch the guest who had arrived.

After closing the window, T'pring headed over to a container on the table in the center of the room, and poured two glasses of Vulcan herbal tea; one for herself, one for her guest. The tea would help calm T'pring's nerves for what was to come in the following moments. The door opened and a human female walked in.

"Thank you for coming," T'pring told the woman. "I trust your travel to Vulcan was not without incident." T'pring held out the other glass of tea.

The other woman came over and took it from her.

"No," the human woman replied. "I must say; I was quite surprised to receive your message. You said it was urgent, so I came here as fast as I could."

T'pring and the other woman sat down across from each other on the luxurious Vulcan handmade furniture that decorated the room.

"Yes, it is of urgency I speak to you of," T'pring said as she sipped her tea. "Your daughter is pregnant with my son's offspring," T'pring said with a wide grin.

"Yes I know," Michelle Grayson said back to T'pring. "The last I heard, the baby was due in about seven or so Earth standard months."

"It will be a day of joy, to be sure," T'pring said. "I need your assistance in a dire matter."

Michelle Grayson set her tea down on the table, and a look of worry came over her face. She became worried at the tone of the conversations.

"Is there a problem with the child?" Michelle Grayson asked.

"Not at all," T'pring said, "Unless, of course, we allow your daughter and my son raise it."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Michelle asked, not happy with the tone of the question.

T'pring thought for a moment, then continued.

"In all truth," T'pring, "I have no issue with you, or your daughter. You are humans, and you do not follow the edict of logic that we Vulcans, forgive me, I should say, most Vulcans adhere to."

"What does any of this have to do with Amanda's unborn child?" Michelle Grayson asked.

At that moment, a Vulcan male came into the room from an adjoining room. He was bearded and his eyes were intense, and he wore some sort of ceremonial robe. He came over and stood next to where Michelle Grayson sat. Michelle looked up at the strange Vulcan, and felt her mind opening; and then he spoke to her, his voice was soft but with affect.

"Each of us hides a secret pain," he told her. "It must be exposed and reckoned with. It must be dragged from the darkness and forced into the light. Share your pain. Share your pain with me... and gain strength from the sharing…"

Continued….Monday!

_Where is Deanna Troi? Myran's baby was taken out of her womb..where is that baby now? And just who is Mathew Kirk? And what are T'pring and Sybok up to? Oh, and what about Dukat, how does that Cardassian monster fit into all of this? And I hoped you like Amanda-Q…she's coming soon too! _


	67. Paganini's Theme

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (18****th**** Variation)**

Previously;

_William T Riker and James T Kirk were zipping through the desert terrain of planet __M-16678. They were heading for what appeared to be an important land mark on the treasure map in their possession; contained on a data-chip given to Kirk by a deceased Chalnoth warrior named Bakooth. As Riker drove the ATV through the brush and dirt, both he and Kirk became aware of another ATV vehicle shadowing them. When both vehicles powered down, with the approach of night, Riker was surprised to find that the driver of the other ATV was none other than Vash, the woman whom Jean-Luc Picard had been romantically involved with in the past. She was on M-16678 looking for the long lost Karom'thaiav medallion too…_

Continued…

The silence of the night was occasionally spiked by the distant yelping of an animal howling at the two full moons in the cloudless sky. The very fact there were animals on M-16678 was a testimony to the wonder of life. Most of M-16678's orbit around the two small sized stars in the center of its solar system kept the M-class planet in the cold reaches of space. The animals that existed on M-16678 spent most of that time in hibernation in underground tunnels and caves. But as the planet neared the two stars, the world thawed out, as did the animal species that existed on it.

Riker and Kirk, as well as Vash, and her younger sister Lara, set up a small camp between the two ATV vehicles. A pit was dug into the ground, and nearby twigs were collected a set ablaze. Riker had brought along some real steaks and had gone through the trouble of grilling them up on the fire, and with the corncobs that had been brought by Vash, a nice little meal was served beneath the starry night.

Riker and Kirk walked over to their ATV to get some drinks. Once they were out of sight of the two women, Riker took the opportunity to warn Kirk about Vash.

"Jim," Riker said, "the woman, Vash, is one of this era's greatest con artists. She hunts for artifacts for a living, and her ethics in selling them are suspect; at best. Captain Picard and I, and Q I might add, have all tangled with her in the past. Trust me when I say that we've got to keep our cards close to our chests with her around."

Kirk nodded his head.

"Her sister," Kirk said, "Lara; what do you know about her?"

"To be honest," Riker said, as he handed Kirk a three four drink pouches, "I never knew Vash had a sister until now. If she's anything like Vash, then it's twice the more reasons to keep an eye on them."

Kirk nodded, and then the two men headed back to the camp.

Upon arriving, they found that Vash and Lara had changed into their evening robes. Kirk and Riker looked at each other and gave each other knowing glances. The two women were oiling their traps! But, thankfully, both men were married and were on M-16678 to find the medallion in order to save their wives.

"Well," Vash said, as Riker brought her a plate with a large prime-rib on it, "Lara and I have been dining on foot rations and corn; you two have it much better."

Riker handed her the plate.

"Well, it's the least we can do," Riker said to Vash, as he sat down on his spot, and began to eat his own food.

Kirk handed Lara her steak, and couldn't help but notice the generous view of her diving cleavage line, as he stood above her. Even though he was happily married, it didn't mean he was no longer human; and there was amble cleavage!

Vash noticed Kirk eyeing her sister, and his futile attempt to cover it up. Kirk sat down at his spot and looked over at Vash.

"Do you like what you see?" Vash asked.

A look of forced innocence came over Kirk's face.

"Ummm," Kirk said, "what do you mean?" Kirk asked.

"The beautiful desert around us," Vash said with a coy voice. "Isn't it just wonderful?"

"Oh yes," Kirk said, grabbing the escape he had been tossed. "It is a most stunning view. Reminds me a lot of Earth's Mojave desert."

"So Vash," Riker said, cutting in as he did. "How many times have you come here looking for the Karom'thaiav medallion?"

"Oh, wow," Vash said, as she thought about Riker's question. "This has to be the second or third…"

"Fourth time," Lara corrected her older sister. "Every other year she comes to Cestus III, where I live with my two kids, and drags my butt up here to search for the medallion. Each time I return home with a callus on each of my feet from all the digging, and dirt caked all over my hair."

"But we still keep coming back," Vash said, with a playful look on her face. "And Now, as for you? I could understand it if Jean-Luc were her, but why you Wil? And who is your friend?"

"His name is Jim Kirk," Riker answered. "We were…"

Lara cut him off.

"Jim Kirk?" Lara asked, as she looked over at Kirk. "The one we've been hearing about on the news so much? Wow," Lara said, "You do look like Kirk. I remember reading about your adventures when I was in grade school."

"We all do," Vash said. "Wow, I never thought I would meet not one, but two legendary captains of the Enterprise."

"I assure you," Kirk said, "I do not wish the label of a legend. The Captain Kirk who created the bulk of that legend died on Veridian III."

"That is true," Lara said, "but I read the story. You were created by, and so was the other Kirk I should say, a transporter accident, or something like that. You are very much the man we all grew up reading about."

"Why are you here?" Vash asked. "In fact, what brings the both of you here together? Wil," Vash said to Riker, "I thought you had your own ship."

Not wanting to reveal the truth, Riker told a convenient lie.

"I had some leave time saved up, and Jean-Luc once told me about this treasure hunt, so I thought, why not?" Riker said with a wide grin. "I met Jim along the way, and he said he'd like to join, and, so, we loaded up some standard metal detectors and Tricorders, and here we are; just you're run of the mill treasure hunters."

"Well, lucky for us you did come here," Lara said, "Or we'd be stuck out here in the middle of nowhere."

Soon, with the meal time coming to an end, Riker collected up the plates and placed them back into a protective bag, and the put the bag back inside of the ATV's storage area. With the late night approaching, the two men volunteered to keep watch over night so that the two women could sleep soundly. Riker took the first watch as Kirk and the two women, snug in their sleeping backs, were soon fast to sleep.

Riker took the free time to repack the storage area of the ATV, quietly. As he did, he was unaware that Vash and Lara, though they were in their sleeping bags, were smiling at each other, and whispered in low tones.

"Do you think they suspect anything?" Lara whispers.

"About us causing the flat tires ourselves?" Vash said with a smile. "I doubt it."

"What is the next the step?" Lara asked.

"We find out where they are going, and follow them." Vash said. "I doubt Riker would be here unless he knew where he was going. So," Vash said, "let's get some sleep. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

* * *

Two hours later, with Kirk and the women sleeping soundly, Riker had finished repacking the storage area. And as he walked the outer area of the camp, and listened to the howling animals in the distance, there was a small flash and then a red rose suddenly appeared in his hand. And then, almost instantly, a bearded man in a tuxedo appeared, and he was playing a violin tenderly. Riker walked over to the man.

"Excuse me," Riker said to the man, "who are you?"

The man smiled at Riker.

"My name is Itzhak Perlman," Itzhak replied, as he continued to play. "I am playing, for you_, _Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, variation eighteen."

"Umm," Riker said, looking at the rose again, and then at the violinist. "How did you get here?"

"I brought him here," a soft female voice said from behind where Riker stood.

Riker whirled around and saw a most interesting sight; a beautiful blond woman, her hair flowing down her shoulders, wearing a stunning red dress, standing in the middle of a bed of flowers. It took a moment, but Riker recognized her instantly.

Her name was Amada; and she was a Q.

Continued…


	68. Middle Man

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Middle Man**

The moment Benjamin Sisko and his daughter Rebecca rematerialized inside their home, Kasidy hugged her daughter upon seeing her alive and well. Ben Sisko smiled at seeing his wife and daughter reunited at last, but his mind couldn't totally celebrate the moment because Kirk's wife, Myran, had nearly been killed by the fanatics that had kidnapped her, and Rebecca, and had stolen Myran's and Kirk's infant.

But Sisko had another reason to be concerned, and it was starting to show on his face. Kasidy, upon seeing the worry on his face, let Rebecca go from her hug.

"I'm going to go wash up," Rebecca said to her mom with a smile.

"You do that," Kasidy said. "Go ahead and rest up honey, and then later on your father and I will take you to dinner in the city."

"I hope Myran will be okay," Rebecca said. "Can we go visit her at the hospital?"

"Maybe tomorrow," Ben Sisko replied. "She needs her rest."

"Daddy," Rebecca said, "Tell me you will help them find her baby."

Sisko nodded.

"I will," Sisko said.

Rebecca headed out of the living room, leaving Ben and Kasidy alone.

"Now," Kasidy said, "you tell me why you look so worried. And don't tell me it's just about that missing baby. There is something else bothering you and I want to know what it is."

Sisko walked toward the front door, and then walked out onto the porch. He picked up the binoculars he had kept from the tactical team that had been using his home as a base, and then looked at the distant hill he had seen Dukat on very recently.

"What are you doing?" Kasidy asked. "Why are you looking at that hill?"

Sisko didn't answer her at first, still looking through the binoculars. He set them back down on the table and then looked at Kasidy.

"What's wrong?" Kasidy asked. "I know that look your face more than anyone."

"Dukat," Sisko said softly. "I saw him, two days ago, on that hill. Add to that the strange energy wave that Deep Space Nine tracked into the Bajoran system? I think something is going to happen."

Kasidy shook her head in disagreement.

"No, it's impossible. It could not have been Dukat." Kasidy countered with. "Maybe you saw a Cardassian who looked like him."

Sisko reached out and put his hands on Kasidy's shoulders.

"There's more to it," Sisko said. "I saw him standing on that hill with a native from Trianguli Gamma VI. "

"So?" Kasidy asked. "What does that mean?"

"Rebecca told me that her main contact, the person she interacted with the most while being held captive, was also from Trianguli Gamma VI."

"And you think it was the same individual you saw with Dukat," Kasidy concluded. "How can you be sure?"

Sisko took his hands off her shoulders, and then turned to look at the distant hill.

"I can't be absolutely sure, however," Sisko went on to say, "The odds are more likely that it was. And, I have to take into consideration that Bajor is big planet, and there is no other reason for Dukat to have been standing on that hill than to send me a signal that he is still alive and that he is here."

"But he died," Kasidy said, as she hugged Sisko's side. "How can it be him?"

"I survived the same fall," Sisko told her, "so why couldn't he?"

"But Prophets saved you," Kasidy told him.

"So why couldn't the Pah'Wraiths save him?" Sisko asked back.

Kasidy looked at the distance hill, trying to grasp what was happening.

"Do you think his being here has anything to do with the abduction of Myran's baby?" Kasidy asked.

Sisko thought about Kasidy's question for a moment.

"If he was with the person from Trianguli Gamma VI who abducted Myran and Rebecca, then yes," Sisko replied, "Dukat is somehow connected to what is going on; and I have to stop him."

"Why does it have to be you?" Kasidy asked.

An answer did not come from Sisko; at first. Kasidy looked up at his face and saw that there was a blank look inside of his eyes. Kasidy knew full well what it meant; Ben Sisko was in contact with the beings inside of the wormhole.

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

The wind was gusting as S'vath and Amanda were brought back to the Starfleet compound by their captors, a hundred or so natives, and shown how the camp had been destroyed and the rest of the science team had been killed. Then they were taken to the crystal field nearby. One of the natives, a male named Jah'loom, was obviously the leader of the natives, and had actually been educated at one of the learning centers the Federation operated. S'vath had met him on occasion, and had found Jah'loom very intelligent and thoughtful.

"Why did you kill my team?" S'vath asked Jah'loom.

"Yes, we killed them," Jah'loom replied. "We used these," Jah'loom showed S'vath a large hand held weapon, a club, which had wet blood on its ridges. "We smashed their heads until they were dead. We will do the same to you and your mate."

The wind was beginning to get stronger.

"Jah'loom," Amanda said, her hair blown in her face, and having known him as well, "why are you doing this? Starfleet will return and see what you have done and punish you."

The crystals began to glow brightly as the wind blew harder and harder.

"We do this because we follow the will of Vaal," Jah'loom replied. "He wishes us to return to our past ways, and to worship him. Before your kind came, our people were safe and tranquil. Now we are like trained animals when we attend your schools and adapt your ways."

"Those schools were voluntary," S'vath told Jah'loom.

"They teach knowledge; knowledge that Vaal does not permit," Jah'loom said.

"How do you know this to be true?" S'vath asked. "Are you in contact with Vaal now?"

"Yes, I speak to Vaal, and he speaks to me." Jah'loom said with pride.

"There is no antenna in your ears," S'vath said, "how is this communication done?"

"The crystals," Jah'loom, "the crystals that are covering more of our world each day give everyone of us the ability to be in contact with Vaal. And even more; Vaal is in contact with the overseers of the universe. They are sending their human vessel, the Meh'tahq, to bring universal peace."

"Then why kill us?" S'vath asked. "Why kill my friends here in the camp? Are these acts of a peaceful people?" S'vath could see that Jah'loom was thinking hard about his question. "Is this what the Meh'tahq would want?"

There was a clap of lighting and thunder.

"No; it is not!"

The answer had not come from Jah'loom, but from the edge of the jungle that surrounded the crystal field. And then, stepping out from thick jungle, was a man, and he was followed by Spock, Sulu and Scotty; the younger versions.

S'vath had seen the four of them inside of the stasis chambers inside of the hidden cave alcove. He hadn't recognized the fourth person though. But when he had seen Spock and the others, and realized they had been in the chambers for eons, he knew there was some sort of time paradox at play and had not awaken them. But now, they had been awakened.

Jah'loom, for his part, knelt down on his knees as did all of the other natives. The wind began to howl.

"The Meh'tahq has come," Jah'loom said, in a near trance like state of mind.

The other natives began to chant Meh'tahq quietly, as they alternated kissing the ground and looking up at the sky. The crystals that covered the field they were on were glowing.

S'vath and Amanda ran over to where Spock, Sulu and Scotty were standing.

"Father," S'vath said, "what is happening?"

"I believe we will find out very soon," Spock said.

"How long have you been in stasis inside that cave?" S'vath asked.

"For over fifty thousand years," Scotty answered before Spock could. "More or less."

"What are you talking about?" Amanda asked. "What cave?"

Before S'vath could explain, the ground began to rumble!

**Bajor; the fire caves!**

Dukat stood in the exact same spot where he and Sisko had flown off the cliff to what was supposed to have been their fate. The last act had vanquished the Pah'Wraiths. Behind Dukat stood Labootu, holding the child that had been taken from Myran's womb.

"I have returned!" Dukat yelled out into the cave. "And I am not alone!"

The energy wave that had been released from Vaal's eyes, and had traveled through space to Bajor, was there as well, swirling about the cave. Dukat spoke to the energy wave.

"They told me that if I helped them obtain the child, you would free the Pah'Wraiths from their abyss. I did what they asked," Dukat told the swirling energy, "now do as you promised!"

And then, almost instantly, the energy wave ignited the cave and soon flames upon flames appeared throughout the cave. The Pah'Wraiths had been freed from the abyss.

"YES!" Dukat screamed with joy.

Behind Dukat, Labootu held the child he had taken from Myran. And as Dukat was basking in the happiness of rebirth of the Pah'Wraiths, Labootu saw the real reason he had come to the fire caves, which was the reason the energy force from Vaal had come as well. The Pah'Wraiths were secondary to why Labootu, and the energy wave, had come to Bajor. The glowing object on the other side of the cave was why they had come. It was a crystal like object of incredible power; and it was known to some as the Tear of PiayQ'mevy.

_FLASH BACK_

_"The theory goes like this," Riker said. "When all three objects are brought together, it will go like this. The Karom'thaiav medallion will be place around the person's neck. Then, they will hold the Thamiliv Spear in one hand and the Tear of PiayQ'mevy in the other." Riker's eyes became really serious as he told the story. "Then that one person, who the myth calls Meh'tahq, will have dominion over the galaxy; more powerful than all the Q put together…"_

Sisko came out of his trance, and before he could say anything, Sisko lost the strength in his legs, and collapsed.

"Ben…!" Kasidy screamed, as seeing him fall to the ground. "…what's happening?"

Sisko struggled to speak, and when he did, his words frightened Kasidy.

"…the…end…"

Continued…


	69. Marathon Man

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Marathon Man**

Planet -16678

Riker was stunned to see the now grown up woman named Amanda. Many years ago, back when Riker served as the First Officer on the NCC-1701 D, Amanda was at first just a passenger. But it would later be revealed that she was a Q. Eventually she accepted her powers, and left to train with the Continuum. It was also during that time when she had developed an unhealthy attraction to Riker. Eventually that too ebbed; or so Riker hoped.

"Amanda," Riker said, as he looked at the bed of roses, then back at Itzhak Perlman, and then finally at Amanda, "this isn't what I expected."

Amanda giggle slightly, snapped her fingers, and then only she and Riker remained in the cold of the desert night.

"Don't worry William T Riker," Amanda said with a smile, "I just wanted to see you squirm a little."

"Well," Riker said with his own smile, "you succeeded. Now, tell me, why are you here? Is it because of the medallion? And what happened to Q after we were brought back here from Bajor?"

"Q is…" Amanda thought for a brief second, "The best way I could describe it is," then she just came right out and said it, "dead."

"Q is dead?" Riker asked. "I don't believe it."

"Let's just say that he has evolved into the next phase of his existence," Amanda said, with a coy voice. "And as for the medallion; yes that is why I have been sent. Events are happening elsewhere that require us to pick up the pace."

"The other objects have been found?" Riker asked, figuring that Amanda knew the story of the three objects.

Amanda nodded.

"Yes," she said to Riker. "And this means the next few steps are going to happen rather quickly. So we have to get going."

She snapped her fingers and then her red dress was replaced by a stereotypical treasure hunting outfit, which fit her petite body quite well.

Riker did not budge, which Amanda noticed.

"What are you doing?" Amanda asked. "You and Jim Kirk must do this."

"I'm not going anywhere," Riker said to her. "I assume that Kirk's wife is being taken care of, after what we saw. I am not so sure about his child, but at least his wife is safe for now."

"You're worried about Deanna Troi," Amanda said back to him, "your wife. Trust me, William, once this is done I will send you to her. You have my word."

Once again she snapped her fingers, and then the two suns of M-16678 rose up out of the sky and it was morning.

"Damn," Riker said with a whimsical smile, "you've got that down pretty good."

"Q, for all his faults, was a very good trainer," Amanda said, as the two made their way back towards camp. "I will miss him."

"Not me." Riker said, "He has been a pain in my backside far too long."

"William, listen to me," Amanda said, "Vash and her sister are distractions. Only the two of you, Jim and you, can find that medallion. Do not let them sway you from your course."

"Let me guess," Riker said, "time is of the essence."

"You'll find the medallion," she told him. "I have all the confidence in you." And then..She was gone.

Riker walked back into the camp and the pleasant smell of eggs and bacon. Apparently Vash had brought her own food supplies.

"Well there you are," Vash said to Riker as Kirk and Lara were already eating plates of food. "I set your food over there next to your stuff."

Riker got the plate of food and began to eat. The four of them engaged with small banter, but Riker knew he had to speed things up. He was able to guide the various conversations to quick ends and soon both groups had packed up their belongings.

"If you don't mind," Vash said to Riker, as they both prepared to get inside their respective vehicles, "can we tag along? I'd hate to lost another tire and be stuck out here alone."

Riker remembered what Amanda had said, about he and Kirk having to find the medallion, but also figured that Amanda was keeping watch of the situation.

"Sure," Riker said with a smile, "we'll take point."

"Good," Vash said with a wink, "I like when a man takes charge."

With that, both teams were in their vehicles, with their seatbelts on. Soon after that, both ATVs were zipping toward a cluster of hills.

"William," Kirk said, as Riker drove the vehicle, "you didn't wake me up to take over for you so you could get some sleep; why?"

"I had an encounter with another Q," Riker said. "Her name is Amanda, and she explained to me that we had to pick up our pace."

Riker looked at the sensor readings on the dashboard. Vash's ATV was quickly falling behind, which Riker took as Amanda's meddling. Kirk saw Riker looking at the dashboard.

"We're not going back to help them?" Kirk asked. "Maybe one of their other tires gave out."

"They'll be okay," Riker assured Kirk.

"The other Q," Kirk said, "you think she had something to do with it."

"Most likely," Riker admitted.

After nearly another hour of rough trekking through the desert, Riker finally brought the ATV to a stop at the base of a cluster of foothills. Kirk looked at the map, and nodded his head.

"I really think this is the place," Kirk said. "The strange way that those clusters of rocks up there are arranged, pretty much matches this ancient drawing."

Riker looked at the map, which was displayed on Kirk's data-pad.

"Yep," Riker agreed, "this is the spot."

The two men got out of the ATV. Riker handed Kirk a duffle bag, and put one around his own shoulders as well.

"Do you think we'll need grappling hooks to make that?" Riker asked.

"I doubt it," Kirk said. "The incline isn't that pronounced."

Before they started up the hill, Kirk thought for a moment.

"What's wrong," Riker asked, as he noticed Kirk in deed thought.

"Although my child is missing, at least Myran is safe." Kirk said. "I just hope we find this damn medallion for your wife's sake."

"Thanks," Riker said.

"But before we go up there," Kirk said, "I just have a strange thought."

"What is it?" Riker asked.

"Bakooth gave me this data-chip, the one we are using to find the treasure, just before he died." Kirk explained. "Of all the living beings in this universe that have existed since this map was drawn, doesn't it make you wonder if this was all predestined to happen?"

Suddenly there was a flash, and Amanda Q stood there, in her treasure hunting garb.

"Amanda," Riker said to her, "this is James T Kirk."

"It is a pleasure to meet you," Amanda said with a smile. "You were just telling William how odd it was that this map came into your possession."

"Yes," Kirk replied to her. "In my opinion, it's just all too neat. It's almost as if someone, who exists outside of space-time, is pulling strings and making these events take place in a certain way."

"To some degree you are right, Jim Kirk." Amanda said. "And, as you will find eventually, and very soon I might add, you're son, the one that was abducted violently from your wife, has more to do with this than you think. But please," Amanda said, as she looked up at the top of the hill, "You both need to get a move on. Those strings Jim Kirk just spoke of are getting out of adjustment."

Riker and Kirk took the hint, and took the first steps to climb up the hill. Amanda watched for nearly five minutes as the two men made their way up the hill, but at such a slow rate, she became impatient. And so, with a snap of her fingers, the two men disappeared and then reappeared at the top of the foothill. She, however, did not follow; nor could she. The top of the foothill that Riker and Kirk now stood upon was one of a few places in the universe that the Q could not go…

Continued…


	70. Convergence

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Convergence**

**Qo'noS; The Klingon home world…**

It all happened fast, and without any kind of Warning…

Chancellor Martok and the rest of the high council were in session when Martok's chief of staff, K'jat, rushed into the chamber and made a most stunning announcement.

"Chancellor," K'jat said, interrupting the session as he did, "strings of energy have invaded the upper part of our planet's atmosphere."

"YOU SIMPLE MINDED FOOL! Do not waste my time! Are we under attack?" Martok demanded.

"No, these streams of energy appear to be natural, but they are heading towards the Great Hall!" K'jat replied.

Martok threw back his ceremonial robe, and made his way towards the exit, followed by the rest of the high command. Although the high council did not always agree during their sessions, one thing they did agree on was the protection of their heritage.

The sky above Qo'noS had been in a perpetual darkness for decades. The dark clouds that had claimed dominion over Qo'noS were caused by constant volcanic action and the lasting remnants of their exploded moon, Praxis.

Martok and the other high council members rushed over to the Great Hall, which wasn't that far from the council chambers. Once they were inside, they saw a most interesting sight; tendrils of energy snapping about the Great Hall. There were four distinct ribbons of energy flickering about.

K'jat was using a Tricorder, when Martok snatched from his hands.

"Give me that!" Martok said, not trusting K'jat's ability. Martok looked at the readings.

"What are those energy patterns?" K'mol, one of the older council members asked.

"A mixture of time distortion waves and neutron particles," Martok said, calling on his years of experience.

Suddenly the four tendrils of energy merged into one, and then like a clap of lightning, they struck the reinforced display case the held a prized possession of the Klingon Empire; the Thamiliv Spear!

"No!" K'mol and several others yelled out. "We can't let it take the Thamiliv Spear!"

Martok agreed. The spear had once belonged to the HerQ, and had been a prized possession of the Klingons for eons. The origion of the spear had never been discovered, though myths existed that told of a time when it, as well as other ancient artifacts, were powerful, if ever brought together in one place.

The display case was utterly obliterated, and then the head of the spear began to glow. The spear began to levitate, and then almost as if it had a mind of its own, the spear sprang forward as if thrown by an unseen warrior. Martok knew of the significance of the spear. He knew that being that he was the Chancellor of the high command; it was responsibility to stop the theft of the Thamiliv Spear. But K'mol, who would most likely be the Chancellor after Martok's reign, also felt a need to save it as well. Both Klingons acted instantly as the spear flung forward towards the exit. They both timed it perfectly, and grabbed the spear as it streamed over their heads; and instantly they, and the spear, vanished!

**Planet M-16678**

Kirk and Riker stood atop one of the many foothills that dotted the landscape. Amanda Q, clad in her treasure outfit, stood at the base of the foothill.

"Hey!" Amanda yelled up at them, "Hurry up! We don't have all day!"

"She sure seems hesitant to come up here," Riker said.

"Probably doesn't want to scrape her legs," Kirk offered with a grin.

"Well," Kirk said, as he dug into his duffle bag and pulled out a compact shovel. He flipped a switch and the shuffle extended in length to the size of a digging shovel, "I guess we dig."

"But where do we start?" Riker asked, as he looked out across the top of the hill. "It could be hidden anywhere up here."

Suddenly, fifteen feet or so ahead of them, an object appeared. It was cylinder shape, with letters labeled on one of the sides. It was also red, with a tip at the end it. Riker and Kirk jogged over to it. The strange cylinder was roughly ten feet in height.

Riker read the letters out loud; one at a time. "S.. H.. A.. R.. P.. I.. E…"

"Sharpie," Kirk said, as he put the letters together in a word. "What the hell is a sharpie?"

Suddenly the large red object, a large Sharpie, drew a giant red X on the ground.

"It's her work," Riker said, "Amanda's. This must be the international, hell, galactic wide symbol for a treasure. She's telling us where the medallion is." Riker said as he looked down at the large X on the ground.

Without hesitating, James T Kirk plunged his shovel into the ground, with Riker joining him a moment later. The two men dug as fast as they could. But then, without any warning, the ground beneath them caved in and they fell…

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

**Night time…and the wind and the rain were blowing…**

The natives were chanting as Spock, S'vath, Amanda, Sulu, Scotty and Mathew Kirk all struggled just to stand. Spock was able to look into the eyes of a couple of natives and saw that the surface of their eyes were radiating with a strange glow.

"What is it father; what is happening?" S'vath asked, as the wind began to blow more violently.

"Is history doomed to be repeated?" Mathew asked Spock. "Will the child be sent back into the past to complete the circle?"

"No!" Scotty replied. "I didn't spend the last five years of my life back there for nothing. We have to find a way to stop what happens next!" Scotty looked to Spock. "Before we entered stasis, you said you had an idea; now's the time Spock."

Everyone looked to Spock. Sulu and Scotty had existed in the past, approximately fifty-thousand years in the past to be more exact, with Spock. It was there, in the past, when they became involved with Mathew Kirk, who had come back into the past as well.

"Come with me!" Spock told the others.

And with that, Spock, followed by Sulu, Scotty, S'vath, Amanda and Mathew Kirk, made their way through the thick jungle. The wind and rain blew down on them hard. S'vath took time to shelter his pregnant wife, telling the others to go on ahead of them.

"Go with them!" Amanda yelled through the rain and the wind.

"No," S'vath said with a smile, "Our child is more important. I will tend to you my wife."

Amanda smiled and hugged her husband.

Up ahead, Spock and the others arrived at the Serpent's head. The eyes of the façade like creation were a bright red color. The ground was shaking.

"What do we do know!" Mathew yelled thought the wind and rain.

"We can only wait for the rest of the pieces to arrive," Spock replied. "We took great care all those millennia ago to make sure they were well hidden until the paradox could pay its self out!"

Suddenly there was a bright flash that lit up the entire area, and then falling out of the bright source of the bright light were two figures; Klingons. One of them was now holding the spear, and Spock recognized him instantly.

"Chancellor Martok!" Spock said.

"I do not know you; Vulcan!" Martok said back to Spock.

"Sir, it is I," Spock came back with, "Spock."

Martok had only known Spock in recent times, when he was over a hundred and sixty years old. But as Martok stared closer, he indeed recognized Spock.

"In the name of Stovokor; what is happening!" Martok demanded…

**Continued….**


	71. Beauty and the Beast

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Beauty and the Beast**

Planet M-16678

As the ground gave out beneath them, Jim Kirk and Captain Riker fell downward. Luckily, for them, their landing in the hidden cave below was cushioned by the mound of dirt and rocks they had been standing on before. Both men landed on the mound of dirt and rock and rolled further down until they came to a landing. Each man was sprawled out and unmoving as the dust and debris settled around them.

Kirk was the first to move. He sat up on his rump, and surveyed their surroundings, and then he looked over to Riker, who was flat on his back, staring up at the whole in the ceiling of the cave they had just fallen through.

"Wow," Riker said. "I really thought we had bitten there," he scratched his very dusty beard as he spoke.

"Nah," Jim Kirk said, with a slight gash on his forehead, "it was fun."

Kirk forced himself off hard ground of the cave, and then reached his hand down to Riker and helped the Captain of the USS Titan up.

"Thanks," Riker said, "I know that you did this kind of stuff on a routine basis in your time," Riker said with a slight chuckle, "but for me? Not so much."

"Look over there," Kirk said, motioning past Riker over to another area of the cave.

It was a strange sight they both saw. There was a mound of rocks that seven skeletons were arrayed upon, each one in a position that seemed to suggest they were struggling against each other to reach the top of the mound of rocks. Atop the mound of rocks was an amulet, a medallion of what appeared to be a glowing gold substance, with strange carvings in the center. It was no doubt the Karom'thaiav medallion.

Kirk and Riker made their way over to the medallion, which was fastened to a large necklace adorned with what appeared to be gems and diamonds. Kirk whistled at it, caught up in the majestic sense that the medallion put off.

"Amazing," Kirk said to Riker. "If the tale Picard told you is true, then this medallion has been here for thousands upon thousands of years."

"I wonder who these poor souls were," Riker asked, as he looked down at the skeletons.

Kirk looked at them too.

"Those two there," Kirk said, pointing at two of the skeletons, "they look like Klingons."

"You're right," Riker said. "And this one here," Riker said, as he stood over another one, "it appears to be a Chalnoth. I'm willing to wager that Bakooth's map, the one he gave you, originated from this fellow."

Kirk looked around the cave, then back at Riker.

"What worries me," Kirk said, "is that they all died trying to obtain it. What's to say the same thing," Kirk motioned to the skeletons, "won't happen to us if we try to take it off that mound?"

Suddenly, a thud could be heard from behind them. An object had been dropped through the caved in ceiling, no doubt by Amanda Q. Riker went over to it. It was an old, for lack of a better world, chest. It was made of a strange medal that Riker could not make out. He brought it over to Kirk.

"I guess we're supposed to put the medallion into this box," Riker said.

"Well," Kirk said, as he took the box from Riker, "I will get the medallion."

The top of the mound was nearly thirty feet high. Kirk and Riker gently removed several of the skeletons as best they could. Then, and with a clear path cleared, Kirk put the ancient chest in his duffle bag and began to climb. When he was half way up, the mound began to rumble.

"Do you feel that?" Kirk asked, as he looked down at Riker.

"Yes," Riker said, with a worried tone in his voice. "I'd give anything to have a phaser."

Suddenly a phaser appeared in Riker's hand. And at that same instant, a giant multi-legged insect looking monster, which was the size of Riker's ATV, if not bigger, smashed out from one of the cave wall, making a horrific screeching noise as it did.

"Umm," Kirk said, as he saw the monster, "didn't this happen in one of those old movie reels?"

"Don't worry!" Riker called back, "I'll take care of it."

Riker fired the phaser, and a read streak of energy slammed into the creature, making it alter its course away from the mound, which Kirk continued to climb, back towards Riker. Riker ran to the far end of the cave, ducking behind a row of rocks.

The monster scurried in Riker's direction. Riker fired the phaser again, but this time, an energy barrier appeared around the area Riker targeted; not unlike the energy shields that appeared around Borg who had adapted to Phaser frequencies. In other words; Riker was in trouble. He only had two frequencies left!

The monster shot a gooey substance out at the cave ceiling, causing a spray of rocks to fall down toward Riker. The monster then rushed toward the rocks Riker was behind. Riker was able to duck and roll, and then came back up on his feet, firing his phaser. The beam stunned the monster, causing it to recoil back in pain. Riker was down to one more shot!

Meanwhile, Kirk used the distraction and climbed swiftly up the mound. He could hear Riker cussing at the monster, trying to stay ahead of its giant pinchers. Kirk looked over to Riker, and smiled. Somehow Kirk knew Riker would prevail, and enjoyed the scene as if it were straight out of an old time move. Kirk finally made it to the top of the mound and gently un-wrapped the Karom'thaiav medallion's chain from around the pinnacle of the multilayered rock mound.

Riker prepared to fire his final shot, after throwing large boulders at the beast. The beast was screeching, and opened its grotesque mouth, as if readying itself to eat Riker. Riker's final stream of energy struck the beast in what appeared to be its eyes, causing it to again recoil in pain. Riker had not more shots left, so he grabbed up some more boulders and hurled them at the monster. The monster twirled around, and then once again, faced Riker.

During the struggle, Riker's shirt and pants had become torn at several places. Red blood scrape marks could be seen on his sweat covered skin, and it was clear that, without anymore phaser blasts; his time was almost up.

Kirk had crawled down the mound enough that he was able to leap down the rest of the way. With medallion securely in his duffle bag, Kirk ran over to try and assist Riker, before it was too late.

"Don't worry about me!" Riker yelled out, as the monster had him cornered toward the rear of the cave. "Just get out of here and give that thing to Amanda, and make sure she saves my wife."

Kirk looked up at the ceiling cave in, as a rope suddenly appeared. It was his ticket out of the cave, to safety, and back to his wife. But James T Kirk could never leave a comrade behind; it was against his very nature.

"GO!" Riker yelled again.

"What we need," Kirk said softly, "is a Phaser-rifle."

Suddenly, and without warning, a Phaser-rifle appeared in his hands. Kirk didn't miss a beat and aimed the rifle at the monster and fired. The rifle, with a more powerful beam than the hand fire, blasted the monster, exploding it into a spray of blood and whatever else it had once been. Riker smiled at Kirk and came over to him.

"Thanks," Riker said. "But you should have left me. You could have been killed."

"Oh," Kirk said with a smile, "Spock would probably have said the same thing. That leaving you behind so I could save the universe would have been the logical thing to do."

"He would have been right," Riker said, as he reached for the rope and started to climb it.

Kirk followed Riker and soon the two men made it up and out of the cave now below them. They stood atop the hill again, and walked over to the ledge. Amanda-Q, still clad in her form fitting treasure hunter's outfit, waved up at them. She snapped her fingers and then the two disappeared and reappeared down at the bottom of the hill next to her. Kirk took the chest out, and was about to open it.

"No," Amanda Q said, "please don't open it."

"Why not?" Riker asked.

Amanda- Q stared at the chest with what appeared to be apprehension in her eyes.

"William, I cannot say." Amanda-Q said. "Just know that if you were to open it, I could possibly die."

"Well," Kirk said, as he stopped opening the chest, "I guess we won't be doing that."

Riker did not hesitate. The concern for his wife was very real.

"So," Riker said to Amanda Q, "what do we do now? Q promised me he would help me save Deanna if we did what he asked and got the medallion. Are you going to keep his word for him?"

"If not," Kirk said, "I can always open this box."

The meaning was clear. Kirk and Riker were done playing games; it was time for results.

"Oh William," Amanda-Q said, in a pouting way, "I will send you to where your wife is. She is being held on Rigel-7 by two Orion Syndicate thugs. It won't be easy, but you should be able to overcome them and save her."

"What about Bak'nor?" Riker asked. "His wife and child were also being exploited by the syndicate."

Amanda-Q shook her head.

"William, I am sorry to say that I cannot help the two of them," Amanda-Q said, with remorse. "The young offspring was killed in a mining accident, and the female was killed during," her voice trailed off, "a savage assault. Do not concern yourselves, Bak'nor will not care, and he will pursue the life he has always chosen. I will, however, send him back to his home world."

"Then," Kirk said, "what about me and the medallion?"

Amanda-Q smiled.

"If William, my love, had attempted to retrieve the medallion from its resting place," Amanda-Q said to Kirk, "he would have died instantly, just as those who had died before. Just as you two did others had defeated the Char'ata Spider demon. However, the moment they attempted to scale the resting place of the medallion, they died instantly."

"But I didn't die, why?" Kirk asked. "Does it have to do with what Gary-7 said? Did the accident that created me a hundred years ago alter me? And did it create an element that beings such those who employ him, and beings like the Q, cannot predict?"

"You are very wise, Jim Kirk." Amanda-Q said with a smile.

"Amanda," Riker said, "Since we can assume that the medallion has dangerous elements that can harm you and others of the Continuum; then it is clear that you couldn't go into the cave to get it. If that is the case, then how do you know about the others down there, and the Spider Demon?"

"Heck," Kirk added, "how did the spider creature get down there anyway? And how long has it been there?"

Amanda-Q was about to answer them when…

Just then there was a bright flash in the sky above them, and a tendril of energy streaked down.

"Some of those questions," Amanda-Q said with a whimsical smile, "will just have to go on answered; for now."

"What is that tendril of energy?" Riker asked.

"Don't worry William," Amanda-Q said to him, "it isn't here for you."

Amanda-Q snapped her fingers and Riker vanished in flash of light.

"Let me guess again," Kirk said with a weary smile, "it's here for me."

"I am afraid so," Amanda-Q said. "Good luck James T Kirk; and I really mean that. The Continuum has no way to know what the future holds for you. However," Amanda-Q said as she began to ascend into the sky, "I am sure it will be," she searched for the right term, "fun."

And with that, the tendril of energy streaked down and encompassed Kirk, and then; he was gone!


	72. Stage Hands

**James T Kirk**

**Stage hands….**

**Somewhere…**

Benjamin Sisko was falling...inside of his mind. When he finally landed on his feet, he knew exactly where he was. It was an all white universe, with the distant thumping sound of a heartbeat.

Suddenly, seemingly walking out of the white vale that surrounded him was his wife Kasidy. But Sisko knew, after so many encounters with the wormhole beings, that it wasn't really his wife; it was one of _them_.

"The Sisko cannot see his task." Kasidy said.

Then another person came out of the whiteness, and this time it was Q, though, still, one of _them_.

"No," Q said, as he put his hand on Sisko's bald head, "his mind just isn't up to it."

"My task," Sisko said to Q, "my task was completed, years ago. I was finally allowed to go home."

"You must tell them," Kasidy said, "tell them that everything will end."

"Everything will end? Everything is a linear word," Sisko said with a faint smile, "I thought we avoided such words here."

Suddenly another figure came out of the oblivion. It was Ambassador Spock.

"Jim Kirk is not living a linear existence," Spock said. "His existence, and the existences he creates, threatens the Celestial Temple and beyond."

"Jim Kirk?" Sisko asked Spock-Kasidy and Q. "What does he have to do with any of this?"

"His existence is not linear," Spock repeated. "The existence he has created, the one known as Meh'tahq, cannot be allowed to continue."

"I know of the Meh'tahq," Sisko said. "The people who worship Kirk as a God believe that his child will become this powerful force known as the Meh'tahq. Are you trying to tell me this is true?"

"He does not understand," Q said to Spock. "He cannot comprehend."

"Perhaps we made an error in choosing him." Kasidy said to Q and Spock.

"Choosing me for what," Sisko demanded. "What exactly are you expecting me to do; kill Kirk's child?"

"You must convince them to intervene; do not let the Meh'tahq hold the Tear of PiayQ'mev."

"What are you talking about?"…

And then Sisko was gone…

**Bajor**

**The fire caves…**

Inside the fire cave, the tendril of energy, that had been created by Vaal, dodged the dancing flames of the Pah-wraiths and created a bridge of energy. Labootu held Kirk's child, three months old, inside of a special organic sac which had been created by a native-American woman. The sac kept the child alive, as well as medication that had been injected inside of the fetus before the child was taken from Myran's womb.

"And now, Meh'tahq," Labootu said to the child, "we walk across the bridge that will lead to a new era of absolute paradise."

Dukat, his eye's glowing red, watched as Labootu began to walk across the energy bridge created by the energy pulse from Vaal. Dukat didn't care what Labootu was doing, because Dukat and the Pah-wraiths did not consider Labootu and the child any importance.

"You are alive again!" Dukat screamed out to the dancing flames. "And this time, nothing will stop us from paving over this universe with a new one. It shall be done! I shall be your herald!"

Meanwhile, on the other side of the cave, Labootu made it to the other side of the energy bridge. Labootu reached out and took the glowing and roughly round object from where it was nestled between to large rocks. And then, suddenly, the energy pulse from Vaal encompassed the child and then it and the child, and the orb of energy, streamed toward the exit, leaving behind a strange red energy field that began to expand. Labootu fell to his death into the depths of the cave, his falling body set ablaze by the dancing Pah-Wraiths. And almost instantly, the red energy field exploded, destroying the fire caves utterly.

**Rigel-7**

William Riker reappeared on Rigel-7. He knew it was Rigel-7 because he recognized the city lights he had seen several times in the past. Amanda-Q appeared as well.

"Why have you brought me here?" Riker asked.

"Deanna is in that building," Amanda-Q replied. "That is where she is being held until Bak'nor brings them the Karom'thaiav Medallion."

"Which we don't have," Riker said. "Look Amanda; I'm no idiot," Riker said, "that building you pointed at is well known as an Orion Syndicate strong hold. If I even step a foot in there, I'm dead. You're going to have to do better than this Amanda, if we're going to save my wife."

"Listen to me William," Amanda-Q said after a moment, "Q started this and now I have to end this. I have been authorized to see to the safety of your wife and your unborn child, with all the power at my disposal, however, there will have to be a price. I hate to put it that way, but that is how this must play out."

"What do you mean?" Riker shot back with. "This entire medallion search and ancient prophecy mumbo jumbo has nothing to do with me, accept for the fact my wife has been drawn into it."

"I know, which is why it is very difficult for me to insist that you take up our bargain," Amanda-Q said. "To be honest, its times like these when I wish making puppies appear out thin air was the limit of my powers."

"Alright," Riker said, softly, "what is this bargain?"

"In the near future," Amanda-Q explained, "after all this we are doing now has played out, I am going to come to you and ask for you to do something and you are going to say yes."

"Anything; what does that mean?" Riker came back with. "And I will be the judge as to if I do it or not."

"The Q will accept that answer; for now," Amanda-Q said. "Now," she continued to say, "Let's go save Deanna…"

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

Suddenly there was a bright flash that lit up the entire area, and then falling out of the bright source of the bright light were two figures; Klingons. One of them was now holding the spear, and Spock recognized him instantly.

"Chancellor Martok!" Spock said.

"I do not know you; Vulcan!" Martok said back to Spock.

"Sir, it is I," Spock came back with, "Spock."

Martok had only known Spock in recent times, when he was over a hundred and sixty years old. But as Martok stared closer, he indeed recognized Spock.

"In the name of Stovokor; what is happening!" Martok demanded.

Before Spock could offer an answer, there was another brilliant flash, and then Jim Kirk appeared.

"Jim," Spock said, "you found it!"

"Kirk," Martok cut in, "what are you doing here?"

Scotty and Sulu made their way over to Kirk, Spock and Martok. Sulu looked over at Spock.

"Your plan worked," Sulu said.

Kirk noticed the now much younger appearances and shook his head in befuddlement.

"Would someone mind tell me what the hell is going on?" Kirk asked his three friends.

"I am just as interested as know as well," Martok. "Council member K'mol and I tried to stop the theft of the Thamiliv Spear from the Hall of Champions," Martok said, "and then we were here."

"The events are happening in logical order," Spock told Kirk and Martok. "And as for the youthful appearances of the three of us," Spock said, motioning to Sulu and Spock, "our youthful appearance was accomplished by the strange crystals on this world. We were altered so that we could carry out our task, which we did, over fifty-thousand years ago."

"Spock," Kirk said, with doubt in his voice, "what are you talking about?"

"It's true Jim," Scotty said. "Earlier tonight, on this world, we woke up and we, the three of us, were young again, as you see us now. We made our way Vaal and then…"

"Excuse me," Spock said, cutting Scotty off, "we must concentrate on the present. Jim, you need to meet this man," Spock said, motioning Mathew to come over to them. "This man is Mathew; Mathew Kirk. You might also know him as the Meh'tahq."

An expression came across Kirk's face; and expression of total shock!

And then, at that exact instant, Benjamin Sisko appeared. And before anyone could say anything, a clap of thunder appeared overhead and a streak of energy came out of the sky and slowed down to a stop next to Benjamin Sisko. The energy dissipated and the organic sac that held Kirk's infant appeared in Sisko's arm, and the orb of energy, the Tear of PiayQ'mevy, was held in his free hand.

Continued…


	73. A Voyage Home

**James T Kirk**

**A Voyage Home**

**Trianguli Gamma VI**

Thunder claps populated every corner of the sky, as Benjamin Sisko held Kirk's child, which was contained in a special organic sac. In Sisko's free hand was the Tear of PiayQ'mevy.

"This is quite an interesting collection of people," Sisko said, as he saw the others who were all there, with the imposing Serpent head in the background.

"Ben," Kirk said, "what is inside of that sac you are holding in your arms?"

Sisko looked down at the baby, then back up at Kirk.

"Inside here, there is a miracle," Sisko said with a wide smile, "and it's your son. He was forcibly taken from your wife, as I'm sure you remember, and thanks to the work of Prophets, your child has been saved."

"Saved from what?" S'vath asked Spock. "And if that's Jim's child…" S'vath began to say, as he looked over at the Mathew…

"Then who am I?" Mathew Kirk, who was also Kirk's son, asked.

Everyone that was gathered realized, even Martok and K'mol that they were dealing with a time paradox. And who better to resolve such an event than Mr. Spock. They looked to Spock for an answer.

"Spock," Kirk said for the others, "it's obvious that everything has been leading to this. William Riker and I were sent by a couple of Qs on a treasure hunt to find this; the Karom'thaiav medallion." Kirk held out the chest that contained the medallion and opened it. "We did. I am not sure what the Q female did with Riker, but she sent me here with the medallion."

"That is what happened to us as well," Martok told Kirk. "K'mol and I were brought here by unseen cowards!" Martok barked.

"And now I," Sisko added, "appear here with Kirk's child and this orb of energy."

Spock, who was now much younger, as were Sulu and Scotty, told them all a strange tale. How he, Sulu and Scotty had their physical ages altered to a younger state. The exact ages they had become were estimated by Spock to be equal to their ages when the Enterprise's first visited Trianguli Gamma VI a century earlier. Spock deduced their ages had been altered by the crystals, which had begun to grow not long after the Enterprise had left all those decades before.

"Why weren't our ages changed?" Amanda asked, as she held S'vaths hand tightly. "Did it affect my baby?"

"No," Spock told her, in a comforting tone. "It only affected Mr. Scott, Mr. Sulu and I. When the Enterprise was here that first time we were scanned by Vaal, the entire ship was, including the captain. As the events here in the present played out, an interesting paradox was created."

"A paradox was created; by who?" Kirk asked.

"You Jim," Spock said. "Your arrival here, in this time, has set in motion events that did not happen before."

"Meaning me," Mathew said.

"Spock," Sisko began to say, "Are these two, the child and this young man here, the same person?"

"Not exactly the same person," Spock said. "However, one could construe such a comparison."

"Father," S'vath said to Spock. "You do understand why I could not tell you what I found in the caves. I knew we were playing out the paradox and I knew I could not interfere."

"A most logical decision, my son," Spock replied. "The three of us," Spock said, motioning to Sulu and Scotty, "were sent back into the past by Vaal to play our parts in what happened back there. For five years we were given the task of separating the three objects, that when brought together, would unleash a great power."

"And yet," Martok suddenly barked, "here they are; together! Through the ages, stories have been passed down by my people about a time when powerful God like creatures roamed the universe."

"They are true," Scotty said, in a somber tone. "We saw things back there that I didn't believe possible."

"I agree," Sulu said. "It has changed my concept of what the universe is."

"So," Sisko said, "the three objects are here; together. If what I have heard is true, then Kirk's son is to become the savior of the universe; the Meh'tahq."

Before Spock could answer…

"We cannot allow that!" K'mol suddenly yelled out, as he snatched the spear from Martok's clutches. "My people will not bow to any God! We vanquished ours, and we will NOT be under the boot of them again!"

"K'mol you fool; give the spear back to me!" Martok demanded.

Kirk, without warning, dropped the chest that contained the medallion, and then grabbed the phaser from Sulu's belt and aimed it at K'mol. Sulu was about to try and stop Kirk, when Spock put his arm on Sulu's and stopped him. As K'mol backed up, his eyes were overcome by determination. Spock picked up the chest that contained the medallion, opened it, and then gave it to Mathew.

"What do you plan to do with that?" Kirk asked K'mol.

"I plan," K'mol said, "to kill a God!"

"I will not let you harm my son, either of them," Kirk said.

"Your offspring will try to rule the universe; I will NOT allow that human!" K'mol shot back.

"Are you sure this the way it is suppose to be?" Mathew asked Spock.

Spock thought for a moment.

"I cannot be sure.."

And then, with lightning like reflexes, K'mol hurled the spear, which streaked out of his hands with an unnatural speed. As that was happening, Mathew Kirk took the medallion from Spock, and the orb from Sisko's hand, and just as K'mol hurled the spear at the baby in Sisko's arms, Mathew shoved Sisko out of the way. The spear dove into Mathew's chest, and as it did, his body began to glow and ground all around began to quake. The eyes on the Serpent's head shot beams of energy, and Mathew began to grow in size. The others scurried away as Mathew grew larger and larger to where he nearly stood fifty feet tall, and was still glowing with energy.

"In trying to destroy it," Martok yelled at K'mol, as the wind and lightning claps grew stronger and louder, "you've created the very God that can destroy us instead!"

And then, all over Trianguli Gamma VI, the energy crystals all pulsed with strange colors; and then there was silence. Mathew Kirk, or the large energy being he had become, was gone. Kirk, with anguish in his eyes, grabbed Spock by the collar.

"What happened?" Kirk demanded of his friend. "I saw you give the medallion to him! Why did you let that happen to him?"

Sisko rushed over to Kirk.

"Jim," Sisko said, "your son is still here."

Sisko handed Kirk the organic sac, and Kirk looked in on the child that was only, at best, three months old; kept alive by the exotic medicines the sac was comprised of.

"Jim," Spock said to Kirk, "Mathew Kirk, the one we encountered in the past, was from an alternate universe created by events we can only speculate about. Just as altered the future when he saved Edith Keeler's life; so were the events in the past altered when your son, somehow, made it back into that time."

"Then it could happen again," Kirk said, "when this son of mine grows up."

"We cannot allow that to happen!" Martok urged Kirk. "For the sake of us all; you must end the child's life now! If you do not, then at some time in the future, he will end up in the past and…"

"Chancellor," Spock cut in. "Mathew Kirk did not become a powerful entity; he was just a man, as you saw with your own eyes."

"What about our stories of that time?" K'mol asked. "The Meh'tahq's legend of destruction was not only that of this world we are on, but many other worlds as well tell the same story."

"I will not pretend to know every aspect of what has just happened," Spock said. "I do believe, however, that the Meh'tahq was just destroyed; by you." Spock said to K'mol. "And Jim," Spock said to Kirk, "Mathew wanted that outcome."

"Then if he was destroyed," Amanda said, "what about the myths that exist on all the worlds K'mol just hinted at."

"Lassie," Scotty said, "Myths are not exact representations of the past," Scotty said. "What we saw back there makes me believe in them more than ever, but there is no room for them now."

At that moment, the natives of Trianguli Gamma VI came out of the jungle, with obvious remorse in their eyes at what they had done; driven to do so by events beyond their control to create a past with one less God to worry about.

Deep Space Nine

Two days later…

The conference room on DS9, next to Admiral Janeway's office, was crowded with visitors, very special visitors. Jim Kirk, Ben Sisko, Ambassador Spock, who had reverted to his older age, Sulu and Scotty (who hadn't) as well as S'vath and his wife Amanda, were all there, as was Admiral Jean-Luc Picard. Janeway entered and motioned them all to take their seats.

"First off, let me start off by saying that Chancellor Martok and council member K'mol have returned to the Klingon home world without incident." Janeway said.

"And I should also add," Picard said, "that Captain Riker was able to rescue his wife, Deanna Troi. How he was able to do this without any assistance; is not known to me. However, with a Q involved, anything is possible."

"How is your wife?" Janeway asked Kirk.

"Well, thanks to modern medicine, and the great care of Dr. Crusher," Kirk began to say, "my child has been placed back inside Myran's womb. Both are getting much needed rest on Bajor."

"Amazing," Sulu said. "The advances of modern technology are without end."

"And Kasidy, as well as my daughter, are taking great care of her, while Jim is here on Deep Space Nine." Ben Sisko added.

"Ambassador Spock," Janeway went on to say, "have you ascertained as to why you have reverted to your advanced age, but they haven't," Janeway asked, referring to Sulu and Scotty.

"I can tell yuh why," Scotty said with a smile. "It's that Vulcan blood of his I tell yuh."

"What about that Spock?" Kirk asked.

"It is possible, though I highly doubt it, Captain." Spock said.

"Excuse me Admiral," Amanda said, "but what happens to S'vath and I now? The Starfleet camp on Trianguli Gamma VI has been shut down, per the request of the native people there. Has Starfleet given us new assignments?"

"Actually, that is why I asked you all to come here," Janeway said. And then she nodded at Picard.

"With much assistance from Ambassador Spock," Picard began to say, "We have both been able to pull a few strings here and there. We wanted to keep this a secret, as much as we could, and so if you decline," Picard said to Kirk particularly, "we will understand why."

"Decline what?" Kirk asked.

Picard nodded at Janeway, and then the main viewing screen on the wall of the conference room came to life. It showed the outside of DS9, and then a vessel slowly came into a view; a Constitution class starship; post refit.

"What…the…" Kirk said softly.

"Jim," Spock said. "Commanding a Starship has always been your first best destiny."

"You're giving me a Starship?" Kirk asked.

"I wouldn't call it giving," Janeway said, with a caution smile. "And you will have to follow the protocols of command."

"But I don't have a crew," Kirk said, with wonder in his eyes, as he looked up at the ship on the screen.

"Cap'n Kirk," Scotty said with disdain in his voice, "yuh have the three of us; Sulu, me, and Spock."

"Actually, Mr. Scott," Spock said, cutting in, "my advance age precludes me from that path. However, I know of a science officer and a medical officer who seem to be without current Starfleet assignments."

They all looked over at S'vath and Amanda.

"I have already processed the paper work," Picard said. "However, the choice is yours." Picard said to S'vath and Amanda.

S'vath and Amanda stunned everyone and they kissed each other, passionately; Spock lifted his eyebrow.

Several moments later…aboard the Enterprise…

The doors to the bridge opened and then they entered; Kirk, Scotty, Sulu, S'vath and Amanda, all wearing modern Starfleet uniforms of the time. They also found an old friend manning the navigation station; Nog.

"Nog?" Kirk said with a smile, as he sat in the command chair. "They asked you join the crew?"

"No way," Nog said with a wide smile, "I demanded it."

Kirk nodded his head in appreciation.

Sulu then took his place at helm, and as he did, Kirk pivoted in the command chair and saw Scotty at the engineering station, S'vath at the science station, and sitting next to S'vath was his wife, and chief surgeon of the Enterprise, Amanda Grayson.

The Enterprise, NCC-1701, was soon free of the docking ring of DS9, and headed into space. The bridge crew looked at Kirk, all waiting to give them the first order.

"Alright, Scotty," Kirk finally said, "let's see what she's got!"

The arms of space opened up, and the USS ENTERPRISE warped into the undiscovered country!

Next season…

Jim Kirk and his wife Myran must come to an important decision.

S'vath has an interesting visitor; his mother…T'pring!

Earth celebrates the return of one of its greatest heroes, Captain James T Kirk. But someone from Kirk's past has a surprise announcement that will change everything!


	74. Countdown

So, the next phase of Jim Kirk TNG will have him back in command of the Starship Enterprise…Below is a list of the command crew of the new ship, with of course over 400 other crew members to join the fun. The next segment of the story will pick up events nearly a full year after the last issue.

USS Enterprise

NCC-1701

Command Crew (* =s PIPS)

Captain James T Kirk- Commanding officer ****

Commander Nog- First officer *** Navigation

Commander Montgomery Scott *** Chief Engineer

Commander Hikaru Sulu *** Helmsman

Lt. Commander S'vath ** Science officer

Lt. Commander Amanda Grayson **

(author's note; Amanda Grayson is indeed the granddaughter of Nurse Chapel. It was also discovered, in one of the Star Trek novels I read (cannot recall which one) that Nurse Christine Chapel (deceased) and Amanda (Sarek's deceased wife) were actually distant cousins (fifth-once removed or something like that). In fact, S'vath's wife's name was is indeed Amanda Grayson, the same name as S'vath's grandmother and deceased wife of Spock. Hey..who would have thought that Spock's family would resemble your typical "Jerry Springer" family!

I went with Nog as the commander because I don't think Scotty would want to be a first officer, and I think Sulu is content at his older age to just sit back and let someone else have the pressure.

Scotty and Sulu are still young, thanks to Vaal. But you never know how long that is going to last…

There will be no letter designation for the NCC-1701, since, well, this is Captain Kirk we're talking about!

Yes…this story will be shifting to a ship based story with all the fun that comes with that. And there's nothing like an over-the-top story with a message about racism so obvious it will be like I'm hitting you over the head with it. BUT I love those!

Oh..and Khan's still alive!

Stay tuned…


	75. Pieces of April

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Pieces of April**

**Bajor…**

Nearly a year had passed since Benjamin Sisko's daughter had been rescued from one of the thousands of caves that winded through the multitude of mountain ranges of Bajor. Life had gone on, and the memories from a year ago were already taking their place in the past. But every so often there would be a last gasp event, which Ben Sisko worked very hard to keep from his daughter. One such last gasp had brought Ben Sisko back to one of the cluster of mountains on Bajor's southern continent. He was joined there by DS9's current head of security, a Betazoid male named Jaden Weer. The two, as well as several Bajoran security officers, made their way through a cluster of hills near the vast mountain range. Sisko had just beamed in moments earlier.

"It's good to see you Constable," Sisko said to Jaden Weer, "It's been nearly nine months or so."

"Kira sends her regards," Jaden replied, "and is saddened you have not visited in that time."

"Well, so be honest," Sisko said softly, "I have wanted to visit; however, my wife has done a pretty good job of finding me other things to do."

Jaden Weer understood the tone of Sisko's voice. It denoted a tone of futility, common among married men when dealing with strong willed wives, such as Kasidy Sisko.

Further up the path, Sisko saw two more Bajoran security officers waving their hands. Sisko and Jaden made their way up the slight incline to where the officers were. And then Sisko saw why he had been brought there. The remains of a large creature, a primate of some kind, were clustered around a group of rocks. Sisko knelt down and surveyed the remains.

"I am not an expert, but I believe these are indeed the remains of a Mugatu," Sisko said to the others.

"And they were going put a child inside of that thing?" Jaden asked. "What happened; why didn't they?"

Sisko stood back up.

"According to my daughter," Sisko said, "the Brotherhood of Kirk were constantly moving from cave to cave, trying to stay ahead of us. She never actually saw the Mugatu, but she had heard them talking about it. During one of the moves, the Mugatu became restless and fell off a cliff, forcing the child to be contained inside of a natural holistic pouch of some sort."

"So, I guess this should put to rest that entire incident," Jaden said. "Finding this creature's remains was one of the last mysteries."

"One of them, to be sure," Sisko said. "Has anything been found at the fire caves that I last encountered Dukat at?"

Jaden shook his head.

"According to what the Bajorans are telling me, the answer is no. The only reason I left DS9 to come here was because Admiral Janeway wanted a personal report." Jaden said. "I will tell her what we found here, and let her know, if not for the strong will of another woman, you would have shared tea with the Admiral on a more regular basis."

Sisko smiled.

"You tell her that Constable," Sisko said with a slight chuckle. "But tell her I do intend to visit soon. And remind her that she is welcome to visit my home in Kendra at anytime. In fact, tell her that I have one of the most extensive Bajoran tea menus on the planet."

Jaden smiled.

"I will sir, I will indeed."

And with that Jaden tapped his intercom badge and was instantly beamed away.

Instead of beaming out, Sisko made his way back down the incline as the team of Bajorans began to gather up the bones of the dead beast. Sisko thought back on the events of a year ago and shook his head. The return of James T Kirk had been eventful, to say the least. Had the legend from the past not arrived when he did, Sisko's daughter, Rebecca, would have been killed by a deranged Klingon named K'alaf.

Then, with Kirk's help, came the exposure of a Project Diamond. It was an attempt by Starfleet Betazoids, with outside help, to take over the military wing of the Federation and exert its will over the entire galaxy.

And just after Kirk exposed the Project Diamond threat, there came another threat, which involved metaphysical elements from across the galaxy, including the beings that dwelled inside the Celestial Temple. Sisko was still unsure of what the role was he played, but the Prophets felt it important enough that he play a part and so he did. How the events of a year ago and an alternate adult version of Kirk's infant son would affect historical events thousands upon thousands of years in the past would never really be known if paradoxical elements were at work.

Sisko breathed in a sigh of relief, for himself, and for Captain Jim Kirk. If news reports were correct, then refitted Enterprise that Starfleet had given to Kirk would soon be launching from Earth on a new mission of peace. Sisko had wanted to be a crew member, even if it meant he would have been just a commander, just to have gotten the opportunity to serve with his childhood hero; James T Kirk.

But, alas, Kasidy reminded Sisko that his life was no longer in the stars, but on Bajor to help raise their daughter, who needed him more than he could ever know; Kasidy was right. Ben Sisko could hide behind the perception that others had that his wife Kasidy was, at times, overbearing; he didn't care. He didn't care because Sisko concluded for himself that his Starfleet career had taken valuable time away from his son Jake, and it was something he would not let happen again with Rebecca.

**Deep Space Nine..**

Several hours later, Admiral Janeway and Captain Kira were at Quarks. They were sitting at one of the tables, enjoying a couple drinks having just concluded a briefing with Starfleet Command.

"Did you read Jaden's report about the Mugatu?" Kira asked.

Janeway nodded her head, after sipping her drink.

"Yes I did," Janeway told Kira. "I find hard to imagine a child being placed inside of a monster like that. I am so happy for Myran and little Mathew that it didn't happen."

Quark, who was approaching the table, and had heard Janeway's remarks, smiled down at Kira.

"What is that smile for?" Kira asked Quark.

"Well," Quark said, "at one time I considered you to be a monster, and if I recall, Keiko's child was put inside of you."

"I was never a monster," Kira said to Quark with her own smile. "But if you think I am, perhaps I should reconsider Starfleet's licensing fees next time your lease is up."

"And now you're an angel," Quark said, with an over-the-top friendly tone in his voice. "I guess one's view of a monster can depend on the net cost."

"You could say that," Kira came back with.

Quark made his way back to his bar.

"So," Kira said to Janeway, "isn't that new USS Enterprise they gave Jim last year ready enough to start an official mission yet?"

"Yes it is," Janeway said with a smile. "According to a message I received, Ambassador Spock was due to arrive aboard the Enterprise-E with Admiral Picard. I believe the launch is supposed to take place in a little while. I hope it goes smoothly."

"Me too," Kira said. "I am not sure I would want to raise a child aboard a Starship, but I guess that is nothing new for Starfleet officers these days."

"You're quite right," Janeway told Kira. "On the Voyager, on our way back from the Delta-Quadrant, I made it a point to be there each time a crew member gave birth. When there are children aboard, it seems we all took our jobs even far more seriously. And," Janeway said, "Kirk's child isn't the only one board the new Enterprise. Dr. Amanda Grayson, S'vath's wife, gave birth a few months back to a little girl. So, you could say, the Enterprise is already home to the next generation."

And with that, the two women finished their break, and headed back to their respective responsibilities. But at one of the docking rings, a visitor arrived. She was on her way to Earth. Although the Enterprise would be launched later in the day, it would still not leave Earth's system for several weeks, while waiting for final crew arrivals and other mechanical reasons.

That was all fine to the woman who made her way off of the transport vessel which had just arrived at DS9 after traveling there from Vulcan. The woman's name was T'Pring, and she was on her way to Earth to kidnap her granddaughter…that's all.

Continued….


	76. The Long Night

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Long Night….**

From where he sat, Lt. Michael Donovan could literally see infinity. Without the filtering effects of an atmosphere, and being stationed on a two-person observation probe in the vastness of space, the amount of stars that could be seen was exactly that; endless. At least three or four times during the typical work day, Lt. Donovan was sure to be lost in just the beautiful array before him, just outside the probe's windows. Well, that was true on the aft side of the probe. The view on the forward part of the probe was something all together different; it was a view of hell!

The two man probe that Lt. Michael Donovan was assigned to was considered one of the most useless duty posts in all of Starfleet; a hundred or so years ago, that was not the case at all. The probe was now the last of an entire network of probes, nearly a hundred at full count, that had been arrayed in a spherical deployment around a very large object; the Planet Killer.

What was the Planet Killer? No one really knew. But after it had destroyed several solar systems, and had finally been deactivated by the actions of the crew of the Starship Enterprise, under the command of Captain Kirk, Starfleet saw fit to deploy a net of probes around the device to study it. The intense radiation levels precluded any internal study of the device. The radiations levels came from the Planet Killer's unique internal mechanisms, as well as the detonation of the USS Constellation inside of the Planet Killer's massive maul. Even at the tail end of the 24th, technology did not exist that allowed explorative teams to journey inside of the behemoth monstrosity. Unmanned probes, surface terrain and levitating varieties, had been sent in, but the intense radiation brought failure each time.

And so, as time drifted by, and the decades passed, Starfleet lost interest in the Planet Killer to where now only one observation probe remained. The Planet Killer had become nothing more than an asterisk in the yellowing pages of history. Occasionally a Star-Cruise liner would stop by, and allow the tourists to see it for themselves, but the awe of the Planet Killer had faded to where instead of a hundred probes, only one remained. Lt. Donovan hoped that one day something special might happen, an unexpected twist. The previous team had the great fortune of tracking a shuttle-craft that turned out to have had the legendary Captain Kirk aboard as a passenger. _(readers will recall Kirk's brief visit to the Planet Killer during the Project Diamond plot.)_

The two person probe had a very typical designation. On the outside, on the hull of the probe, were the proud (sarcastic) letters; OBERVATION PROBE VII-E7-RGEL-33F-7100. The probe had been manufactured in the mid 23rd century by the Vulcans. But after countless crews had occupied the probe, the drab Vulcan interiors had been re-painted or altered many times. The billet was for fourteen months, which meant for fourteen looooooooooong months, the two person crew had to entertain themselves, or study, or both, and hope that their partner was someone they could easily get along with. Lt. Donovan and his partner were in the seventh month, halfway point, of their deployment.

And so, as stated before, from where he sat, Lt. Michael Donovan could literally see infinity. Without the filtering effects of an atmosphere, and being stationed on a two-person observation probe in the vastness of space, the amount of stars that could be seen was exactly that; endless.

He had also become quite an artist. He would often pull out an old style sketching pad, and draw images of space, or even images of the Planet Killer. He had also brought his collection of antique science fiction paperback books; gifts handed down through the generations by his father, his grandfather, his great-grandfather, and so on. In fact, it was his great-great-great-great grandfather, who was also named Michael Donovan, and who had been a school teacher, who had started the tradition of handing down the books.

Lt. Donovan had brought nearly a hundred of the old science fiction books, but there were times he just liked to stare out into space and draw the stunning and abstract images his mind would create, using the template of the universe as a starting point.

"Lt. Donovan," a voice said from behind him.

Though, to be sure, it wasn't just a voice. It was the voice of the other person who occupied the probe; Lt. T'av (pronounced Tall V), a Vulcan female. When Lt. Donovan learned he was going to be stationed with a Vulcan, for no less than fourteen months, he cringed. Vulcans were not known for their social abilities, and Lt. T'av had done very little to change that perception. But there was one pleasing aspect about her, or at least, pleasing to Lt. Donovan; Lt. T'av was very attractive.

"Commander T'av," Donavan said back to here, "I have already begun to filter through the priority messages from Sector-17A. I should be sending them off to Starfleet," Donovan paused for affect, "five minutes or so."

"Very well," Lt. T'av said. She had seniority over Donovan, making her the commanding officer of their two man crew. "You have once again proven your proficiency. I shall note this in your personal file for this month's crew evaluation."

Once a month, as per protocol, there would be a crew evaluation conference. Being that he was the only crew member subject to such a review, it wouldn't seem as if it would mean much; but it had. Because, for the past two months or so, Lt. Donovan was sure that Lt. T'av was flirting with him. Sure, it might have been a figment of his imagination. But on three occasions he had come into the common dining area and found her eating her food clad only in a Starfleet issued white robe. From all he had read about Vulcans, which he had done preparing for the post; such display of clothing selection was rare. Then again, it was just the two of them, and there was hardly anything else to wear; buy still!

The probe really wasn't that large. Each officer had their own quarters, but they were pretty small. The common areas were a little larger. Both quarters opened up into a common shower, a common bio-waste removal alcove and a medium sized dining area.

"Commander," Lt. Donovan said, as he watched her analyze the readings on the various instruments, "have you finished the book yet? I want to know what you thought of it."

Donovan had convinced her to read one of this many science books, in this case, Stranger in a Strange Land.

"I thought the story was somewhat derivative," Lt. T'av said, not taking her eyes off the instrument panels, "however, I did find the protagonist, Valentine Michael Smith, to be a quite compelling character."

"Would you like to read another one?" Lt. Donovan asked.

It was then that she took her eyes of the panels and looked back at him. Lt. Mike Donovan looked forward to the moments when she looked directly at him. For although she was a Vulcan, stoic and all, she had very attractive eyes.

"I would be in favor of that decision," she told him.

Lt. Donovan smiled back at her, which of course she never returned with her own smile. Lt. Donovan was confident that one day she would smile back at him; it was a cat and mouse game that he was sure to win! And, for another seven months, Lt. Donovan, he was hopeful it would provide the much needed interaction that would help him through the solitary confinement with a Vulcan.

But…he was wrong. Because unknown to Lt. Michael Donovan; everything was about to change. The Planet Killer had other ideas, or, to be more precise; the beings inside the Planet Killer had a different future arranged for the two of them; and it wasn't a pleasant one at all.

-next time…

The USS ENTERPRISE is finally officially prepared for an official launch. Captain James T Kirk, his first officer Nog, and the rest of the crew are ready to go!


	77. To Whom it may Concern

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**To Whom it may Concern….**

The USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) nudged its way out of the space-dock which had been its home for nearly a year. But refitting the ship, and then actually letting a starship commander a hundred years from the past, take command of it wasn't that easy to accomplish, which meant a lot of red-tape had to be cut through and even more strings had to be pulled; for example…Nine months ago!

**Khitomer…**

The President of the Federation, a female Andorian named Th'ravn, was visiting the historic world of Khitomer for a bi-annual galactic conference, and meeting with the Chancellor of the Klingon Empire; Martok. They were discussing the ongoing peace treaty/alliance between their two respective governments when, while dining together between official talks, the subject turned to…

"….Captain Kirk," Martok said, "I have been informed that his petition to be granted an official rank of Captain has been held up due to," Martok spoke the next word with absolute distain; "mitigating reasons."

"The Federation, as well as Starfleet, deeply respects what James T Kirk has accomplished since his return," President Th'ravn said, "however, there are those who believed after we gave him the Enterprise three months ago that his official position in Starfleet had been unwarranted."

"Unwarranted, you can NOT be serious!" Martok barked back. "That man saved Captain Sisko's daughter, my life, saved your Federation by exposing that Project Diamond foolishness, and nearly lost his own wife and son trying to save the universe! If I could kidnap the man and clone him and replace every one of my officers with the clones; I would!"

"Of course," Th'ravn said, "and as I have said, we respect what he has manage to accomplish in just the short time he has returned. However, Starfleet has standards that have changed, since his time, and many feel James Kirk does not measure up to them."

Martok's face became twisted with internal anger at hearing the words of the Federation President.

"Madam President," Martok said, trying very hard to contain his anger, "perhaps I should put this in another way; Kirk saved my life, and the daughter of one of my most important friends. The Klingon Empire holds much respect for _**Captain**_ James T Kirk and would consider it a dishonor to us if he was not allowed to follow his first best destiny."

"Do you not think you are over reacting to this situation?" President Th'ravn asked. "We are only talking about one man."

Martok slammed his fist on the table, causing every item on the table to jump up in response, nearly causing a mess.

"We are… not…talking…about…a mere man," Martok told her with subtle anger in his words. "We are talking about a legend. Why is it that his greatest enemies, the Klingons among them once, consider him with more respect than his own people?"

It was then that another visiting dignitary sat down at the table; Ambassador Spock, who was also attending the bi-yearly peace conference.

"Excuse me," Spock said to them both, as he sat down, holding a cup of tea in his hand, "however, I could not help but over hear this conversation. President Th'ravn," Spock said directly to the Andorian, "Chancellor Martok asks a valid question. Admirals Picard and Janeway went through proper channels and arranged for Kirk to take ceremonial possession of the Enterprise, due to his actions. This Enterprise, a Constitution-class starship built over a hundred and forty years ago, could hardly be qualified as one of Starfleet's most powerful ships."

"Ambassador…" Th'ravn began to say, but Spock cut her off.

"Excuse me, madam President," Spock pressed on. "I have it on good authority that the resistance to Jim Kirk being given the official rank of Captain, and being given his own ship, came from the diplomatic wing of the Federation and not from the Starfleet ranks."

"You mean diplomats: typical!" Martok spat out, under his breath, knowing full well who he was sitting with.

"Is this matter that important to the two of you?" President Th'ravn asked. "You do both realize that the James T Kirk we are speaking of is not the same man who died on Veridian III. That James T Kirk, the one who did die on Veridian III, from what I know of his life, and I read his biography I might add, was seasoned by experience, and by his relationship to you, Ambassador Spock. This new Jim Kirk does not have that seasoning, and that is what concerns the diplomatic wing of the Federation. If we allow him to buzz about the galaxy, will his impulse to act create problems for us down the line?"

Martok looked to Spock, knowing full well of Kirk's well deserved legend. Many of Kirk's 'impulse to act' actions had been taken against the Klingon Empire.

"She has a point there Spock," Martok said.

"A logical concern, I will admit," Spock said. "However, I think his new relationships with a Ferengi first officer, a married Vulcan and his wife, and not to mention seasoned veterans like Commanders Scott and Sulu, will help shape this new Kirk's future in its own unique, and ultimately, successful future. I only ask that we give him that chance."

President Th'ravn sipped on her own cup of tea.

"I should also point out," Spock added, "that Starfleet's enlistment numbers have increased nearly twenty-two percent in the year since Jim Kirk's existence became common knowledge. It would not be illogical to suggest that his return is responsible for a large part of that increase. Jim Kirk was a legend, as Chancellor Martok stated moments ago, and I think his return is already having a positive affect on this point of time. Q, the omnipotent being, stated that Jim Kirk's existence can not be charted by the Continuum due to the unique nature of his return. I find that to be a positive, don't you?"

Martok smiled and laughed loud.

"You have convinced me again, Spock!" Martok said, as he slapped Spock's back with his large hand. Then Martok glared at President Th'ravn. "Reinstate CAPTAIN James T Kirk. He has a crew, he has a ship, and he has the respect and honor of his former foes; what more could you ask for?"

President Th'ravn, who was not known to smile, did.

- continued…


	78. An Oath

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**An Oath…**

"Nog!" Quark said sternly, "you're going to die!"

Commander Nog, first officer of the USS ENTERPRISE, was in his quarters aboard the newly refitted ship. And being the Enterprise's executive officer, it meant that he was busy seeing to final crew arrivals and monitoring the status updates from the various departments. But, it was what Commander Nog had trained to do for many years while serving on DS9, and other Starfleet posts. And now, at last, he was getting his ultimate wish; to serve as the XO on a starship. He never dreamed that he would be serving with the legendary human, Captain James T Kirk, and yet that was exactly what he was about to do.

Quark stared down upon Nog from the com-screen on his wall. Quark had sent Nog a recorded message which had just arrived moments earlier. And with a little time to spare, Nog decided to play the message. Nog sat down at the table and sipped on a glass of root-beer and continued to listen to his uncle.

"Nah…I don't really mean that," Quark said quickly, with his well worn smile. "I know that I said you were a fool for joining those do-gooders, and I still believe it, but I got to thinking. Since you're serving with Kirk, maybe you can get him to pose for some holographs. A lot of customers, paying customers, want a Kirk character for their holosuite programs, sexual and non-sexual programs I might add. I can see you raking in, oh, five-percent of each sale if you can get me some new holo-images of him. It's just something to think about," Quark continued to say. "Anyway, I just want you to know that I am proud of what you have accomplished; just keep your head low, that's all I ask."

And then the image of Quark faded away, and with it, the background sounds of customers cheering loudly at the unseen Dabo wheel.

"Thank you uncle," Nog said softly.

For a brief moment, as he finished his root-beer, Nog thought back on his time spent on DS9. From the early days shoplifting for his uncle, befriending Jake, the Dominion War, and then eventually joining Starfleet, and even the time when he lost his leg during combat. But Nog shook his head, and pushed the memories away, where they belonged, in the past. It was time to continue his duties. But as he stood up from the table in the center of his quarters, the door to his quarters chirped.

"Come," Nog said to the door.

The door slid opened and, quite unexpectedly, Ambassador Spock entered.

"Ambassador Spock," Nog said, excitedly, "I was not expecting you. Is there something wrong?"

"May I enter?" Spock asked.

"Of course, sir," Nog said, as he walked over to greet the Vulcan. Nog raised his hands in the customary Vulcan salute. Spock reciprocated.

The two made their way to the two couches in the living area, and sat down.

"You need not concern yourself, Commander," Spock said, "I am here for purely social reasons. And let me start of by congratulating you on your posting to the Enterprise."

"Sir," Nog replied, "if I may be so bold, but if what I have heard is true, I owe both you and Captain Sisko a debt of gratitude for recommending me for this assignment. From what Admiral Picard told me, it was the tipping point."

"I was very impressed with your actions during the Project Diamond situation," Spock told Nog, "and so was Captain Kirk. My recommendation was made with full respect, and I am more than confident that you will execute with full honor."

Nog looked directly at Spock.

"You were Captain Kirk's First officer for many years," Nog said. "Do you think he respects me as he would a human?"

"Without doubt, he does. James T Kirk has an uncanny ability of learning," Spock paused, "adapting to those who serve him, and they to him. In fact, it was my service to Captain James T Kirk, both the one commanding this ship and the one who died on Veridian III, that I come to you now."

"What do you mean?" Nog asked.

"What I am about to say will sound most un-Vulcan like, however, I will say it none-the-less." Spock began to say. "There is something very special about James T Kirk that is most unquantifiable. I am speaking to you now as his former First Officer, and as his friend because you and I share a unique place in his life. I want you to promise me that you will do all that you can to assist him. When he does not have the answers, and there will be times he will not, I want you to assure me that at those times you will give him the knowledge he seeks to answer the barriers to life that you both will share. Am I making any sense?"

Nog nodded, realizing that Spock was speaking to him outside of the chain of command, and outside what could be called the continuum of life.

"I promise," Nog said. "I will do everything I can to make sure he," Nog searched for the right words, "is alright. And," Nog added softly, "I will never tell him of this conversation."

Spock nodded acknowledgement, and then he stood up and gave Nog the Vulcan salute once more, to which Nog reciprocated.

"I should also mention that I saw your father two weeks ago, and he really is proud of you and the accomplishments you have achieved. He regrets he cannot be here for the launch, but promises to visit the Enterprise at his earliest convenience."

"I am also very proud of my father," Nog said.

"You should be," Spock said, "granting voting rights for non-land owners, as well as women, was very ground breaking for your home world."

"Thank you," Nog said, "and I really mean it."

Nog turned to accompany Spock to the door, and then, with a quick reflex, Spock reached from behind and grabbed Nog, and gently pushed him against the wall. Before Nog could respond, Spock placed the fingers of his Vulcan left hand upon the young Ferengi's head, and commenced with a Vulcan Mind-Meld.

Nog was falling…and falling…and falling..inside of his mind…until…

"Our minds are one," Spock said softly.

The vacant look in Nog's eyes signaled Spock that the Mind-Meld was engaged. Spock shifted his stance and spoke softly into Nog's large left ear.

"The knowledge that I am about to impart on to you will be placed into the deepest regions of your mind. You will only remember the knowledge when…"

Spock continued the Mind-Meld, and then left Nog sitting on the couch, and then Spock left. Content that he had done the right thing. And as Spock made his way down the corridor, his mind felt a presence he had not felt in years; her presence! T'pring had arrived on the Enterprise!

Continued…


	79. Shades of Yesterday

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Shades of Yesterday**

Lt. Commander S'vath and his wife Amanda, who had been promoted in rank to that of Lt. Commander as well, entered the main transporter-room. Lt. Martin Hanes was prepping the Transporter.

"I just received the Transporter coordinates," Lt. Hanes reported to S'vath, "beginning transport now."

The person beaming over was doing so from a passing Transport vessel. In a matter of quick moments the sparkling glow of a female hominoid figure shimmered into view, and when the sparkling was gone, a Vulcan female remained.

"Lt. Hanes," S'vath said to the transporter tech, "you are excused."

Lt. Hanes did as instructed and left the Transporter-room. S'vath, stood upon the transporter pad, and looked down at S'vath and Amanda. Amanda was holding a wrapped infant in her arms, looked up as T'pring stepped off of the platform, who gave a passing glance at her granddaughter before directing her glance at her son; S'vath.

"You did not have to dismiss that officer, my son S'vath," T'pring said. "That officer has a duty, and part of that duty is to you."

Her cold eyes had not changed over the years, and her stoic nature demanded the attention of those around her.

"Mother," S'vath said after a moment passed, "father is here as well. Please assure me that your visit here will remain," he searched for the proper word, "civil."

"S'vath, your father and I have long since put aside our perceived differences. In fact we did so for no other reason than to have a child." T'pring said. Then she shifted her attention to Amanda. "Certainly you can understand that reasoning."

Amanda nodded her head.

"I do," Amanda said with a slight smile.

"Very well," S'vath said to his mother. "We will take you to your quarters and then we should all prepare for the dinner service the Captain has arranged."

"Kirk," T'pring said softly. "I never had the fortune of crossing paths with the James Kirk who died on Verdian III. Meeting this James Kirk shall be," T'pring paused for effect, "interesting."

S'vath gave Amanda a weary glance.

The wardroom of the USS ENTERPRISE was fully decked out for the first dinner service, and had been, since the official launch of the vessel earlier in the day. With all the pomp- and- circumstance over, and the Enterprise finally away, life aboard the ship was hopefully settling down to a more normal level. The unexpected arrival of T'pring, and with the continual presence of Ambassador Spock, Captain Kirk thought it fitting to go through the trouble of having an official dinner service.

The large dining table was ringed with most of the command crew. Commander Nog, first officer of Enterprise, was the only person of the command crew who was not present, as he was on duty and performing his duties on the bridge. As the gathered diners began to settle in for their meals, classical music could be heard faintly in the background.

Captain Kirk, who was dressed in his full dress uniform, as were the other members of his crew who were present, sat at the head of the table. To his right sat Ambassador Spock, with Commanders Scotty and Sulu next to sitting next to Scotty was the new Chief of Security, a Bajoran male named Lt. Jaden Weer. Weer had performed the same duty while serving aboard Deep Space Nine. After being personally requested by Kirk to join the crew, Starfleet quickly transferred Weer into Starfleet, giving him the rank of Lieutenant.

At the far end of the table sat T'pring. Next to her sat her son S'vath, then his wife Amanda, next to her sat another esteemed visitor, Captain William T Riker, and then, of course, Kirk. There were small conversations going on.

"It's been great having you aboard, Will," Kirk said, "I hope we get you to your rendezvous point with the Titan on time."

"If you keep serving food like this," Riker said with a smile, "I might not ever leave."

Riker was enjoying the rich taste of real lobster, real lobster, as cooked by the Enterprise's top-chef; a Klingon named K'roth. K'roth was rather large for a Klingon, and had opened several Klingon café's throughout the galaxy. When Kirk was given the command of the Enterprise it was none other than Chancellor Martok who "demanded" Kirk make K'roth his personal chef. Kirk had no other choice but to accept.

Kirk lifted his glass, and made a toast, slightly raising his voice to be heard by all present.

"To our recent missing friends," Kirk said. "Captain Jellico, Commander Worf, Commander Thomas Riker will all surely be missed. And, for me at least, even Q."

Riker lifted an eyebrow at the mention of Q, but understood.

Everyone at the table, even T'pring lifted their glasses.

"Captain Riker," Sulu said, "I hope your wife and child are doing well."

"Thank you," Riker said back to Sulu. "I just received a message an hour or so ago, and they are doing fine."

"A baby girl I heard," Scotty added, "ye must be bubbling with pride."

Riker nodded in agreement.

"I am Mr. Scott," Riker replied. "Lilith is a bundle of energy just like Deanna, and I have come to see that life changes right before your eyes the moment you bring an offspring into this universe; don't you agree Commander S'vath?" Riker asked. "Your daughter isn't much older than mine, how is she?"

Before S'vath could reply, Amanda did instead.

"Our daughter is beautiful," Amanda said with a smile aimed at Riker. "Every day she will do something that amazes me. Lenora is simply the greatest miracle in my life."

Spock looked across the table at the expression on T'pring's stoic face. The obvious emoting, and pride, Amanda had shown was not customary for Vulcan heritage. Spock had learned, over decades of socializing with humans that it was futile to attempt explain, and or deter. T'pring remained silent; Spock concluded that she had learned the same; or so Spock thought.

"Commander S'vath," Lt. Jaden Weer said, "do you find the same pleasure as your wife does where it concerns your daughter?"

"Of course he does," T'pring said, surprisingly, as she sipped on her Romulan-ale. "Just like his own father, S'vath has proven that IDIC is a value we Vulcans cherish, as much as we do our own being; is that not so Ambassador?"

"Of course," Spock said to T'pring.

"Lenora will find her own way, as I found mine," S'vath said to Weer. "The pleasure, or joy, you speek of Lt. Weer will come from watching her make the choices that life will bring her."

Kirk also looked across the table at the Vulcan woman who had nearly had him killed at the hands of Spock on the planet Vulcan. To the others at the table; it was either an ancient memory, or an asterisked item in a history book. But for Kirk; it had only been, at best, five years in the past.

"It is true," Spock said. "IDIC does state, simply, that we must accept diversity when it is before us. I have to admit that my own prejudices may have convinced me otherwise in the distant past; however, I have seen the truth of IDIC displayed in my numerous travels to know that it exists."

"What about you, Captain Kirk," T'pring said, "You yourself have traveled the stars with Spock, and even through the bounds of time; do you believe in the diversity of life?"

Kirk and T'pring locked glances; and for a moment, a brief moment, he felt a cold chill in his body. Was it the memories from the past reaching up to grab hold of his emotions? Or was it something more?

"Yes I do," Kirk responded. "In fact, it is the reason this starship exists; to seek out new life forms. But we pursue that goal with core values that keep is grounded."

"I see," T'pring said, never once cutting off her eye lock with Kirk.

The dinner service continued, and eventually the gathered guests and officers completed their meals and headed out of the wardroom. Kirk walked down the corridor with Spock.

"Spock," Kirk said, "I gather the two of you, T'pring and yourself, have had to put aside all that happened on Vulcan when we went there all those decades ago."

"Yes," Spock replied. "She had contacted me nearly forty years ago with subject of the two of us procreating. She no doubt timed her approach to me during the Pon-farr I was about to endure. I acquiesced."

"Not to put a too fine a point on it," Kirk continued to say, "but why her? As my mother told me years ago after my first girl friend broke up with me; there are many other fish out there in the sea."

Spock nodded in agreement with meaning of what Kirk was trying to say.

"It eventually came down to simple logic," Spock finally said. "We were originally mated to each other due to many factors, one of them being genetic compatibility. And," Spock added, "Dr. McCoy convinced me that everyone deserved a second chance, even someone such as her."

"Bones," Kirk said softly. "I sure do miss him." Kirk said with a wistful smile. "Well, S'vath has really impressed me with his intellect. However, I get the distinct impression that he does not adhere to the same concept of logic that you do."

"No, he does not," Spock said. "S'vath, to the dismay of my father, and me, seems to have developed a mind that challenges basic concepts, be they scientific or social. In this he reminds me much of Sybok."

"You're half-brother," Kirk said. "I read about him sometime back. His beliefs were so opposite to that of logic that he was exiled from Vulcan."

"Yes," Spock said softly. "Though, at the end, he was still my brother. If ever there were an example of IDIC, Sybok was definitely proof."

"And yet," Kirk added, "he was exiled from the one world, at least according to T'pring, that welcomes diversity such as his. Somewhat ironic, wouldn't you say?"

Spock did not answer.

"Spock; I know you're due to depart the ship in the next couple of hours," Kirk said, "but I hope that the two of us can spend the most of that time together. I'd like to know about the man that the other Jim Kirk became. I have read about his career, but you knew him better than anyone."

"I will tell you what I can," Spock said to the younger Kirk. "However, Jim Kirk, do not fall into the trap of trying to follow in his, as humans would say, footsteps. I would say that your future will be nothing like the life he lived, however, it will be forged by a man, who more than anyone else I have ever known, can live life on the extreme."

Kirk nodded, and wished that Spock didn't have to leave. But the message Spock had subtly been telling him, which had remained consistent for over the year or so since they had met again, was that the Jim Kirk that died on Veridian III was no more special than the Jim Kirk who lived now. But it was up to him, Jim Kirk, to find his own way with new experiences and by finding relations with new friends. Jim Kirk may have come from the past, but the future was now his home and it was time for him to move on with his life.

Several hours later…

Ambassador Spock stood on the Transporter-pad, waiting to be beamed over to a Vulcan transport vessel. Kirk, Riker, Sulu, Scotty, T'pring, S'vath and Amanda were all there to see him off.

"Goodbye my old friend," Kirk said with a smile. And then Kirk made the traditional Vulcan hand salute, to which upon seeing, Spock lifted an eyebrow.

And then Spock shimmered away.

Once aboard the Vulcan transport vessel, Spock headed to his quarters. Moments later the door to his quarters chirped.

"Enter," Spock said.

A very beautiful human female, with blond hair and blue eyes, and very regal looking, entered Spock's quarters. But she was there with a purpose, and her eyes held determination.

"How did it go? Were you able to do it?" the woman asked Spock.

"If you are asking if my Mind-meld with the Ferengi was successful, then yes, I was successful," Spock told her. "However, I must repeat that I find this tact very illogical. I have been, as you might say, down this road before, and nearly failed."

"Ambassador Spock," the woman said, "My grandfather once told me of your bravery and of your devotion. Believe me when I tell you that this is the only way. And yes, it is not without risk and yes it could unravel before our eyes, but quite simply put; there is no other way."

Spock looked at the young woman, and reluctantly nodded his head in agreement. Only a few short hours earlier he had conveyed the message to the young Jim Kirk that it was time to walk new paths, and yet here was he was trying to bring back a tactic from the past. But the woman had come to Spock for assistance, and the grandfather she spoke of was someone whom Spock did indeed have loyalty to. A man named Christopher Pike.

Next time..our story returns to the observation probe that monitors the Planet Killer. And things there are about to get rather interesting. Plus; T'pring remains aboard the Enterprise, for now…


	80. They

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**They**

For eons upon eons _they_ had slumbered. The vastness of space had provided endless paths as they pursued the whereabouts of their prey. Yet, as the search went on through the ages, they could not find their hated brethren. And, without the reward of success, they closed their eyes and minds and entered the other place; non-reality.

The vessel which carried them as they slept, and would be the instrument of their prey's destruction, was constructed around them, thus providing layers upon layers of hidden protection. Its design was rather simple and straightforward, but simplicity was always preferred when obliteration was the desired goal. The vessel had a large maul for one main purpose; the powerful anti-proton beam that was emitted by the vessel required such a large orifice. The beam was needed to smash planetary objects, allowing the vessel to consume the obliterated chunks of planetary mass for endless energy that would power its voyage until the prey was found.

But the non-reality, dream state, while endless in its boundaries, did not ultimately supply them with the raw enjoyment that came from real emotion, real contact. And so, after eons and eons of slumber, their three individual minds began their climb toward _consciousness_**.** _They_ would only have started such a climb toward reality unless there was a mind to possess, and emotions to fire their needs. And as fate would have it, such a mind was in close proximity. Though they usually desired hundreds of minds to fulfill their needs, but for now, just the one simple mind would do. _They _each had their own need.

One of them was consumed by curiosity. Just wanting to know the knowledge in another being's mind was what fueled desire. After having absorbed so much knowledge from so many minds, the desire just fed upon itself, wanting even more knowledge.

One of them was in search of a twisted form of love; to be needed and desired. It wasn't so much of a sexual desire, though such a desire was welcomed; it was more in the desire of being needed, which came from the emotion of others. The desire of being needed was to balance the third's desire.

And the third had an all together different need; to relish in the absolute emotion of terror that came from wanton violence and eventual death…Curiosity, the need to be desired and the primal emotions that came from terror and violence. Now that their minds were nearly awake it was time to quest...a time to love…and a time for anger and fear.

**Observation Probe; VII-E7-RGEL-33F-7100**

**The last of what had been a net of nearly a hundred probes arrayed around the planet killer…**

**(If you missed the introduction of two person crew of the probe, please refer to #76 "The Long Night")**

It was Friday night. Of all the nights Lt. Michael Donovan longed for, it was Friday night. Even though Starfleet didn't officially adhere to a five day work week, such an old custom still had threads that existed even in the latter parts of the 24th century. And even though it may not have been Friday night anywhere else in space, on Observation Probe VII E7 RGEL 33F 7100 it was… Friday night.

The tradition had been started with the first crew which had manned the probe over a hundred and twenty years in the past. And even though there had been 'by the book' crews since that time, with 'by the book' mission commanders, such as Lt. Commander T'av, the tradition was still followed meaning; no work for twenty-four entire hours. It was just a stream of time for continual down time so as to read, play games, or just rest without the stress of filtering through subspace message relaying and all the other menial tasks the two person crew were responsible for.

Lt. Donovan liked for Fridays for an all together different reason; his growing crush on his commander; Lt. Commander T'av. Fridays was when she didn't wear her standard drab Starfleet uniform, which she looked very attractive in as well. Instead she would wear her traditional robe into the common area they both shared. On a few of those occasions she would be reading one of his books he lent her, which made him feel good. It made him feel good because, to him, it meant she was finding pleasure in something he had done for her, which was innocent enough. He was no different than a typical human male wanting the satisfaction of pleasing a beautiful woman.

Usually she would enter the common area in her robe after having just sonic-showered, her legs, which showed from the calves down, would still be glistening with some sort of Vulcan oil which she had applied no doubt after her shower. The scent from the oil was very intoxicating, and always had an erotic effect on Lt. Donovan.

The common area they shared consisted of two couches, and a glass table between them, as well as a small kitchenette off to the right.

The night had started off the same as most Fridays had before. Lt. Donovan had put on some slacks and a casual shirt, and made sure he was sitting in the common area on one of the couches before she emerged. Usually he would prepare a nice conversation starter, most of them being shot down over the months. But, occasionally, if he talked about something really scientific, she would reward him with a couple or so responses before sitting on her own couch, a cup of tea in hand, to read a book or retiring back into her room. But, on this Friday night, something special was going to happen. When the door to T'av's room slid open, Lt. Michael Donovan would usually wait to look at her when she made it into the common kitchen, so as not to appear too eager to see her. It was their weekly cat and mouse game. But for whatever reason, as her doors slid open, Lt. Donovan decided to look over at the door instead of waiting for the nuance of nonchalance. His eyes were greeted with a sight that could have only been described as one of his dreams coming true. T'av was not wearing her traditional robe, nor was she wearing her Starfleet uniform; she was nude...and she was staring directly at him.

Gulp!

Continued with…Pon Farr!


	81. In Need

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**In Need…**

**(This segment isn't as graphic as it could be, in terms of sex/violence, but beware, it isn't for the squeamish.)**

As Lt. Commander T'av exited her quarters, and slowly walked toward the common habitat area, things were much different than they seemed. T'av was more of a spectator than an actual participant to what was transpiring because, in all actuality, she was not in control of her body. All though she could see Lt. Donvan sitting on the couch she was approaching, all T'av could hear, inside her mind, was a low tone, a near constant humming. And as she drew closer to Donovan, the droning hum became louder. She could see Donovan's lips moving, and she realized, obviously, that he was saying something to here, but with the humming becoming louder and louder; T'av could not hear a thing.

For his part, Lt. Michael Donovan, upon seeing T'av exit her quarters, he just sat on the couch in stunned silence, staring at the beautiful naked Vulcan woman as she stared back at him with total lust in her eyes. Lt. Donovan had always been one of those men who, even when he was younger, had never been popular with women. For whatever reason he had just never developed the social skills required to interact with women. With the advent of holodeck technology, including the portable variety of hardware that Donovan had brought with him to the observation probe, the modern forms of 'porn' were more than efficient to satisfy anyone's sexual desires. But this was different.

It was different because Lt. Commander T'av was not a holographic illusion, and Lt. Donovan was not sitting behind the locked doors of his quarters. The Vulcan female was as real as life could get, and now she was coming down the small hallway, her body glistening with moisture, with absolute sexual desire in her eyes. Donovan tried to gulp down nervous saliva, but his mouth was as dry as the Mojave Desert on Earth. His mind scrambled for the right words to say.

"Umm," Donovan managed to say, as he looked about the room, sweating with nervous tension, "how's it going?"

"The universe," T'av replied as she walked over and stood directly in front of Lt. Donovan, who sat on the couch and looked up at her, "what do you know of it?" (CURIOUSITY)

Donovan breathed in deeply through his nose, and as he did, the erotic scent of the naked woman, which was a combination of skin oil and the aroused state she was in, invaded every fiber of his being. But he was a professional! It was obvious that Lt. Commander T'av was not herself, and it would have been inappropriate to treat here any differently than as his commanding officer.

"What do I know of the universe?" Donovan repeated back to her. "Do you mean that literally or figuratively?" Being a man, and an aroused man, Lt. Donovan could not help look at her, starting from her feet, making his way up at the more sensitive areas.

"The universe," she repeated, with seduction in her eyes, "tell me the base knowledge you have of it."

And with that, she reached out her left hand and placed it on the top of his head. She was able to pin-point every aspect of Donovan's knowledge of the universe. And, for the beings that control T'av from inside the Planet Killer, Donovan's knowledge was infantile; he knew nothing of importance. She removed her hand.

"Did you just do a Vulcan Mind-meld on me?" Donovan asked, wondering if she was able to detect that he was sexually aroused by her and had a helpless crush on her as well. "I think it was great and all that, but next time just ask me."

"Do you desire me…do you love me?" (LOVE and being DESIRED)

Donovan just smiled up at her.

"I do not know what you're asking," he told her, as he stood up, and as their eyes were locked in a glance.

T'av put her arms around him and drew him closer, their lips just inches apart. She lowered one of her arms below his waist and began to caress him.

"You are sexually aroused," she told him, "I can feel it through your clothing; you must be in desire of me."

As he felt her hands caress him, caress his arousal, he just stared into her eyes. And as she unbuckled the belt of his slacks and let them fall to the ground, she maneuvered him just a bit, and soon he was lying across the glass table, and she was on top of him. Earlier, while reading, he had peeled an orange with a knife, and had eaten it. He had left the plate of peels on the table, and now his head was right next to it, the scent of orange peels just inches away, as she pressed him down on the table. And as she took him inside of her, all Donovan could was smile, look into her sultry eyes, and live the moment. Without a doubt it was the most erotic thing in his life he had ever done, and he didn't want it to end, even as her actions became more intense. And it was obvious, as he stared into her eyes, that she was enjoying just a much as he was, if not more. And as her gyrations became more intense, it was all Donovan could do to keep pace, as she ripped open his shirt, exposing his naked chest.

Inside T'av's mind, the droning and the low tone humming continued. She could feel the sexual sensations crisscross throughout her body as she made hard and passionate love to Lt. Commander Donovan. The pleasure that came from it was more intense than anything she had felt before, but she realized instantly that she wasn't the only one, inside of her mind, who was experiencing it. It was then that she realized that her mind, her very essence, had been invaded, and there was nothing she could do.

As the two made love, their moans and screams became louder and louder until the sweet serenity of climax overcame their sweat drenched bodies and silence came abruptly. T'av, inside her mind, had never had such an intense sexual encounter.

But there was a third being inside of the Planet Killer that had not yet been satisfied with the emotions it fed off of; fear, anger, and terror. As T'av stared down at Donovan, who had closed his eyes in reverie, her eyes noticed the plate of food next to his head, and the knife he had used to peel the discarded fruit. She then slid her hand over to the plate and grasped the knife. Unknown to Donovan she took the knife from the plate and was now holding it directly below waistline.

"Open your eyes," she told Donovan, with lust in her eyes.

Donovan did as she asked, and opened his eyes and gazed up at her. And then, as he stared into her eyes, there came an unexpected piercing pain. He looked down between their bodies and watched as T'av did the unthinkable and gutted him, holding him down with her superior Vulcan strength. The life ebbed out of his eyes as he stared up at her eyes, which were filled with total desire and lust. Death came to Lt. Michael Donovan; it came to him as blood slowly spilled out of his body, over the surface of the glass table, and onto the carpeted floor below.

T'av wanted to close her eyes; she did not want to see anymore, but she couldn't. Her actions were not her own. And as she stared down at the gutted body of the now dead Lt. Michael Donovan, T'av could feel another desire growing deep within her body. She realized early on that the desires that she had been experiencing; were not of her own. They were coming from the others who now controlled who and what she was. The desire was that of hunger; the hunger for food.

_**They**_ knew that in order to exist, to continual to live, _**they**_ had to find subsidence to feed upon.

Tav's actions were not her own. And when she began to feed upon the exposed innards of Michael Donovan, whose dead eyes stared up at her, all T'av could do was wish for her own death; and if the beings that controlled her eased on that control, she would take her life as soon as she possibly could…

Continued…


	82. Project Naissance

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Project ****Naissance**

**Odyssey VI; an M-class planet dedicated to the preservation of life throughout the galaxy…**

The large auditorium was filled with Federation and Starfleet dignitaries, among them being Admiral Janeway, Captain James T Kirk, Captain William Riker and others. There was absolute silence as footage of a horrific nature was displayed on the large view screen. The footage was gruesome because it showed the devastation on a distant world where the entire population had been wiped out by a virus. On the stage, and just below screen, stood Commander Julian Bashir. He spoke softly, his voice amplified throughout the chamber's nature configuration.

"Our best estimates put the fatalities on the planet J'aha at over three-hundred million," Bashir told the crowd. "We're not only talking about entire families," he said, as the footage showed what appeared to be a family that had gathered for the end, and had died together, "we're talking about an entire world."

Kirk, who sat between Riker and Janeway, in the first row of the audience, shook his head in disbelief.

"How could this be allowed to happen?" Kirk asked, rhetorically.

"There were a lot of factors," Janeway replied in a near whisper, as Bashir went on with more statistics about the dead. "Chiefly among them was that the world this happened on is located deep in the Beta-Quadrant, outside of any galactic power's sway of influence."

Kirk noticed Riker shaking his head, no doubt disagreeing with the assessment given by Admiral Janeway.

"Go ahead Captain," Janeway said, already knowing of Riker's opinion on the matter.

"One reason this happened was because of strict adherence to the Prime Directive," Riker offered to Kirk. "Something that I hope Dr. Bashir's announcement can help change."

"What do you mean about the Prime Directive being a reason?" Kirk asked Riker.

"I think Bashir is up to that part now," Riker said, as he directed his attention toward the stage.

The carnage on the screen was replaced by new footage, that of a plant, foliage on yet another world. The plant was green, and as the image zoomed in on the leave of the plant, soft purple drops of fluid could be seen on the leaves.

"The purple fluid," Bashir went on to say, standing behind a podium as he spoke, "had a unique protein cellular block sequence that we had never seen before. As the virus was killing the population of J'aha, Starfleet and Romulan medical teams worked together to find a cure, an antidote if you would, that would work, and we found one."

The footage showed nearly twenty hypo-spray devices with the purple colored compound contained inside of them.

"This was all we could manufacture of the antidote," Bashir said. "Our team arrived on J'aha and thankfully we were able to save just over two-hundred poor souls of that world. The rest of the J'aha's population, animal and hominoid, all died with-in a matter of two months after the virus first struck the population of the world. But this need not have happened; we could have saved the entire population but because there wasn't enough of the antidote, we couldn't. We barely had enough of the protein solution to make enough to save those two-hundred that we did."

Sitting to the left of Admiral Picard was Dr. Amanda Grayson, chief medical officer of the Enterprise and the wife of Lt. Commander S'vath, who in turn sat to left of his wife.

"Admiral," Amanda said, "why did they only have enough of the compound to make twenty hypo-sprays?"

At that moment, Dr. Bashir introduced Admiral Kathryn Janeway.

"Dr. Grayson," Admiral Janeway said with a smile, "I am about to tell you why."

There was a soft murmur in the audience as Janeway made her way to the podium. As she began to speak, her voice echoed through the chamber.

"The Prime Directive," she began to say, "It is the one of the most important pillars of our society. It guides us in many aspects of what we do. Dr. Bashir speaks about the small quantity of the antidote, and his ability to save those two-hundred survivors, but he leaves out a very important detail; his violation of the Prime Directive. J'aha was not a member world of the Federation, and it was a pre-warp society. Dr. Bashir, his team, and the Romulan medical team they were working with, took it upon themselves to go to that world with what little antidote they had to save them."

"So what the hell is wrong with doing that?" Kirk whispered to Riker.

"Exactly," Riker whispered back.

"Here is the fine point of where we are," Janeway continued to say, "even if there had been enough antidote to save the entire world, the Prime Directive would have compelled us not to do so. Dr. Bashir, and his team, will face a board of Starfleet Officers in the near future to face the consequences of their actions, as they should. What brings us here, to this conference that Starfleet and the Federation hastily arranged, is the issue of there not having been enough antidote. The virus that destroyed the population of that world did so in a matter of months, and it could just have easily been a member world of the Federation. And had that member world needed the exact same compound to have created an antidote, only two-hundred or so would have been saved."

Kirk spoke up, not caring about the formality of the conference about such a subject matter.

"Admiral; why not return to the world where the antidote was found and then just get more of the protein solution from those leaves of those plants?" Kirk asked, his voice echoing through the chamber as well.

Admiral Janeway nodded her head.

"A fair question," she replied to Kirk, as well to the audience. "The answer is very simple," and then she looked up at the screen.

The view screen changed to the view of a small world.

"What you're watching on the screen now is the destruction of Marab-6," Janeway explained. "It was recorded by the USS Bozeman ten years ago, which just happened to be passing by. That large comet you see diving in through the atmosphere is nearly twenty-seven kilometers in diameter. We have sped up the footage…"

The crowd watched as the comet tore through the planet's surface, causing an incredible explosion. The blue world was rocked with continual explosions, and then the image on the screen showed what the planet looked like ten years later. The once blue world was now a decayed mass.

"That was the planet the antidote came from," Janeway finally said. "The antidote was derived from a sample taken from that world two decades ago by a science survey team. The unique nature of the compound made it impossible to replicate, so the sample was all Bashir had to work on. When it was determined that the planet was going to be struck by the passing comet, it had been hoped that another team could have been sent to get more of the compound. But the Dominion War delayed that from happening, and draw downs after the war and diminishing Borg threat had an effect as well. And even had the team gone back, how much could they have brought back? And what about the unique animal life that was on that world too? Do we only save plant life because of our own needs? It had been determined by the Federation to not alter the course of the comet, to let nature take its course."

The murmuring in the crowd became a bit louder as those in the audience spoke of, and debated, the intent of the Prime Directive.

"This is why," Janeway finally said, her voice hushing the crowd, "with Starfleet/Federation support, I am officially engaging Project Naissance. It is a scientific endeavor in which we will actively save animal and plant life from worlds that face destruction, such as Marab-6. I must admit that there is debate with-in the Federation chambers as to whether or not we should engage with such a matter, but none-the-less, we are going ahead with it."

"Good for her," Kirk said to Riker. "I like the idea."

"As do I," Riker replied to Kirk. "Gathering from what I read, the Project Naissance committee will seek out worlds that face destruction, and send in teams to save the animal and plant life as best as they can."

Kirk was about to add something when S'vath spoke instead.

"It is indeed an interesting idea," S'vath said to Riker.

"Do really mean that?" Amanda asked S'vath, "Do you think your father would support such an idea?"

"One can never be too sure as to how my father, Spock, would decide on such a matter. Commander Riker, where are these rescued plant life and animals going to be taken too?"

Riker looked up at the screen, and S'vath and the others followed his gaze. On the screen was large spherical object.

"What you are looking at," Janeway announced to the audience, "is much larger than you think. It is called a Dyson-Sphere, and inside that spherical complex is a star with the inside of the sphere's surface at such a distance from the star so as to support life as we know it. This is the second such construct the Federation has come across, and thought not as large, this one is still usable. The plant life and animals we relocate from the destroyed worlds will be brought here, to this Dyson-sphere, which we have named Naissance…"

**Planet Talos-IV**

A small transport vessel landed on the forbidden world and the beautiful blond woman who had met with Spock, _(# 79: Shades of Yesterday)_ and was the granddaughter of Christopher Pike, exited the ship. She was greeted by the Keeper; the Talosian who, for lack of a better word, was the leader of the Talosians.

"Were you successful?" the Keeper asked. "Did the Vulcan do as you asked?"

"Yes," Elizabeth Pike replied. "Spock did what he was asked to do."

"I hope you are correct," the Keeper said, with a tinge of doubt. "Very soon our brethren will become stronger as they continued to grow out of their slumber. When that happens; all could be lost."

There was no reply from Elizabeth because she knew that the Keeper was right.

Continued…


	83. Iron Chef

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Iron Chef**

**USS ENTERPRISE in planetary orbit of ****Odyssey VI…an M-class planet dedicated to the preservation of life throughout the galaxy…**

Admiral Janeway and Captain James T Kirk made their way down one of the Enterprise's corridors having just beamed aboard the Enterprise.

"Your Project Naissance is quite ambitious," Kirk told Janeway, "and, from what little time I spent with him, I believe Dr. Bashir is just the man to help spearhead it."

"Thanks to that little stunt of his, he didn't have a choice; but thank you," Janeway replied to Kirk, "I know this may sound like I'm stroking your ego but…"

"Let me guess," Kirk said, cutting her off, "getting the approval of such a legend as Captain James T Kirk means a lot to you."

"Something along those lines," Janeway said with a whimsical smile.

"Well, Kate," Kirk said with his own smile, "like I told Ben Sisko, I have nothing but absolute respect for what Starfleet has become. There is absolutely no need for this generation to look for approval from the likes of me, or Spock, or anyone. And, besides, as I keep reminding everyone; I'm not that accomplished hero that everyone keeps referring to."

Janeway nodded her head, understanding what Kirk was trying to convey.

"Jim, this is hard to explain," she told him, "but the Jim Kirk who died on Veridian III had actually been missing for nearly eighty years himself. He vanished at a time when historical peace with the Klingons was just around the corner, and he was, even by that time, larger than life. And then, suddenly, he was back, and just as suddenly, taken away from us by a simple act of violence. And then, poof, here you are again, James T Kirk, alive and well. From your perspective I can only wonder what you're thinking. But from our point of view, your being here, yet again, defies the odds and, well, inspires much thought."

Kirk wanted to change the subject, not comfortable with so much adulation. The two entered the officer's mess and took a seat at one of the tables in the far corner. Kirk had gotten a cup of coffee from the row of heated beverages on the serving line, while Janeway had gotten a cup of tea.

"So, let me make another guess," Kirk said, "I suppose you would like the Enterprise to be part of Project Naissance. Am I right or wrong?"

"Right of course," Janeway said with a smile. "Starfleet is still trying to find a place to fit the Enterprise into, mission wise; so until that happens, I was hoping you and your crew would be willing to be part of the expeditionary fleet that will be needed to ferret out these endangered animals and plant life throughout the galaxy."

"Would this be in addition to exploration?" Kirk asked. "I'm sure the crew will have no problem helping your cause, but most of them, including myself, signed aboard to explore strange new worlds. Will we still be allowed to do that?"

Janeway sipped her tea, and nodded her head in the affirmative.

"Of course," Janeway replied. "Most of these assignments will be to parts of the galaxy we haven't even been to."

"Then count us in," Kirk finally said. "What about Riker and the Titan?"

"Captain Riker insisted that he and his crew be assigned to this project; however, the Titan has fleet commitments that will make her involvement, at least on a full time basis, far less certain. But with the Enterprise aboard, as well as four other starships, I am quite sure we can accomplish our task."

The two friends continued their discussion….

**Elsewhere on the Enterprise…**

Lt. Commander S'vath stood behind the Transporter machine control panel and looked at his mother, T'pring, as she prepared for beaming. Amanda stood next to her husband, S'vath, and looked at T'pring as well.

"Mother," S'vath said, "thank you for coming to the launch and staying aboard for as long as you have. It has been most agreeable seeing you again."

"It has been most agreeable seeing you as well," T'pring said back to S'vath, in her most cold and stoic manner. "It has been just as agreeable to see you as well; Amanda Grayson. However, I must return to Vulcan."

T'pring held up her hand and gave them the Vulcan hand salute, which they did as well. And then a moment later S'vath activated the Transporter and T'pring was gone.

"I didn't believe after what you had told me about her that I would have gotten along as well with her as I did. I hope we see her again; I like her. I didn't know she was such a great preparer of Vulcan foods. She left me the ingredients for most of the dishes she served us while she was here."

"That is a very good development," S'vath said.

"Wait a moment," Amanda said with mock anger in her eyes, "you don't like my cooking?"

S'vath knew that it was not wise to engage women on their ability to cook; even as sexist as such a thought would be perceived. It was it was.

"I assure you that I can find no issue with your culinary skills." (And who said Vulcans never lie?)

"You better not," Amanda said, after giving him a slight punch in the shoulder.

"And as for my mother; I would described her best as," S'vath thought for a moment as both he and Amanda exited the Transporter room, "complicated. I have learned to keep that in mind in all dealings with her."

"I don't know," Amanda told him as they made their way into a Turbo-lift, "I think that's your father speaking through you now. I think you need to have a more open mind. She is, after all is said and done, your mother."

The Turbo-lift doors closed, and then Amanda reached out and pressed the manual override controls on the panel, instantly stopping the lift from moving. She then embraced S'vath and they both kissed passionately, forgoing the Vulcan finger caressing.

"This will be our seventh time commandeering a Turbo-lift," he told her as their lips parted for a brief moment.

"We have no choice," Amanda said with lust in her eyes. "Just because we have a baby now doesn't mean my desires, or yours," she said as she pressed more into him, "have eased."

"Oh, do not get me wrong," S'vath said, as he lowered her to the floor of the Turbo-lift, "your logic is flawless. However, this time, we should try to hasten our pace."

Moments later, inside the sound proof walls of the Turbo-lift wall, S'vath and Amanda shared their need for intimacy. They were quite unaware that their recent increase for sexual intercourse was more than just the impulse of nature calling…something was involved and it had much to do not what T'pring was cooking; but what was going into the food.

-continued…


	84. New Directions

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**New Direction**

**USS ENTERPRISE in planetary orbit of Odyssey VI…an M-class planet dedicated to the preservation of life throughout the galaxy…**

The Enterprise was in final preparations to leave Odyssey VI as final crew additions arrived via transport vessels which had arrived from various parts of the Federation. Captain James T Kirk entered the bridge, and found the bridge crew hard at work preparing for departure. First Officer Nog was standing over at the helm in mid conversation with Commander Sulu, who was the Helmsman for the Enterprise. Kirk made his way down the lower bridge area.

"Captain," Nog said, noticing Kirk approaching, "I can report that the ship is good to go. All sections report nominal readiness, and await your final word for departure."

Kirk appreciated the Ferengi's over-effort at trying to be efficient. Nog came from a race of beings, Ferengi, who were not, at least as Kirk read it, accomplished in the ordered ways of space going as Starfleet officers were trained. Upon reading Nog's file, however, Kirk became quite convinced that Nog was one of Starfleet's most able officers, and had overcome many ordeals to get to where he was in his career.

"Thank you for the report, Mr. Nog," Kirk replied, sitting down in the command chair as he did, "but I have learned that any ship that has Captain Scott as its chief engineer, or even as a passenger, is never ready to go until he says it is ready to go."

Sulu chuckled.

"How true that is," Sulu said as he too prepped his station for departure.

Nog was unsure of what the comment had meant, and Kirk could see the perplexed look on the Ferengi's face.

"Nog," Kirk said softly, "it's nothing to fret about. Even Spock, as I am sure Sulu will tell you, had to wait for Scotty's final word of departure on many occasions."

Lt. Commander S'vath entered the bridge and headed down to his post, which was the Navigation post next to Sulu's helm. S'vath was not only the chief navigator but the tactical officer as well, both of which were executable from the navigation post.

"I'm glad to see you could make it," Kirk said to S'vath as the human/Vulcan hybrid sat down at his post, Kirk's voice lightened with sarcasm.

"Lenora was giving Amanda fits, and it would appear that on such occasions, only by my singing Vulcan hymns, can that child find rest."

"Vulcan hymns," Sulu said with wry grin, "one can only imagine what they sound like."

"Quite pleasant, I am told," S'vath added.

"Speaking of children," Nog said to Kirk, "when are your wife and son going to be arriving?"

"Thank you for asking Nog," Kirk replied, "but Myran (Myran is a grade-school teacher) wanted to be with her students for graduation back on Timus Prime (the world Kirk/Myran lived on before this story even started). But, hopefully she and little Mathew will join us down the line."

At that moment, and quite unexpectedly, Admiral Kate Janeway stepped out of the Turbo-lift.

"Kate," Kirk said, upon seeing her. He stood up and walked over to the Turbo-life as she stepped out of it. "You didn't have to come see us off like this; I know how busy you are with Project Naissance and all."

"Jim; we need to talk," Janeway said, with seriousness to her voice that denoted that she had worrisome information.

"Alright," Kirk said, as he shot a worried glance to Nog, Sulu and S'vath.

Kirk headed toward his ready room, with Janeway right behind him. The door opened, and they both walked in, the door swishing closed behind them.

"Well," Sulu said to Nog, "I guess you better make sure Scotty is ready to go," Sulu said to Nog. "If I know that look on the captain's face, we're about to get some new orders."

"I wonder what they're talking about." Nog asked.

S'vath cracked a small smile.

"Can't you hear them with those ears of yours?" S'vath asked.

Nog looked at S'vath's Vulcan ears.

"Can't you?" Nog asked right back as he headed for the Turbo-lift.

Sulu chuckled softly, enjoying the battle of the ears!

**Earth; Starfleet Academy**

The Golden Gate bridge was not only a bridge across the San Francisco bay, it was also a bridge into the future, or so that is how many of the cadets who attended Starfleet Academy perceived it to be. And as Benjamin Sisko looked at his daughter's wide smile, as she took in the view of the majestic bridge, he was glad that she seemed to understand the meaning of both.

"The bridge is so beautiful. I haven't seen it for real since we came here when I was four years old," Rebecca said to her father.

Both Benjamin Sisko and Rebecca stepped off of the transport ship which had brought them down through the atmosphere of Earth, and settled near the academy. Kasidy stepped off as well, as did Jake. It was in the early afternoon, and it was a bright sunny day.

"Jakeo," Ben said to his son, "processing Rebecca into the academy admin office is going to take awhile, so if you want to visit your friends over in New Orleans; go ahead. Just meet us back here in three hours or so."

"Nah, that's okay dad," Jake said, "I see enough of them when I come here. Maybe Kas and I can go get something to eat while you two wait in line at the academy."

Ben Sisko reached out and tugged lightly on Jake's shoulder length ponytail.

"Why don't you get a haircut while your getting a bite to eat," Ben said with a slight chuckle.

"Oh stop it," Kas said, slapping Ben's hand, "I like it."

"Me too," Rebecca added.

"I guess I'm out numbered," Ben said with remorse in his voice. "Anyway," Sisko said to Kasidy and Jake, "go ahead and grab a small bite but don't eat too much. Don't forget we're supposed to meet up with my sister and her husband for dinner in New York tonight and catch a show."

Kasidy hugged her daughter, and then headed off with Jake toward the shuttle pod landing bay near by.

"Alright young cadet," Sisko said to his daughter, "let's get you set up and then go enjoy your last night of freedom."

"Dad," Rebecca said to her father, with a tinge of nervousness in her voice, "are you sure I can do this?"

"You bet you can," Sisko said, as he held her hand and they made their way toward the receiving admin office. "You've got both your mom's and my DNA which means; you can do anything."

"I hope I get posted on Jim Kirk's ship," Rebecca said with a slight glee in her eyes.

"Now listen to me," Ben said, "Jim Kirk is married man, and he's much older than you. You need to find men your own age, and being in Starfleet is a great place to meet new friends."

"I'm just kidding about Jim," Rebecca said with a giggle, "but it would still be cool to get posted to his Enterprise."

"From what I hear," Ben said in response to her words, "Jim's Enterprise is becoming the most sought after posting. It may not be so easy to get posted there as you think."

"Except for the fact that he is a family friend, and you could convince him," Rebecca said, batting her eyelids as she spoke.

"Oh be quiet," Ben said, "and lets get going."

The two Siskos headed into the admin office.

Continued…


	85. Not Again

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Not again…**

**USS ENTERPRISE in planetary orbit of Odyssey VI…an M-class planet dedicated to the preservation of life throughout the galaxy…**

Admiral Janeway and Captain Kirk made their way into the ready room off to the right of the main bridge. Kirk sat down on the desktop and looked up at Janeway.

"What's this all about Kate?" Kirk asked his good friend.

Janeway gave him a slightly worried look, but then smiled and tried her best to shake it.

"We may have an incident brewing that I would like the Enterprise to look into," she told him calmly. "About twelve hours ago I received an urgent coded message from Starfleet. As you know or may not know, Starfleet constructed a net of observation posts around the Planet- Killer; the Robot device that you encountered during your original Five-year mission."

"Yes, I do recall reading about that net a couple years ago," Kirk told her, "and I wasn't too thrilled to find out recently, when I was there last year, that the net of a hundred or so observation probes had been decimated down to just one."

"Jim," Janeway began to explain, "Nothing ever came of it. The science teams never found anything of importance, and so, over time, those resources, meaning the manpower and material, were needed for other vital concerns, such as wars with the Cardassians, Klingons, the Dominion and the ongoing Borg threat."

"Nothing ever came of it," Kirk repeated her words, "until now," he added.

Janeway gave him a weary glance and then walked over to the view port on the far side of the ready room. She gazed out at the planet below, and then back at Kirk.

"Well, for all we know, it may be nothing at all," she told him.

"What has happened?" Kirk asked, as he went around his desk and sat down.

Janeway came over to the desk and sat down across from Kirk.

"The coded message I received was brief, however, it stated that Starfleet hasn't received a message, or message traffic, from the two man crew in over two weeks. Its official designation, by the way, is Observation Probe VII-E7-RGEL-33F-7100. The subspace beacon, which is in constant observation, is still active, just no word from the crew. I would like you to take the Enterprise and investigate the situation."

"Why the Enterprise?" Kirk asked. "Admiral, I have to think there are more powerful vessels available that can handle this situation, as you call it. The Enterprise barely made it out of there in one piece. It took the detonation of Matt Decker's ship, the Constellation, to stop that thing last time. This ship we're on now is of that same class. There must have been advances made in later ship designs that could be of more use if indeed there is more of situation than we currently believe going on there."

"Not as much advancement as you would think," Janeway told him. "This ship may still be a Constitution-class Starship, but its weaponry has been updated as has its shielding. But I am not so much sending the Enterprise there as I am Captain James T Kirk. You, along with Captain Sulu and Captain Scott, have seen this thing in action before. I can think of no better crew to send there than this one."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"I guess if Spock were here he would say that your reasoning is logical," Kirk finally said.

"I would hope so," she added with a smile.

"If Bones were here he'd say you're crazy," Kirk added as well. "In any event," Kirk said as he stood up and came over to her, "we'll go."

"Just promise me you will be careful," Janeway said, "and don't do any of those crazy stunts you're famous for."

Kirk chuckled, and with all seriousness asked…

"Me? Crazy stunts?"

* * *

An hour later the Enterprise was traveling at warp speed. Kirk sat in his ready room as the door slid open. Captain Sulu, Captain Scott, Commander Nog and Commander S'vath entered.

"Alright," Scotty said to Kirk, "when are you going to come down and inspect engineering?"

"All in good time Captain Scott," Kirk said with a smile, "go ahead and take a seat."

They each sat down in one of the chairs.

"I guess you're about to tell us why Admiral Janeway came to see us off," Nog said to Kirk.

"Yes, I am," Kirk replied. Then he looked over to Scotty and Sulu. "We're going to go visit an old friend," Kirk told them.

"I wouldn't think there would be too many of them alive these days," Scotty said.

"Unfortunately, in this case, there is." Kirk said, in a weary tone.

Kirk pressed a button on his desk and then, the view screen which was mounted on the wall above and behind where he sat, came to life and showed an image of the Planet-killer.

The tension in the room amped up slightly.

"Ahhhh... shit," Scotty said as he shook his head, upon seeing the Planet-killer. "Not again. We were just there a year ago and everything was fine."

Kirk filled them in with what Janeway had told him.

"They should never have taken that net down," Sulu said. "I remember, over the years, reading reports on the drawdown and shaking my head each time."

"We're they daft?" Scotty asked.

"Captain, in Starfleet's defense," S'vath began to say, "that thing never seemed to pose a problem and the wars Admiral Janeway mentioned did need resources and manpower."

"And if I recall correctly," Nog added, "one of those observation probes was redistributed somewhere else and was one of the first probes to detect the second Borg cube that invaded Federation."

"That's right," S'vath said. "That was the Borg cube that had gone back into time and had led to the assimilation of Earth."

"Well, regardless," Kirk said to them both, "we're being sent to investigate." Kirk shifted his glance over to Sulu. "Go ahead and change course," and then he looked at Scotty, "if that thing is on the rampage again, we may need to do maneuvers like we did last time. Moves that I am quite sure were not loaded into this ship's memory core."

"Ahh, but sir," Scotty said to Kirk, "this time you and I will be on the Enterprise, not acting like cheerleaders on the sidelines."

"Mr. Scott; I hope it doesn't come to that this time," Kirk said with a smile. "Dismissed," he added for Scotty and the others."

Kirk watched as his command crew stood up and headed for the door.

"Commander Nog," Kirk said, "Would you please remain for a moment?"

Scotty, S'vath and Sulu exited the ready room, as Nog turned around to face Kirk.

"Is there something else sir?" Nog asked Kirk.

Kirk stood up and came over to the young Ferengi.

"Have you ever heard of a white-rabbit?" Kirk asked.

"Umm, if I recall, rabbits are rodent like creatures from Earth." Nog replied.

"It is also a legal term," Kirk explained. "You may or may not know, but when I first made it to this time I took on an alias; Robert Crane. Well, as it turned out, I researched my alias as well as the fake history that the Federation had created for my new name. It turned out that Robert Crane had a brother named Denny. Denny, as it turned out, was a lawyer on Rigel-7."

"Umm, sir," Nog said, "didn't you just say that the history they had created for your alias wasn't real?" Nog asked.

"Yes indeed; it was all fabricated." Kirk said, as he went back over to his desk and sat down. "But, in order to convince others that my alias, Robert Crane, was real, I had to convince myself. And so, as it turned out, my fake brother, Denny, being a lawyer and all, was known to have been one who resorted to white-rabbit defenses while pressing his cases."

"What does this have to do with me?" Nog asked. "Do I need a lawyer?"

Kirk smiled.

"No, Commander Nog, you do not need a lawyer," Kirk said to him. "What we all need right now is a white-rabbit. Call it an unexpected twist we can fall back onto if needed. I want you to send a coded subspace message. The message will, I hope, give us a white-rabbit defense."

"Who am I sending this message to?" Nog asked.

"Good question," Kirk began to say, "I want you to send the message to my good friend…"

* * *

As the Enterprise sped toward the Planet-Killer, another ship was just arriving at that destination. There was only one person on the small scout class vessel, and his name was Spock…


	86. So Much Hate

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**So Much Hate…**

**Starfleet Academy…on Earth**

Rebecca Sisko had only said goodbye to her parent's just moments earlier; and now, after officially checking in, she found herself in her quarters. She was unpacking her belonging when the door to her quarters slid open and another girl entered, no doubt her roommate. Rebecca stood up to greet the other girl.

"Hello there," Rebecca said, "I guess we're going be roommates."

The other girl had straight black hair which was combed back in a very ordinary manner. And for a girl who was as young as Rebecca was in appearance, the girl a very plain look about her in terms of fashion and mannerisms. Rebecca looked at her roommate and felt that there was something slightly different about the other girl.

"Yes," the other girl finally replied, "if you are Rebecca Ann Sisko, then we are to be indeed; roommates," and then her lips slid apart in what could only have been described as a forced smile. Her tone of voice was, to Rebecca, spoken with a slight monotone quality.

"Umm," Rebecca said, still with a smile on her face, "I am Cadet Rebecca Sisko; who might you be."

The other girl blinked her eyes several times, and had a very astonished look on her face.

"You do not know who I am?" the other girl asked in an almost surprised tone of voice.

"Umm," Rebecca said, searching for the right words to say, "Unless we've met before, and I have forgotten, then no; I do not know who you are. So, umm, have we met before?"

"No; we have not met before," the other girl replied.

Rebecca's mind was doing cartwheels.

"Okay," Rebecca finally said, "this is getting very awkward. If we haven't met before then how do you know who I am, and how come I don't know who you are?"

The other girl gave Rebecca a perplexed look.

"Did you not familiarize yourself with who your roommate would be?" the girl asked.

"No, I'm sorry, I didn't. But apparently you did, so that explains how you know who I am," Rebecca replied with. "I've seen some crazy shit the past year or so, so excuse me if I am on edge."

"You are the daughter of Benjamin and Kasidy Sisko. You were born on May 1, 2…"

"Wait a second there," Rebecca said, "you know my birthday? Don't you think you're taking this roommate business a bit too far?"

"I am sorry if it seems I have invaded your privacy," the other girl said. "My name is Lal, and I am the daughter of late Starfleet- officer; Lt. Commander Data."

"Lt. Commander Data?" Rebecca whispered back, as she recalled her father telling her about the android who had served with Admiral Picard for many years.

"Did you know my father?" Lal asked in quizzically.

"No," Rebecca said with a pleasant smile, "but my father met him on a couple occasions."

Lal smiled and opened up a duffle bag.

"My father was a great person," Lal said, as she removed a hologram picture of Data, which was suspended inside of a liquid frame, and set it on the desk on her side of the room.

Rebecca came over and looked at the picture.

"Yes he was," Rebecca nodded in agreement. "When my high-school class was studying cybernetics, my father was able to contact Commander Geordi Leforge and asked him to come and speak to us about your father," Rebecca, "and he also ended up talking to us about you. I thought your father was forced to deactivate you after your matrix suffered a cascade failure."

"Yes Rebecca," Lal replied, "he was. As it turned out…"

As Lal relayed the story to Rebecca as to how she was reconstituted, they were both unaware that the door to the room had remained opened. They were also unaware of the other two girls who were listening in on the conversation.

One of them was a human girl. Her hair was braided back behind her shoulders, and her name was Renee. The other girl was also human. Her exotic oriental features were accentuated by an immaculate application of makeup. Her name was Azami.

"That girl is a robot," Renee said softly.

"Not a robot; android," Azami corrected her friend. "I think it is foolish for Starfleet to allow androids to be among us as if being here made them just ordinary biological beings, like us, trying to better themselves."

"I don't see a problem with it," Renee countered.

"Look, Renee," Azami said, with a snooty look on her face. "Are you my friend or not?"

Renee smiled.

"Why do you have to get so defensive?" Renee asked.

"I'm just asking," Azami said."Because, I swear to you now, I'm going to make that android's life miserable if she thinks she can come to the academy and fit in with us normal girl. And if that other bitch gets in my way," Azami added, "I'll make her life a living hell too. So," Azami said to Renee, "are you with me or against me."

Renee smiled.

"I'm with you," Renee said back to her friend.

Renee also fought the urge to lean in and kiss her friend Azami. It had been a growing desire since the two girls had met the night before at Starfleet administration. Perhaps another chance would come later, or at least, that was Renee's hope.

**Planet Vulcan**

**The mountain side home of T'pring...**

T'pring materialized inside of her home having just returned to Vulcan after her two week visit with her son Lt. Commander S'vath on the Enterprise. Sybok was there to greet her.

"How was your stay with S'vath?" Sybok asked.

"It was most unfortunate that his wife, that human tramp, gave birth to a daughter. However, seeing my son pleased me. He has done well for himself."

"What about Spock?" Sybok asked. "Did you see my brother?"

T'pring nodded.

"Oh yes, he was there, as was the new Kirk," she said in a cold manner. "I could see them both staring at me with their condescending eyes."

Sybok could feel her anger, his mind literally feeding off of the negative energy, and then he held her close to him.

"In time, my child, in time," Sybok told her. "Did you accomplish the other reason you went to see your son?"

T'pring nodded, reached into her pocket, and retrieved a vile of liquid.

"You're sure that it will work?" T'pring asked Sybok.

Sybok smiled; it was clear he was confident the mysterious liquid would indeed "work".

-continued…


	87. Spock's Mind War

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Spock's Mind War**

Spock maneuvered the tiny scout-class vessel to a point alongside observation probe VII-E7-RGEL-33F-7100, with the ominous figure of the Planet-killer in the near distance. He stood up from the command cockpit and retrieved a phaser and a Tricorder from one of the storage compartment. He made his way back to the small craft and to the small one-man transporter chamber. He worked the controls, which were mounted inside of the small chamber, and then beamed away.

As Spock rematerialized inside of the small two-person observation probe he instantly recognized the Vulcan construction designs. While many of its original panels, walls and other aspects had been altered since the probe's construction, the basic outline had remained the same. He reached for the Tricorder that hung around his should and was draped down to his side. The Tricorder itself was one of the modern versions, but built with-in the frame of an old style 23rd century Tricorder. Spock had received much ribbing from the late Leonard McCoy for holding on to such nostalgia, but Spock argued that his use of the old style Tricorder was practical. Of course McCoy would just rib him even more, but, with McCoy no longer alive, Spock missed his old friend and longed for the ribbing again. But, alas, time marched on.

For several moments Spock scanned for life signs, but could find none. He made his way through the common living area and as he did, his worry was rewarded. The conditions of the living spaces were obviously the result of wanton violence. Blood stains were on the floor, as well as the furniture. The foul odor of human waste came from one of the far corner. Spock walked over to the far corner and found several mounds of dried feces. He squatted down and scanned the mounds and shook his head as the Tricorder displayed its findings; the feces were comprised of human DNA fragments, and that of what appeared to be Pakled DNA, as well as Vulcan. The readings concluded that the waste had come from the Vulcan and that this Vulcan, who was also the murderer of the human and Pakled victims, had eaten them as well, and on top of that had, had forgone the use of the waste facilities. Spock surmised that the killer had negated using the waste facility due to either hysteria or the unfamiliar use of them. As he made his way through the rest of the observation probe he came to the conclusion that the Vulcan who had committed the carnage was no longer aboard. He made his way to the probe's main computer station, which was in the small control section where several instruments were arrayed, chiefly among them being several messaging relay devices.

As the threat of the Planet-killer reactivating had faded over the centuries, Starfleet decided to turn the probe into a message relaying center. The area space where the Planet-killer was located was in interstellar space near the Rigel systems, and was an optimum place to situate a message relay post. Spock sat down at the probe's main computer station. He would use the tactical recordings to try and piece together what had happened, but as his fingers dances across the antiquated keyboard, his eyes looked up at the main viewing screen, and more specifically at the object in space that the main screen was constantly displaying; the Planet-killer. Spock remembered all too well the events surrounding the first time he and the crew of the Enterprise had encountered it originally.

The Enterprise had come across a string of destroyed solar systems. Eventually the USS Constellation was found adrift in one of the destroyed solar systems, with only the ship's captain and close friend of Captain James T Kirk, the highly decorated Commodore Matt Decker, found to still be alive the wrecked ship.

Eventually the Enterprise encountered the Planet-killer, which was deemed to be the last remnant of a long ago war. The device was miles long and practically invincible. Captain Kirk was nearly killed when, with the help of Montgomery Scott, he successfully induced an impulse engine overload and exploded the discarded Constellation inside of the Planet-killer.

Spock studied the data displayed on the screen. The two person crew currently assigned to the probe was comprised of a Vulcan female, Lt. Commander T'av, and her subordinate, Lt. Michael Donovan. The records of each officer, which were stored on the computer, were standard and also contained a DNA scan for medical purposes. Acting on a hunch, Spock compared the DNA scan from the feces he had scanned earlier with the two crew members and found a match with both. He concluded correctly that Lt. Commander T'av and not only killed Lt. Donovan, but had consumed him as well.

Further investigation of the automated computer logs also helped Spock conclude that a Pakled trading vessel happened by and that T'av had killed a Pakled who had beamed over to the probe, and then she herself beamed over to the Pakled vessel and had departed the area.

For the whole time since Spock had arrived in the system, and had beamed over to the probe, Spock was sublimely aware of the fact that his observations were themselves being observed. His father, Sarek, had been one of Vulcan's most achieved telepaths and had mastered the Vulcan mind more than most would ever achieve in a lifetime. Through the years, before he had passed away, Sarek had helped Spock train his own mind, and with that training, he had helped Spock compartmentalize aspects of awareness. So, as Spock sat at the computer post, reading the data displayed, he was quite aware of the fact that someone, or something else, was also inside of his mind and was unaware that Spock knew. Spock had no doubt where the mind invaders were coming from because it was no accident he had come to this area of space in the first place. The mind invaders were aboard the Planet-killer.

Spock hadn't just arrived in the area by chance, he had been sent there on a covert mission by beings he had not encountered for quite some time. The beings who existed on a planet called Talos IV.

* * *

The three aliens were located in the deep bowels of the Planet-killer in a dark and musty area. They had been inside their musty surroundings for eons upon eons. They had recently tasted the emotions of life (T'av and her violent actions as SAVVY readers will recall) and simple consumption of emotion, while fulfilling their desires, what not the only reason they had wakened. They were on a mission to find those who had fled their world and destroy them, or die trying. And as they scanned the mind of the simple being they were currently observing, they came to an unmistakable understanding; the mind of the simple being had been touched by those they were seeking to find and destroy.

* * *

Spock made his way out of the control area and decided to return to the scout-class vessel. But with each step he took he could sense that the invaders of his mind were beginning to find ways into the areas of his mind he had closed off from them. And it became more apparent to Spock that with each breath that he took, he was closer to being totally compromised. There was only one thing to do to prevent that.

With no other option left to him, Spock withdrew the phaser from his pocket, placed it up to his head, and pulled the trigger!

Continued…


	88. In the name of Love

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**In the name of Love…**

**Earth; Starfleet Academy…**

Loud music blared out as dozens of new Starfleet recruits danced their last night of 'freedom' away. It was the annual cadet ball and being a mandatory event, every new cadet was present and all sorts of fashions were on display. From the traditional human attire, to the most exotic alien tastes, the pulsating strobe lights lighted up a fashion parade perhaps not equal in variety across the known galaxy.

Being that most of the cadets were young, and single, it was as much as a social event as it was an official function. Needless to say, flirting was a bound, slightly hidden by the undulating lights mixed with darkness. Opposite sex flirting to same sex flirting, to interspecies flirting, it didn't matter. In the 24th century, for the most part, IDIC had reached new heights; at least, for most. Even a Horta could be seen weaving its way through the crowded dance stage. A band of varying species was up on the stage blaring out their music to the crowd that enjoyed the music. The female lead singer, a human with long black hair, wore a very slinky outfit that strategically covered her attributes.

Although the youth enjoyed the music which inspired a myriad of gyrations; the cadets also calmed somewhat and applauded when the live band left the stage. It was then that a giant rotating ball of mirrored fractals came down from the ceiling of the giant ball room, creating a sparkling sensation throughout the dance hall. A small band combo, consisting of a base player, a drummer, and a jazz guitarist, as well as a sax player and a lone singer, emerged from the closed red curtain at the back of the stage. The singer was wearing outfit that, like him and the combo set, was a tribute to a long ago time. Many of the educational staff who were present actually had known the singer quite well, and were glad that the blaring loud music was about to be replaced, albeit if only for a few short moments, by the more satisfying sounds of Vic Fontaine.

"Hello kids," Vic said, all decked out in a three piece tuxedo. "I was watching some of your dance moves backstage, and I have to tell you," Vic continued to say, "that my hips are hurting just from looking at what I saw."

The gathered throng laughed at the humor.

"But seriously folks," Vic told them all, "this is the seventh year that the Starfleet Academy has asked my band and I to perform a few classics from a bygone era, and trust me, we are all most appreciative. Besides," Vic added with a wry smile, "the fifty bucks we're each getting will be recycled back into the school funds about ten minutes after the five of us visit the open bar over there."

The crowd laughed again.

The crowd cheered loudly as Vic began to sing the slow dancing inducing classic song "Summer Wind".

_The summer wind came blowin' in  
From across the sea  
It lingered there to touch your hair  
And walk with me_

All summer long  
we sang a song  
And then we strolled that golden sand  
Two sweethearts and the summer wind

Like painted kites, those days and nights  
They went flying by  
The world was new beneath the blue  
Umbrella sky

Then softer than a piper man  
One day, it called to you  
I lost you I lost you to  
The summer wind

The autumn wind  
And the winter winds  
They have come and gone  
And still those days  
Those lonely days  
They go on and on  
And guess whos sigh`s  
His lullabies through nights that never end  
My fickled friend,  
The summer wind  
The summer wind warm summer wind  
Mmm the summer wind

Even though most of the cadets listened to the popular musicians of the time, most of them had heard of Vic Fontaine and his band. Vic had been very successful in bringing back the Big Band sound from over 400 years in the past. The sounds of the Glen Miller Band and the voice of Frank Sinatra, as well as Vic's take on the songs of the era, had become must have items in most people's music collections.

After three more songs, and to a loud and stirring applause, Vic and his band left the stage and soon the melodic sounds and undulating rhythms of modern music invaded the hall once again. Cadet Lal was sitting at one of the dining tables, alone, when suddenly another cadet sat down next to her. His name was Mateo, and it was pretty much known that of all the cadets, his "star" was the one to beat. He was of Japanese descent, and his entry exams had set records. And for all of his success he was a very "down to Earth" individual.

"Hello there," Mateo said to Lal.

"Hello to you," Lal said, in her usual pleasant tone. "You are Cadet Hiram Mateo. I congratulate you on your entrance exam. I am quite sure that you will excel in your Starfleet career."

"Thank you," Mateo said with a genuine smile. "However, there was one cadet here who scored even higher, and it was you." He bowed his head in honor. "Thank you, and I must say, Sei'kou to you. And may your flower bloom forever; cadet Lal."

Mateo smiled at Lal, stood up, and made his way through the crowded hall. Lal's short conversation with Mateo, however, had not gone un-noticed. Azami and her friend, or lapdog in other words, Renee, had watched the conversation from several tables over, and Azami did not like what she had seen. Because, as fate would have it, Azami, realizing that Mateo was a rising star on the social ladder, had set her eyes on the young man and was determined to make sure everyone else was aware of her aspirations, concerning Mateo. Azami watched as Lal stood up and made her way to the lavatory. Azami stood up.

"Where are you going?" Renee asked, as she remained seated.

"I'm going tell that robot to stay away from Mateo, and that he belongs to me." Azami said, with anger flaring in her eyes.

Azami made her way through the crowded dance hall, and finally arrived at the lavatory and entered. There were several other girls inside the lavatory, Lal among them, and they were all standing before the wall length mirror applying makeup or other cosmetic adjustments. Lal was brushing her hair next to an Andorian female. When the Andorian female finally left, Azami zoomed over and stood at the mirror as well, right next to Lal.

"Your name is Lal, right," Azami asked.

"Yes, that is my name designation," Lal said, as she looked at the beautiful Asian woman who stood next to her. "May I help you?"

"Let me give you some advice," Azami said, as she looked at Lal, who stood two inches shorter than her. The other girls, there were five of them, who were standing before the mirror and were brushing their hair, or applying makeup, could all hear the condescending quality in Azami's voice.

"I am sorry," Lal said back to Azami, "however; what are you giving me advice on?"

"You don't even have a real vagina," Azami said, as she looked over Lal. "Everyone knows who and what you are. And despite what your kind may believe, most of us real people consider you nothing more that walking mannequins, or, for someone like Mateo, a glorified sexual tool."

At that instant, Rebecca Sisko entered the lavatory. And immediately she could since the tension inside of the lavatory, and she could see the other girls staring at the growing confrontation between Azami and Lal.

"I am not sure what you mean," Lal replied to Azami.

"What I mean," Azami restated, "is that I want you to stay away from Mateo; do you understand me you walking toaster!"

"Or what?" came from a voice that was standing behind Azami.

Azami instantly turned around to face the girl who dared to challenge her and found Rebecca Sisko glaring back at her…

Next time…it's a Catfight!


	89. For Everything

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**For Everything…**

"There is something definitely wrong with this picture," Captain James T Kirk said the moment the USS Enterprise came out or orbit. "Where is she?" Kirk asked as he stared up at the screen from his command chair. He angled his gaze down to Sulu who was sitting at the helm and reciprocated Kirk's worried gaze with a worried gaze of his own.

The Planet- Killer was gone. On more than one occasion, nightmares of his first encounter with the Planet-Killer had roused Kirk from sleep through the past five years since it had happen. For Sulu, Scotty, and even Spock, the events of that first encounter were all but distant memories due to the fact that the three of them had lived beyond that point by several decades. For Jim Kirk, five years ago wasn't that long ago at all. Jim Kirk had actually returned to this place a year earlier during the Project Diamond affair, but it was only for a brief time, and, a year ago, the Planet-Killer was still hanging in space; nothing more than a remnant of history. But now, upon his second return visit, the Planet-killer was gone, and more to the point, possibly nearby.

"Red Alert; battle stations," Kirk said.

Nog, who was standing to the left of Kirk's command chair, repeated the order as the alert klaxon began to blare. All at once the entire crew of the ship went into full gear.

"Alright people," Nog said to the bridge crew, as they hustled about and made standard preparation for battle-stations, "you heard the Captain; this is no drill." Nog had also tapped his com badge and his orders were carried throughout the ship.

Lt. Commander S'vath, who manned the new tactical post which was situated behind Kirk on the upper level, was fast at work as well.

"Captain, the sensors are detecting a Federation scout-class vessel on the other side of the observation probe," S'vath reported. And before Kirk could respond, S'vath added another interesting fact. "I am also detecting life signs on the probe itself; a Vulcan life form, near death."

"Beam the Vulcan directly to sickbay," Kirk said, as he stood up and headed for the Turbo-lift.

Nog met Kirk at the Turbo-life door.

"Your orders sir," Nog asked.

Kirk surveyed the bridge crew and was satisfied with Nog's efficient ability to get them prepared.

"You've got the bridge, Commander Nog," Kirk said. "If anyone knows what happened to the Planet-killer, I'm hoping the Vulcan will, and I want to be there the moment they're revived. If that Planet-killer happens to return, don't fight; you punch this ship into warp speed a half second later."

"A quarter second later sir," Nog assured Kirk.

"Jim; why not fight it?" S'vath asked. "The new phasers and quantum-torpedoes might be all that we need."

Kirk pondered S'vath's plan, but shook his head in disagreement.

"Perhaps," Kirk said, "but not one on one." He pivoted and looked over at the communication's post, which was manned by Lt. Davek, the female Cardassian who was the ship's communications officer. "Lt. Davek, send our status to Starfleet immediately."

"Aye sir," Davek replied.

Then Kirk looked directly at Sulu.

"You know what to do if it happens, old friend," Kirk said to Sulu.

"Evasive actions and warp speed," Sulu replied with a smile, having been at the helm all those decades ago.

And with that, Kirk entered the Turbo-lift…

**Earth; Starfleet Command**

**The Cadet Ball….**

The dance floor of the ballroom was cluttered with groups of cadets dancing to the throbbing beat of the music. Rebecca Sisko, who had been dancing with a Cardassian Cadet, made her way towards the lavatory. When she entered she came upon what was unquestionably a tense situation. Several other girls were just watching as Lal was backed up against the far wall, and Azami was pointing a finger at her.

"Everyone knows who and what you are. And despite what your kind may believe, most of us real people consider you nothing more that walking mannequins, or, for someone like Mateo, a glorified sexual tool."

"I am not sure what you mean," Lal replied to Azami.

"What I mean," Azami restated, "is that I want you to stay away from Mateo; do you understand me you walking toaster!"

"Or what?" came from a voice that was standing behind Azami.

Azami instantly turned around to face the girl who dared to challenge her and found Rebecca Sisko glaring back at her.

"Stay out of this," Azami shot back at Rebecca. "This isn't your business. This is between me and it."

Rebecca stepped further into the lavatory until her face was inches from Azami's face.

"I'm making it my business," Rebecca said with attitude. "Lal is my friend, which means when you talk to her like that, you're talking to me like that."

Azami flashed an arrogant smile.

"Don't go up against me," Azami said, "in case you haven't gotten the memo, I'm the number one bitch in this academy. My father is a high-ranking official in the Federation. All I have to do is snap my fingers and I can make your life a living hell."

"You go ahead and snap those fingers of yours," Rebecca fired right back, "I know people too, and trust me, if they found out you were messing with their dead friend's daughter, they will swoop down on you so fast, you wouldn't see it coming."

Azami could feel the glances of the other girls on her and Rebecca, and then she looked back at Lal.

"You heard what I had to say," Azami said to Lal, "it's up to you how you want to play this."

Azami stepped around Rebecca, and when joined by Renee, she exited the lavatory; the crisis was over. Rebecca walked over to Lal as the rest of the girls went about their business.

"You did not have to do that," Lal said. "I do not want to be the center of attraction."

"I know," Rebecca said with a smile. "But I can't let people like her stomp all over other people, especially when it's one of my friends they are stomping on."

"She has many friends here, human friends who may feel the same way she does," Lal said.

"Not as many as you might think," Rebecca corrected Lal. "Your father's quest for equal justice for android life forms are required reading for many students now. Unfortunately there will always be a select few, like Azami, who refuse to allow change. Now, come on," Rebecca said, "that guy I saw you sitting with earlier returned to your table and you were gone; I think he likes you."

"But Azami has claimed him," Lal reminded Rebecca.

"Honey," Rebecca said, "the days when people could claim other people with just simple words have long since passed." Rebecca retrieved a stick of lipstick and glided it across Lal's lips. "Alright, now; let's go get him…"

And with that done; the two friends, who were also the last two remaining in the lavatory, exited and returned to the dance. Just seconds after the door swished closed, five Jem'Hadar warriors, fully armed, beamed into the lavatory….

**USS ENTERPRISE**

**Deep space, near the Rigel system...**

Jim Kirk made his way down the active corridors where officers and crew hustled in different directions as the ship's crew continued to prepare for battle. Finally arriving at sickbay, Kirk entered. He was greeted by Dr. Amanda Grayson, S'vath's wife and chief Surgeon of the Enterprise.

"Captain," Amanda said in a nervous manner, "S'vath told me you were on your way."

"Where is the Vulcan?" Kirk asked.

Amanda stood between Kirk and the entrance into the med-bed area.

"Sir, Captain," Amanda said, "I should let you know first that the Vulcan is near death, and may not live through the night."

"Understood," Kirk told Amanda, "but doctor, that Vulcan is the only one who might know what happened here."

"I understand," Amanda said, "but if you order me to revive the patient to hastily you might lessen their chance to live."

Kirk thought of what had just been said to him, but pressed on.

"It is a chance we may have to take," Kirk told her.

"Alright," Amanda said, as she stepped out of the way of Kirk, knowing what Kirk was about to see for himself.

Kirk pushed past Amanda and entered the med-bed area and was surprised at who the patient was who held the answers he seeked, but also faced death.

Spock...

Continued…


	90. Elizabeth

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Elizabeth**

The trickling sound of a small stream was all she heard, which was just fine with her. But as she walked along the dirt path that winded its way through the calmness of the country landscape, her bare feet cushioned by soft grass, she could soon see several birds, their chirps starting to become audible, which when blended with the trickling stream, made the scenery around her that much more beautiful. In her left hand she held two roses, which she had plucked from a garden which was located not far from where she was. Finally, after several more moments of walking along the path, she came upon her destination; two marked tombstones. She finally came to a stop just before the slaps of marble. One of them was labeled Christopher Pike; the other was labeled Vina Pike. The woman set a rose atop each tombstone.

"You miss them, don't you?" A voice said from behind her.

The woman, Elizabeth, turned around to face the voice. The voice belonged to a being she had known her entire life; a being she called the Keeper.

"Yes I do," Elizabeth replied with a smile.

"It is most fortunate that you are sharing those feelings of loss with us," the Keeper said, as it smiled back at her. "The emotion is pure and real; we are appreciative."

Elizabeth turned back around to look at her parent's tombstones. She felt a tear tracing down her right cheek. She fought back the urge to cry, and just absorbed the moment.

"Even though I know for certain that none of this, the sky-the flowers-the tombstones themselves, exist in reality; I still find so much comfort being here."

"When we constructed this memory, this menagerie of where your parents were buried, we did so knowing that in the future you would wish to experience it, thus, giving us back nourishment. We are pleased to have known it has given you comfort and us sustenance."

Elizabeth closed her eyes, and saw many real memories of her parents. She had been born on the planet Talos IV and had lived her entire life on the desolate world. At first, before she was ever aware of it, she was raised by her parents inside of what could only be described as an observation room. The beings who lived on Talos IV fed off of the emotions of others. Both of Elizabeth's parents were humans, like her.

Her father was Christopher Pike. At some point in his life he had become disfigured in a dreadful incident, his body being bathed with radiation that nearly killed him. He was eventually brought back to Talos IV, a world he had visited before. The Keeper had offered him a life inside of a menagerie of memories, created by the beings on Talos IV. In exchange for letting them feed off of his emotions, elicited by the various situations they would create around him, they would allow him to live a natural life.

Elizabeth's mother, Vina, had also been brought to the world. She too was just a human existing inside a shell of a body. Vina and Christopher Pike eventually fell in love, and provided the telepathic beings of Talos IV decades of emotions. And when Elizabeth was born, out of the love between Christopher and Vina; an entire new level of emotions were provided for both the parents of the child, and the beings who existed off of their emotions. The relationship between the humans and beings of Talos IV might have been considered parasitic to some; but for Christopher Pike and his wife Vina, the relationship between them and the Talosians was one of a symbiotic nature.

"I just hope where ever they are," Elizabeth said with a soft voice, "they are there together."

And then, in an instant, the entire setting was gone, and Elizabeth and the Keeper stood inside an observation platform in the main area study area of the control complex.

"Unfortunately," the Keeper explained, "we do not believe that life continues after this existence, thus, we cannot garner any benefit in your belief that there is."

"That is your loss," Elizabeth said with a compassionate smile. "With so few of you left, one might think your thoughts on that subject would have changed by now."

The Keeper smiled.

"Our beliefs, our ways, have been part of our existence for many thousands of years; we cannot find change so quickly."

Elizabeth accompanied the Keeper as they both exited the observation chamber. The chamber itself had undergone so little change, and had actually been the same chamber that Elizabeth's father found himself a prisoner so long ago.

"Has there been any contact with Spock yet?" Elizabeth asked.

"Regrettably no," the Keeper replied. "Due to the proximity of our brethren we have curtailed using our telepathy beyond this general area. To risk any further use beyond would draw attention upon us."

"So that destroyer of planets you have warned me about could be out there destroying worlds, while trying to find you and the others? Why don't you contact the Federation for help?" Elizabeth asked.

"That would not be wise. Our abilities must not only stay hidden from those who are hunting for us, but also basic beings such as humans. Either could manipulate our abilities and cause far more harm to the beings of this galaxy than the destroyer of planets. Spock has to be successful in his endeavor. Both he and the one known as Kirk must come to Talos IV and accomplish what must be done before we are found."

"And you're positive that what must be done," Elizabeth added, "is to utterly destroy this planet; and you along with it."

The Keeper nodded.

"It is the only way, child. We do not have the means to destroy ourselves; our only hope is that the beings known as Kirk and Spock will."

"What will happen to me when you are gone? I've lived my entire life here," Elizabeth asked the Keeper.

"You will go live with your own kind," the Keeper said with a smile. "We always knew this day would come and now it has."

Elizabeth knew that there was no other way. She also knew that if she did leave Talos IV that she would be taking something with her…

And so it was a waiting game, and a race. Spock would have to get Kirk to join him in an effort to destroy Tales IV, as well as the Talosians, without anyone knowing about it and doing so without alerting the beings inside of the planet destroyer, who hailed from the same world as the Talosians had fled thousands upon thousands of years from a distant galaxy. The beings inside of the planet destroyer had telepathic abilities as vast as the Talosians themselves, if not more so. But unlike the Talosians, the three beings would use them to subvert all others in their wake, or destroy anyone who resisted. Resistance wasn't only futile; it wasn't even a consideration.


	91. What becomes of Envan Prime?

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**What becomes of Envan Prime?**

**USS ENTRPRISE**

The USS Enterprise was traveling through space. The whereabouts of the Planet-Killer was still unknown, but the Enterprise was trying to track it down. The planet-Killer had the ability to travel at what was assumed to be limited warp-power. Although the mechanical monstrosity had never used Warp speed in its encounter with the Enterprise, the hypothesis had warp capability was based on the fact that it had destroyed several planets in different solar systems in a relatively short amount of time the first time the Enterprise had encountered it.

Kirk entered the conference room. He sat down next to Spock. Dr. Amanda Grayson sat on the other side of Spock, and First Officer Nog, who had just arrived, sat next to Kirk. Chief of Security, Jaden Weer, sat on the other side of the table.

"We still have no sign as to where that thing went," Kirk reported to Spock. "Now, for the record Spock, please tell us what you know."

"Captain," Dr. Grayson said, with a stern look on her face, "Ambassador Spock is still not well from his self inflicted phaser room. I will be monitoring his vitals," she held up a Tricorder, "and if I feel he is under stress from your questioning; I will terminate this briefing."

Kirk shot Dr. Grayson an annoyed glance. But then he had to temper his reaction because the words she had just spoken could just have easily been said by Bones.

"Understood," Kirk said to Amanda Grayson. Then he turned his attention to Spock. "Earlier, when I came into sickbay, you were still being tended to, so I didn't take what you were saying as fact; so pardon me if I seem a bit repetitive in what I am asking."

"Quite the contrary," Spock said to Kirk, "it is I who should apologize to you Jim."

"What is going on?" Kirk asked.

Spock arched an eyebrow, and chose his words carefully. As Spock began to speak, he could sense a measure of doubt coming from security chief Jaden, but Spock just pressed on.

"Jim," Spock began to explain, "In the past two months I have been in contact by a woman named Elizabeth," Spock paused for effect, "Pike."

Kirk's face hardened upon hearing the name Pike. Instantly the memories of Spock stealing the Enterprise to transport his former commander to Talos-IV flooded his mind.

"Who is she?" Kirk asked, in a soft yet forceful tone.

"She is the daughter of former Starfleet Commander Christopher Pike and his wife Vina," Spock replied.

"Spock," Kirk said after a brief moment, "this woman would have to be of great age."

"It would be logical to assume so," Spock told Kirk, "However, living on Talos-IV, inside of the menagerie created for Christopher Pike, and his wife, and without atmospheric effects, it would seem as if her aging has been suppressed to some degree."

"When you say she contacted you," Jaden suddenly said, "what do you mean by that Ambassador?"

Spock looked at Jaden Weer, who was an accomplished Betazoid telepath.

"That is a logical question," Spock said to Jaden. "I first encountered her at Starbase 147."

"Spock; did she just happen to be there, or was she there looking for you?" Kirk asked.

"I will tell you all that know….." Spock finally said.

"I had arrived on Starbase 147 to meet with Commander Geordi Leforge, who was coming to Starbase 147 for other matters, but who had agreed to meet with me to discuss what if anything he knew about the subject of Dark Matter. Unfortunately his arrival on Starbase 147 had been delayed by four days, but as it turned out, someone else had arrived on Starbase 147; Elizabeth Pike. I answered the chimes that rang on the entrance to my quarters and she was there.

I let her in and she told me that her mother and father had passed away many years ago. She went on and explained that her father had always told her that if there was an urgent matter to seek me out, or you Jim, for assistance, and so she did. She explained to me that beyond our knowledge at the time, there were three beings existing somewhere aboard the Planet-killer. "

"Excuse me Ambassador," Nog interjected, "but I thought it had been assumed that the Planter-killer had been constructed by a race at war with the Borg thousands of years ago."

"Commander; it is possible that such devices do exist that were built with that purpose in mind. Unfortunately the construction of such devices is probably more common than we think," Spock explained to Nog, "but not this one."

"What does this have to do with that woman Elizabeth Pike?" Amanda Grayson asked.

"Dr. Grayson is right," Kirk said. "How does this involve Chris's daughter?"

"The three beings that exist aboard the Planet-killer are kindred to the beings we encountered at Talos-IV. Their telepathic powers are far beyond those of Vulcans, and," Spock said, as he glanced over at Jaden Weer, "Betazeds. The Talosians fled from their home world eons ago, from a distant galaxy, and finally found sanctuary on Talos-IV."

"So let me guess," Jaden said with a wry sound to his voice, "the creatures aboard the Planet-killer are evil and are trying to find the Talosians and destroy them for political or family reasons. How do we know that the beings on Talos-IV are on the right side of this equation?"

"We cannot be certain," Spock replied.

"Then that means we might be assisting them for no reason at all. Why even bother?" Jaden came back with.

"A crude assumption," Spock said, "however not without merit."

"I'm still confused," Nog finally said, "Do the beings on Talos-IV want us to save them by destroying the Planet-killer?" Nog asked with a skeptical smile on his face. "Why can't they do it themselves?"

Spock was about to respond when…

"No, Commander Nog." Kirk responded for Spock. Kirk remembered all too well why Talos-IV was a forbidden planet. He aimed his next words at Spock. "They want us to destroy Talos-IV."

Spock arched an eyebrow again. The Vulcan Spock was pleased to see that just like the Jim Kirk who had died on Veridian III, this other Kirk was able to leap through the evolution of words and thought.

"Yes, Jim," Spock finally said. "That is exactly what we must do."

"Ambassador," Amanda began to say, "Why didn't you encounter these beings the first time the Enterprise went up against the Planet-killer?"

"Yeah," Kirk interjected, "why is that?"

"I have pondered that as well," Spock told Kirk. "I have concluded that the beings were not brought out of stasis during our first encounter, either due to the fact we were not seen as a threat, or by programming; in either case I cannot be certain."

"Spock; you just said they wanted us to destroy Talos-IV," Kirk said. "I assume the Talosians don't want themselves, or their powers, to be corrupted by these beings. So If that is indeed the case; then why all the cloak-and-dagger? Why not just approach the Federation for assistance?"

"Just look at recent history and your own dealings with Starfleet during the Project Diamond affair," Spock explained. "The Talosians believe that militant elements of Starfleet would no doubt want to gain access to the wealth of knowledge on Talos-IV."

**Envan Prime…**

A Federation Duck-blind camp was set inside a massive mountain complex on the planet of Envan Prime. Lt. Commander Harry Kim was in command of the outpost and joined the rest of the crew as they watched the natives of the world, who were on par with the society levels of the Native Americans of the 17th century on Earth, celebrate a festival of flowers. The Duck-blind was in its second year of observing the society and had come to know most of the native's rituals.

During the festival of flowers, all women, ranging from the age of seventeen to thirty five (Earth standard) danced for the single males of the tribe. The women only wore strategically placed flowers, which added to the allure of the event.

As the Starfleet crew went out their own duties, and the event was recorded and catalog for future study, an alert Klaxon sounded at the far end of the control room. Commander Harry Kim, who was standing near the main screen, turned to face the tactical officer, Lt. Hanna Benton, a human female.

"Sir," Lt. Hanna Benton reported, as she looked at the readings on her screen, "sensors detect a massive object heading towards the planet."

"On screen," Harry ordered.

The images of the festival of flowers were replaced by a view of space. The images were coming from a probe which was in orbit of the planet for communicative reasons. Then, as Lt. Commander Kim and the others stared at the screen, a massive object came into view. It was the Planet Killer!

Not long after…

**DEEP SPACE NINE**

Admiral Picard was roused from his sleep by the soft alert klaxon coming from the monitor that was mounted on the wall of his quarters. He swiveled out of his bed, slipped on a robe, and walked over to the monitor.

"On screen," Picard said.

The face of Admiral Janeway, who had obviously just been woken ad well, came into view on the screen.

"Jean-Luc," Janeway began to say, "We have an incident happening on Envan prime. I will meet you in the conference room in five minutes."

"On my way," Picard replied.

Continued…


	92. Adaptation

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Adaptation**

**DEEP SPACE NINE**

Admirals Jean-Luc Picard and Kathryn Janeway could only stare in cold silence at the images on the screen. The planet Envan prime had been destroyed, its millions of inhabitants wiped off the tapestry of the universe forever. The images on the screen had been provided by a Federation probe near to the planet, which had been used for relaying message traffic between the Star Fleet and the science team which had been stationed on the planet for scientific cultural observation. The images showed the Planet-killer firing its anti-proton beam, literally using it to slice the planet it up into rubble. The time lapse imaged showed that the planet had been destroyed just little more than two hours.

"What of the Federation science team on that planet?" Picard asked Janeway.

Janeway shook her head.

"All dead," Janeway said, with regret in her voice. "There were two pregnant officers that were due to transfer next week; as well as my good friend Lt. Commander Harry Kim."

Picard reached out and put his hand on Janeway's wrist.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Picard said after a moment.

"Three hundred million people on that planet killed in little over an hour," Janeway said back to Picard, with subtle anger in her voice. "How could we have let something like this happen?"

"We both know why, so blaming yourself for events you had no control over will not bring those people back. Now," Picard said, "we have to stop that thing before it does this again; do we know where it is?"

"The USS Algiers and three Klingon ships are heading to the Envan system, and are due to arrive there in three hours," Janeway responded. "Starfleet is sending more assets to the general area, but they are not due to arrive for another three days or so."

Picard studied the tactical star chart that showed the general area of space where the Envan system was located. He stood up and walked over to it, offering his analyses to change the subject.

"According to this chart and available information from when the Enterprise first encountered the planet killer over a century ago, the Planet-Killer has altered its course," Picard said to Janeway. "It doesn't seem to be on course for the Rigel system as it was all those decades ago."

The door to Janeway's office slid opened and Captain Kira came in.

"Admiral," Kira said to Janeway, "we are receiving a coded message from the Enterprise," she looked at Picard, and then back to Janeway, "Kirk's Enterprise."

"On screen," Janeway replied.

The image of the star chart faded and was replaced by the view of Captain Kirk sitting at table inside one of the Enterprise's briefing rooms. Ambassador Spock was with him as well, as was Commander Nog, Kirk's first officer and former first officer of Deep Space Nine.

"Jim," Janeway said, "I'm sure you've been apprised of the events that have happened in the Envan system," Janeway said, straight to the point. "Tell me you know how to stop this thing."

"Admiral," Kirk replied, "I believe the situation is direr than you might think." Kirk looked over to Spock.

"Ambassador," Picard said, before Spock could speak, "I thought you were on your way to a conference with the Legarans."

"I was indeed," Spock replied, "however, my plans were altered."

"And it has something to do with the Planet-killer?" Janeway asked.

"Regrettably so," Spock said. "The Planet-killer is home to three telepaths. These telepaths are so powerful, that with their minds, they could cause great harm from great distances."

"Did these telepaths recently take possession of the Planet-killer?" Picard asked, with a slight tone of doubt in his voice.

"Negative Admiral," Spock replied, "they have existed inside the Planet-killer for eons."

"The reason we never knew they were there," Kirk interjected, "is because they are apparently housed in an area of the Planet-killer that is protected inside of layers and layers of solid neutronium. And," Kirk added, "They were in stasis when we first encountered them during our first five year mission."

Janeway stood up from where she was sitting and approached the screen. She had already thought ahead and didn't like what she was hearing, especially after so much life had just been lost on Envan prime.

"Gentlemen," Janeway said, "this is all very interesting; but how exactly are you aware of these telepaths now?"

Kirk looked back to Spock.

"The telepaths inside of the Planet-killer are kindred to the beings," Spock paused, "on Talos IV."

Picard gasped, softly, at what Spock had just said.

"Let me get this straight," Janeway said to Spock, "the beings on this Planet-killer are related to the beings in on Talos system; the only planet in Federation proximity that is forbidden by Federation law to enter?"

"Precisely," Spock replied.

"Ambassador," Janeway said, without hesitation, "have you known about the beings aboard that Planet-killer all along?"

"No," Spock replied. "I have recently been approached by a citizen of Talos IV. The Talosians sent this person to me to investigate sensory percepts they have been sensing in the past several weeks. By the time I arrived at the Planet-killer it was too late."

"Admiral, as you know" Kirk said, "Starfleet lost communications with the lone observation probe which had been assigned to monitor the Planet-killer nearly two weeks ago. In fact, you sent us here. So don't pretend not to know there might have been something going on out here."

Janeway lifted her hand, motioning to Kira to stop her report.

"But certainly," Janeway said directly to Spock, "the Talosians have always been aware of beings of their kind being on that thing all this time. Do they understand that by not warning us it just cost the lives of over three-hundred million innocent beings, as well as a science team that was observing that world?"

Kirk looked directly at Janeway.

"Admiral," Kirk said, "you can take that issue up with the Talosians. And I might add that had Star fleet not scaled down that net of a hundred or so probes to just one, we might have had a better warning time. But all that doesn't matter, right now. What does matter is stopping that thing. I intend to try and stop it."

"Starfleet has already sent a ship," Picard said to Kirk, "as well as three Klingon ships."

"Kate," Kirk pleaded, "let us do this." Kirk said flatly.

Janeway shook her head.

"Sorry Jim," Janeway said, "but you're too close to the situation. You lost some of your crew, and your good friend to that thing last time, and you almost lost your own life. Perhaps it would be best if you sat this one out."

"Kate," Kirk said, "Spock and I, as well as Scotty and Sulu, know this Planet-killer's abilities better than anyone; we should be there."

Janeway was about to fire back, but Picard spoke first.

"Alright," Picard said, as he fired a look over to Janeway, "do what you feel you must, Captain Kirk. But you will keep us up to date."

Kirk bowed his head and the screen went dark.

"Why did you do that?" Janeway asked. "He's too close to the situation and you know it."

Picard nodded his head.

"Perhaps he is," Picard said. "But all those years ago, when the second Borg cube invaded Federation space, on its way to Earth, the Enterprise-E was ordered to scan the Romulan Neutral Zone and catalog asteroids. The real reason we were ordered to such an unimportant task, while the Borg streaked toward Earth, was transparent; Starfleet didn't trust me, or, they thought I was too close to the situation."

Janeway smiled, and then nodded her head.

"I see your point," Janeway said. "But Jim comes from another time, and he is still getting his feet wet with the protocols of this era."

"I only knew the other Jim Kirk for a short period time," Picard said to her, "but if anyone can adapt to an unknown situation; it's him. I know he will do what is right of him."

Janeway nodded her head, hopeful that James T Kirk wouldn't let his judgment be clouded by an act of revenge.


	93. The Highs and Lows of Siblings

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Highs and Lows of Siblings…**

**Earth;**

**San Francisco**

The F-street cable car made its way down the main thoroughfare, and rounded the final curve which would take it to stop at the edge of Fisherman's wharf. Rebecca Sisko and her new good friend Lal, the android "offspring" of the late Lt. Commander Data, listened as the handsome young tour guide, named Mark, continued to tell them, as well as the other tourists, about the fabled landmark. As he spoke, Rebecca used her holocam and took several pictures. She listened in on what Mark was saying as she snapped away.

"Fisherman's Wharf," Mark continued to say, "gets its name and neighborhood characteristics from the city's early days during the 1840s Gold Rush. Immigrants from all over the world who called this area home settled in the area and fished for the Dungeness crab. From then on and even now in present day 24th century, it has remained the home base of San Francisco's fishing fleet. Despite its redevelopment into a tourist attraction during the 1970s and 1980s and 2350s, the area is still home to many active fishermen and their fleets."

For nearly the twentieth time since they had boarded the cable car, Lal raised her hand to ask yet another question. Rebecca could see the annoyed looks from the other passengers, but Rebecca thought Lal was just being herself, and fired back annoyed stares at the others in defense of Lal. Mark was about to give Lal another perturbed look but then he saw the angry look in Rebecca's eyes, and thought twice about it.

"Yes, what is it this time?" Mark asked Lal.

"Why don't the fishermen use modern technologies to find the fish? Do they now know the benefits of an all vegetarian diet?" Lal asked.

Mark actually gave Lal a pleased look.

"Now that is a great question," Mark replied, with a warm smile. "While it is true that there are modern technologies available to the fishing fleets, the men who work on those ships actually shun the new tech in order to keep alive the customs from another time. My father actually is the headmaster on one such ship, and trust me, he is very proud to carry on with the old ways, as his father did, and his father did, all the way back to when it all started."

"If it is part of your family tradition, then why do you not join your father" Lal asked.

"I like you," Mark said, "I'm sorry if I seemed rude earlier, but you are really a nice person. Anyway, its currently off season for crab fishing," Mark said. "But when the next season comes around, I will be there with him. In fact, perhaps you and your friend," Mark motioned to Rebecca, "would like to join us for a day or two."

"That actually sounds pretty fun," Rebecca replied. "My father is part owner of a bistro in New Orleans, Sisko's, and once or twice, when I was younger, he and I went out with the fishermen for clam runs."

"Ahh," Mark said, "I have been to Sisko's. They make the best Jambalaya in the country there."

Before Rebecca could respond, Lal cut in.

"Perhaps you would like to join us there for dinner sometime," Lal offered.

Rebecca looked at her friend and smiled inside. Lal was actually competing for the young man's attention. Rebecca decided to pull back and let Lal take the prize. Although Rebecca thought Mark was attractive, he was not really her type.

"I would love to," Mark said. "Perhaps next week, when I return from a family visit, we can do that."

The cable car whistle blew, meaning that it was time for the red car to make its way back from where it came as a new round of tourist had boarded the car.

"Does next Tuesday around 5pm sound good to you?" Lal asked as the car began to trickle away.

"I'll be here," Mark said. "And wear something pretty!" Mark said, and then turned away as the car sped off.

"I think he likes you," Rebecca said with a fiendish smile, as she and Lal made their way from the cable car stop.

"Do you think he knows that I am an android?" Lal asked, with a slight sound of remorse in her voice. "Perhaps I should have told him."

"Lal," Rebecca said softly, as they made their way down the wharf, "whether he knows or not isn't really that important. Just like cadet Mateo did from a couple nights ago, I think Mark could tell you were," Rebecca searched for the right word, "unique."

"As I told my father," Lal said, "I don't wish to be different."

Rebecca shook her head.

"You're confusing the two words," Rebecca countered. "Everyone, whether it's you or me, or Mark, or even Captain Kirk, it doesn't matter; we're all unique in some measurable way. It doesn't mean we're different; it just means we're not all the same."

The two girls came upon a vendor who sold various drinks. Several seagulls were walking along the sidewalk as well, crisscrossing between the other tourist, occasionally rewarded with a bread crumb or popcorn.

Atop one of the many skyscrapers, two men stood and looked out at San Francisco bay. In the distance they could see Starfleet Command. Both men were human, and both men where brothers, and more importantly, both men were there for a purpose.

The younger of the two brothers had dark brown hair and wore a casual suit. His named was Andrew. And even though they were brothers, Andrew knew that his older brother, Lawrence, was the one who called all the shots, and approved every action they took; such was the right of the oldest.

"Are you positive this is the only way?" Andrew asked his brother. "Once we go down this path; there will be no going back."

Lawrence also had dark brown hair, though it was much longer and tied back in a tail, and he also sported a goatee. Where as Andrew looked like any boy next door, it was Lawrence who had regality that could only command respect; and or fear.

"Yes brother," Lawrence replied, "this is the only way." Lawrence turned to face his younger brother. "I could not have come this far without you. Father would have been proud."

Andrew smiled at his brother, glad to hear him mention

"I miss father, and mother," Andrew said. "I wish they were here, to see the two of us together again. Not as enemies, but as the brothers we are."

Lawrence smiled back, and then, quite suddenly, he shoved his brother off the roof top and watched as he fell to the ground far below; his head smashing on the ground like a pumpkin.

"I will miss you too," Lawrence said, as he went back to gazing across the bay at Starfleet Command.

And then, an instant later, Lawrence was beamed away….


	94. Collision Course

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Collision Course**

**Deep Space Nine**

Admirals Picard and Janeway sat in the main conference and waited for their esteemed guest to arrive. Suddenly the door slid opened and General M'iaQua (pronounced as Mee-ahh-qua), the highest ranking Klingon military officer, who answered only to Martok, came in. He stood nearly 7'3 feet in height, and his broad shoulders and tense stare demanded respect and awe. Picard and Janeway stood in honor of his arrival.

General M'iaQua He had just arrived at the station having been sent there by Chancellor Martok. Martok had received an urgent secret message from his good friend Captain Kirk, via Commander Nog, and had sent M'iaQua to coordinate the Klingon response to the Planet-killer situation.

"Do not bother with your human platitudes," M'iaQua said with an attitude in his voice, "unlike my predecessor I do not seek your praise or friendship."

"With all due respect," Janeway said, "your predecessor was Chancellor Martok."

"And he was quite friendly with us during the Dominion War." Picard added.

M'iaQua shot them both a look of anger, but pressed the subject aside as he sat at the far end of the table from Picard and Janeway. Picard was about to begin the briefing when suddenly, at that moment, Kira came into the conference room, and she was accompanied by Quark.

"Excuse me, Captain Kira," Admiral Picard began to say, however; we are about to brief General M'iaQua on the Planet-killer situation. Can this matter wait until we have completed?"

"See, what did I tell you?" Quark said to Kira. "I try to help out, and this is what happens."

"Kira," Janeway finally said, "what is going on?"

"It would seem as if the Ent…" Kira began to say, when Quark cut her off.

"I'm sure you recognize this," Quark said as he places his inter-dimensional communication consol on the table.

"Yes I do," Picard said to Quark, "and Starfleet is not to keen with the idea of you having one of those."

"That may be so," Quark said to Picard, "but, if you would let me continue, I was about to say that I am receiving a signal from the Enterprise and Ambassador Spock."

"Is this an act of betrayal?" M'iaQua demanded of Picard and Janeway. "I was told by your tactical reports that communication with the starship and three Klingon vessels you sent to deal with the robotic device had been lost due to subspace interference."

"It was," Janeway replied, and then she looked back at Quark. "Go ahead and activate the consol. I'll have the signal relayed to the main screen."

Suddenly, after Quark worked the dials on his inter-dimensional communication device, the face of Ambassador Spock came into view. Spock said something, and then, in the distance, they saw Kirk stand up from his command chair and come over to where Spock was sitting, at the back of the bridge.

"Quark," Spock said first off, "it is good to see that you still have the device I gave you all those years ago."

"Yes I do, Ambassador," Quark said. "And I certainly hope we will have further business in the future."

"In time, my good friend, in time," Spock said.

Kirk sat down next to Spock.

"Jim," Janeway said, "what is happening out there?"

Kirk did not look as jovial as he had in the past. There was a worried look on his face.

"Kate; I think you better see for yourself," Kirk said, grimly, as he pivoted on his chair to look back at the bridge's main screen.

The image on the main screen in DS9's conference room was the same on the Enterprise's main screen; and what it showed wasn't good. The wrecked hulls of a federation Starship, as well as a Klingon Vor'cha battle-cruiser, could be seen adrift in the blackness of space.

"No survivors on either the USS Algiers of the Klingon vessel," Nog's voice could be heard saying. "Subspace interference has rendered all communication, other than inter-dimensional transmissions, useless."

"Astonishing," Picard said. "I know the Planet-killer has to be our first consideration, but perhaps there was another reason."

"The robot device did this," M'iaQua stated flatly. "It must be found and destroyed so that the souls of those dead Klingons can be honored on the path to Sto-Vo-Kor."

The image of Kirk and Spock returned to the screen.

"Actually," Kirk said, "Admiral Picard is right; the Planet-killer did not destroy these two vessels." Kirk said. "They destroyed each other."

"What?" Kira asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"What Captain Kirk means," Spock said, "is that the crews of these two ships were forced into battle with each other by the beings aboard the Planet-killer."

"Certainly you must be mistaken," Picard said from where he sat.

"Unfortunately Admiral;" Spock came back with, "I am not. The sensor readings confirm the usage of Federation photons and Klingon disrupters."

"The Planet-killer's weapon," Lt. Commander S'vath said, from his tactical post, "Would have left residual anti-proton signatures, had it been used. And so far we have found no such readings in the area; these ships destroyed each other."

"And you're positive that the telepaths on the Planet-killer made them do this?" Janeway asked Spock. But it was M'iaQua who responded.

"The Vuclan is correct," M'iaQua said. "The Klingon vessels would never have fired upon their Federation allies; their honor would have prevented it."

"We came across a log buoy," Kirk said. "The Captain of the Algiers states emphatically that they were being forced to fire their weapons, as were the Klingons, and then," Kirk paused for effect, "the log goes dead. No doubt jettisoned by the communications officer an instant before destruction."

There was silence.

"Spock," Picard finally said. "If subspace communications are out, then isn't it quite possible that the Planet-killer is near to where you are?"

"Very likely," Spock said.

"Jim," Janeway said quickly, "Get the Enterprise out of there. You can't take that thing on by yourself."

Kirk started to get one of those looks on his face. (All fans of TREK know what I mean…)

"Jim," Picard said, seeing Kirks expression, "whatever you're thinking about doing; don't. Come back to DS9 and, with General M'iaQua and our Klingon allies, we will find the Planet-killer and destroy it together."

There was a silence...and then…

"No; we can't come back to DS9." Kirk finally said. "We don't know how long getting a fleet out here will take, and there are several inhabited systems near by. We have to everything we can to stop it now."

"Jim," Janeway said, "I have read your mission logs from your first encounter with that thing. You pretty much say in them that Decker said the exact same thing; stopping it before it had gone on to destroy. It didn't work then, and it won't work now."

"Admiral," Kirk pressed back. "The situation is different. We had no outside contact with Starfleet, which is why our initial course of action, back then, was going to have been getting out of jamming range to warn Starfleet. We don't have that problem now because of this inter-dimensional communication device. Now, listen, perhaps we can't destroy it, but at least we can hunt it down and at least tell you where it is when that fleet of yours gets here."

"Kirk is right," General M'iaQua said, from the far side of the table. "I have a fleet not far from the other side of the wormhole. I can have it here in forty standard hours."

Janeway thought for a moment.

"Alright," Janeway finally said. "Jim, go ahead and find it. But do not, I repeat, do not engage with it. We will use the Enterprise like a flare and follow you to that thing and destroy it once and for all."

"We'll be here," Kirk said, and then the transmission went dark.

**USS ENTERPRISE**

Kirk stood up from where he sat and returned to his command chair. Nog followed him.

"Sir," Nog said to Kirk, "I know you're your history well enough to know that you will not be content with being a flare." Nog could see Spock observing the conversation. "I know you intend to attack the Planet-killer; do you think that is wise?"

Nog saw Spock slightly bow his head. Spock was, in his own way, telling Nog that the question was totally in line with that of a first officer.

"If you're asking me if it's the logical thing to do?" Kirk said, totally understanding the conversation and who was the audience, "the answer is no. We were barely able to stop that thing last time, and this time we only have one ship. However, if it means I will risk the lives of this crew by repeating what I did last time with Decker's ship, then yes, if it's the last resort we have, then it is something that I will consider."

"Then," S'vath said, from behind Nog, "We better find another way to stop it."

Kirk shifted his attention to the fuel report handed to him by a duty ensign. He was happy that Nog had challenged his course of action, but Kirk had weighed the possibilities and felt that he had chosen the best course of action.

Meanwhile, in sickbay, Dr. Amanda Grayson was staring at the lab results of a test she had conducted upon herself, earlier in the day. She now was confident of her own internal instincts; she was pregnant again.

Continued…


	95. A Life to Live

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**A Life to Live  
**

**Talos IV**

Elizabeth Pike opened her eyes. For the past several weeks she had dreamed alone in her mind, which had been rare in her life. Rare because the beings who existed on the planet with her only could survive if they were allowed to experience her dreams with her, and all the emotions that came from those dreams. She thought back on her life…

_When she was old enough to comprehend, her parents revealed the truth of their so called world, and the truth to their existences. Unknown to her, up to that point of her life, which was around the age of thirteen, her entire life had been a mirage. Her home and family, the schools she attended, her friends, in essence all of the other people in her life, other than her parents, were all created by the Talosians. Elizabeth was told how her parents had come to the world (the story of Christopher Pike and Vina from the "The Menagerie"). _

_It was also on that fateful day, when she turned thirteen, that her parents revealed their true physical appearances. Her father, who she had always seen as a strong viral man, was actually a very fragile man who existed only with the artificial help of machines. He had not left his specially constructed bed for many years. Her mother, fragile was well, was still able to walk, if only just barely._

_Her parents told her how they both could never leave the world. The conditions of their bodies had deteriorated so badly that life beyond the confines of the world Talos IV was impossible. But they understood that she, Elizabeth, could not be forcibly confined to live as they had. She had to know that at anytime she wanted to, Elizabeth could be sent to the outside world; tp be with other humans.  
_

_Yet, knowing the truth did not deter Elizabeth's love for her parents. And so, never wanting to leave them, she decided to stay and live her life on Talos IV as well. Eventually her parents passed. And, as fate would have it, Elizabeth didn't age normally due to the side effect of living in a perpetual dream world. Although her physical age had reached ninety-seven, she appeared, at best, to be in her early thirties. With her parents gone, Elizabeth elected to remain, not wanting the Talosians, whom she had befriended of the decades, to die without her emotions to sustain them.  
_

Elizabeth, having just opened her eyes, realized she wasn't alone in her room; the Keeper was standing next to her bed, looking down on her.

"You were thinking of your parents," the Keeper said.

"You could see them in my mind?" Elizabeth asked.

"No, child, I can always tell when you are remembering them because you face is so content."

Elizabeth had come to a point in her life when she could read the expression on the Keeper's face as well.

"What's wrong?" Elizabeth asked.

"The communication devices your father constructed before he died have come to life with the most dire of information. The device you refer to as the Planet-killer has destroyed a world a millions upon millions. We had hoped this kind of violence would not happen before Kirk and Spock had eliminated it, however, that course of action was wrong."

Elizabeth got out of bed and put a robe on to conceal her nudity. Then she looked at the Keeper.

"It wasn't your fault," Elizabeth told the Keeper. "You didn't want them to find this world, afraid they could bend you and the others to their will, and then use you to subvert this galaxy in the same way your kind did in the galaxy you came from."

"We are going to open our minds," the Keeper suddenly said.

Elizabeth shook her head.

"You can't do that," she pleaded. "What you fear, what I just said, could still happen. You have to let Kirk, and Spock, find a way to destroy that thing."

"We can not be responsible for another world's destruction," the Keeper countered. "We will lure the Planet-killer here, and hopefully Kirk will be able to destroy it, and us, at the same time."

"Do Kirk and Spock know of this new direction?"

"We will send you, again, to relay this information. There can be no more delay, you must depart now. The minds of our brethren are gaining power and we can feel them getting closer. I am not confident we can keep our world a secret for much longer."

Suddenly another Talosian came and relayed information mentally with the Keeper.

"What is it?" Elizabeth asked.

"A vessel is approaching this solar system," the Keeper said. "I fear it is the herald of our brethren; a Vulcan female. She will arrive soon, which mean you must depart now and contact Kirk and Spock as soon as possible."

Several minutes later, Elizabeth Pike piloted her small scout-class vessel into space. Who was the Vulcan female who was soon to arrive on Talos IV?

(Readers, you should remember…her name is T'av..and she's a man-eater!)

**Earth**

**Austria; the city of Eisenstadt**

The door to a very high-end apartment opened up and a man entered. He wore an immaculate casual suit, and undraped a black overcoat from his shoulders. He opened up a closet and hung the coat up. In the 24th century there were modern methods for such efforts, but this man favored the old ways, and any ties to the past. Even his suits were made in other ways other than from replicated matter; they were made of real cashmere, silk or exotic cottons from all over the known galaxy.

The man made his way into the main living area and was pleased to find his wife waiting for him, stretched out on one of the couches, wearing a very soft black negligee, which barely reached her mid thigh region. Her auburn hair was up, revealing her long sexy neck, and there were two wine glasses set on marble/glass table next to the couch. Classical music from the 19th century softly played in the background, and the lights were slightly dimmed.

"I trust your visit to San Francisco was fruitful?" the woman asked as the man walked behind the couched, leaned down, and kissed the back of her neck.

"If you're asking me if I took care of Andrew," Lawrence said, "I did indeed."

Lawrence Xavier Thorn was his full name, and with that name, came power, which had survived the world wars of Earth's history.

"Yes I know," the woman said. "I have already received two calls from the authorities, trying to inform you of his death. Do they have any reason to suspect you?"

Lawrence went into the kitchen area and took a bagel, a non-replicated bagel, from the pantry and a plate of crème cheese, and then sat next to the woman on the couch.

"Amber," Lawrence said to her softly, "they will contact me for various reasons. Oh, for sure, the pretext will be to officially notify me of his passing, believing the evidence that he took his own life when he jumped from that skyscraper. They will no doubt want to know where I was at the time, so that they can rule out any possible notion of foul play, but it will all do down like clockwork. There is no proof I was ever there. Once we are passed this fragment of time, then the second part of my plan can go into motion, and I can play the part of the grieving older brother. Once we get beyond that, everything else will go as I have planned."

"I like how your confidence glows in your eyes." Alexandria said, seductively. "That's what I like about you the most, Lawrence, is your strong confidence. It is very," she reached over, with a glass of wine in one hand while placing her hand on the groin area of his slacks, "sexy."

Lawrence aggressively grabbed the back of her hair, and brought her closer. He was a dominant man in business, life, and when in the act of intimacy. They made love on the couch; loud, guttural and passionate love.

Three hours later, after awaking, Lawrence lifted his naked wife into his arms, and carried her to their bedroom. After pulling the blankets up around her, and closing the door, Lawrence walked over to the kitchen for another glass of wine. He noticed a red light flashing on a device which was located on one of the walls. It was a sensor device that routinely scanned the apartment for bacteria, or in this case, odd energy patterns.

"Computer," Lawrence said, "you have identified a strange energy pattern in the apartment."

"Affirmative," the female computer responded. "The energy pattern originates from your skin and clothing."

"What kind of energy pattern is it?" Lawrence asked, as he sipped his wine.

"Holographic," the computer came back with. "The kind of hologram energy associated with the use of hand held imagery devices. From the decay of the particles, the exposure to the energy pattern was approximately seven hours ago."

"When I was in San Francisco," Lawrence said softly.

"Your having been in San Francisco is not listed on your daily itinerary," the computer came back with.

"Nor shall you list it now;" Lawrence said, after a moment, "delete all data concerning the hologram energy and this conversation."

"Deletion successful," the computer finally said.

Lawrence finished his wine. He did not like the fact that someone had unwitting taken a hologram of him, thus creating a loose end that had to be eliminated. Because somewhere out there, back in the city of San Francisco, was proof that he, Lawrence, had been there…and that was not a favorable turn events.

_Continued…and just what were the five Jem'Hadar doing in the lavatory a couple episodes ago at the cadet ball? Find out !_


	96. Outside of Space and Time

Hello all, just a brief pause.

On my profile (click on my name) you will see a link to a cool picture of resent "covers" I have made for James T Kirk: The Next Generation. When I write I like to see the characters. You will see that I have cast Keke Palmer as Rebecca Sisko and Kim Basinger as Elizabeth Pike. But I am having a dickens of a time casting Lawrence Thorn and his wife Amber. If you have any suggestions, please let me know and I'll give you credit…whoopie!

Coming soon….

A new segment of the story will post up today or tomorrow…oh and thanks for reading the story, and buckle up! The showdown between the Talosians and their "brethren" on the Planet-killer is soon to come! And, of course, Lal and Rebecca will soon find adventure on Earth as Lawrence Thorn's plans are revealed….and what about those Jem'Hadar that were briefly seen in the girl's lavatory? And just what are T'pring and Sybok up to, where it concerns S'vath and his wife Amanda? All this coming soon, as well as a flame from Kirk's past and T'av, the Vulcan cannibal!

Oh..and happy holidays and keep safe this cold winter no matter where you are...

Rob


	97. Mr Apple Spock

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Mr. Apple Spock…**

**Timus Prime (the world where Jim Kirk built a new life after arriving in the 24****th**** century…)**

Jim Kirk walked along a path, his hand tightly held by Myran's hand. She was his wife, and the two of them, as they always did on non-workdays, were heading up the long path way that led to a special tree atop a mountain that over looked the town they lived in; a town called Lini. Or course, she did not know that his real name was Jim Kirk. She knew him by an alias he had been given by agents of the Federation ever since his arrival in waning years of the 24th century. His name, to her, was Robert Crane. And in his new life of his, Jim Kirk, alias Robert Crane, ran a successful antiques store in the town of Lini.

Myran was an elementary school teacher, and the two of them had met when she came into his store in search of an antique Bajoran clock that she had seen in the display window of his shop. That innocent meeting between the two led to them being married.

"Robert; you seem so quiet today," Myran said, with a pleasant smile.

She was right. Jim Kirk had said very little since the two of them had began their trek up the medium sized hill. While they had been married for just over two months, he had never told her the truth as to who he really was, not wanting to ruin the new simple life he was now living. He didn't tell her about who he really was because he knew that she would want him to return to the world of a starship captain. And, if that happened, Jim knew that the distance would grow between them and he didn't want that to happen.

"I'm sorry dear," Robert said, "I was just thinking about us, and about how much I love you."

"Well, trust me; you got very lucky when you found a nice woman like me still single on a backwater world like this one. I have had many wanna be suitors, in the past two years, Bajorans men even; but the moment I saw you, and your being from Earth and all, I knew you were going to be my husband."

They stopped their walk up the path long enough to share a romantic kiss. Then, with that done, they continued to walk on.

"Are the women of Bajor always so confident about making the men they desire wanting them in return?" Robert asked with a smile.

"Yes we are," Myran replied. "And if I recall, you didn't mind that aggressiveness when I pretty much ravaged you that first night."

Kirk smiled at the memory, and she was right. Kirk had never known a woman as passionate as Myran. The things they did that first night made him blush just remembering.

Moments later, and a bit exhausted after the effort, they finally had arrived at the top of the hill. There was but one tree on the top of the hill; a giant tree, which provide shade, and a direct view of the setting sun. Robert (Jim Kirk) Crane spread out a large blanket while Myran unpacked the picnic basket she had brought.

"Here you go," she said, as she tossed a juicy red-apple to her husband.

Robert took the apple and turned away from her to look at the hills in the distance. He was about to bite the apple when he saw a pair of eyes and pointed ears appear on the apple. Though the face was a face on an apple, Kirk recognized the Vulcan's face immediately. Afraid that Myran would think he was going crazy; Kirk walked a few feet away from where she sat on the blanket.

"Spock," Kirks said, in a near whisper, "you're a red-apple."

"Jim," Spock said, "I know I may appear to be a piece of common fruit to you, however trust me, I am not. I am trying to communicate with you by traversing a myriad of telepathic distortion that has twisted your mind, as well as the minds of everyone else aboard the Enterprise."

Kirk had to fight back the urge to laugh, and why not? He was conversing with a red-apple.

"Spock," Kirk said softly, "I am no longer aboard the Enterprise. I was brought into the future where I now live a quiet life on the planet Timus Prime."

"No, Jim, you are not on Timus Prime," Spock said back to Kirk. "You have since left that world and have rejoined Starfleet. We were on our way to stop the Planet-killer, and our minds, in fact all of our minds, were usurped by the beings aboard the Planet-killer."

"I don't believe you," Kirk said, as he looked back and waved at his wife. "You're talking to me as an apple must…be… some kind of mind delusion, perhaps a relapse caused by my near death experience after being exposed to Vegan choriomeningitis years before I came to the Enterprise."

The apple nodded in agreement to what Kirk had said.

"You are quite correct; I do recall Dr. McCoy saying that such delusions were possible side effects from that virus," Spock admitted, "however, I assure you Jim; that is not the case here. You must convince yourself that this reality is not real, or everyone aboard the Enterprise will die; and that will be an unfortunate reality."

"And you have appeared to me, as an apple, with this dire warning," Kirk added.

"I have," the Spock apple replied.

"This must be a delusion," Kirk finally stated. "If there is one thing I have known about you Spock; it is your devotion to logic. I wouldn't be lying if I said that knowing you hasn't improved my own use of logic," Kirk explained.

"Then; I am flattered." Spock came back with.

"And, so, if this reality of mine is the creation of these powerful beings, then why is it they allow you to contact me now? It wouldn't be," Kirk paused for effect, "logical."

"The answer to that question will most certainly be arrived at after applying logic to the known data," Spock replied.

Kirk thought for a moment as he looked back and saw Myran applying sunscreen to her exposed shoulders, wanting to avoid getting a sun burn. Then, after arriving to a conclusion, he looked back at the red apple.

"The only reason they would let you contact me would imply that they are not the ones we should be trying to stop," Kirk deduced.

And then, without warning, Timus Prime exploded….

**Talos IV**

The Pakled ship landed softly on the surface of Talos-IV. The doors to the craft slid open, and T'av walked out down the boarding ramp. The remnants of an old camp, at least over a hundred years old, could be seen in the near distance. Strange blue flowered were blooming from several bushes. The moment she stepped off the ramp, the doors to the transport closed. Inside the Pakled ship were the bones and skulls of the ship's original owners, three in all, and all had been devoured by T'av on her long voyage to find the others; and at last, she had. Her mind called reached into space, much like a beacon on cold and stormy night.

-continued


	98. No Doorknob Required

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**No Doorknob Required**

**Earth**

**Starfleet Academy**

Starfleet Academy, on the outside, looked like some incredible high-tech complex, which in fact, it was. But at the heart of the legendary academy was a basic learning atmosphere where cadets were expected to excel, or, for someone, washout. The statistics about successful cadets had been pretty constant for nearly a hundred or so years. The graduation level was a crisp fifty-one percent, meaning that just barely over half would make it to the end of their tenure and graduate.

Just one day after the cadet ball, Rebecca Sisko and her friend Lal were just about to start their first class; basic physics. Most of what was being taught in the class had been taught in grade school and high-schools, throughout the galaxy. This class was more or less a refresher, to prepare the cadets for the harder classes/courses yet to come.

On Bajor, where Rebecca had attended high-school, she did what all students did when they came across of subject they couldn't grasp entirely; she flirted with someone who did. In her case it was as Bajoran teenage boy named Dameth. She had flirted with him for nearly a year, and he humbly helped her with her homework, if not outright did it for her on occasion. Her father, Benjamin Sisko, was on to her antics, and warned her that Dameth would not be at the academy, if she chose to go that route in life. He constantly reminded her to do her own work, but she didn't care; there would always be other Dameths out there. Such was the life someone attending schools and academies. It was just one of those constants in the galaxy.

The class-auditorium was filled to the brim with over two hundred cadets, and there was a loud murmuring, caused by all the chatter between them when suddenly the door slammed and then zap; the murmur was gone. The professor, Dr. Bartholomew Jennings, was very serious looking. He held a brief case which he placed on his desk. He walked over to the podium, and then looked at his new class. He slowly scanned over the class, almost as if taking a mental picture of each and every person. Dr. Jennings was of British ancestry. He seemed pleasant, but it was very clear, via his stern facial looks, that he was a man who took physics quite seriously. If there was a poster child for the term "mean old Brit," Jennings would be it.

"Now I want all of you to listen; and sharp." he said to the cadets, with a slight English accent, "I take this subject very seriously. Some of you will go into medicine, others will go into engineering, some of you may end up dropping out and working at the food courts or,"he said with a chuckle, "as sexual pleasure givers on Risa!"

There wasn't another sound in the hall except for the sound of Dr. Jennings' voice.

"However, trust me when I say that when you leave here, and if you pass the course, you will come to see that there is nothing more beautiful in the universe than the basic application of physics."

A hand was raised in the far corner. Rebecca couldn't see who it was, due to the large number of cadets, but she heard the person ask a question. Whoever it was, it was a young man's voice.

"Umm, sir," the cadet said, "Why is it we are not allowed to bring our computers, or any outside applications, into this class; or why aren't there any computers on our chairs?"

"Yeah," came from several other students, causing a slight murmur to ring around the class.

The murmur quieted down as Jennings's stare became even more intense.

"I'll tell you why chap," Jennings finally said. "There are two reasons I do not allow those blasted devices. First; this is basic physics. For the next month I will be repeating things you should already know. The concepts we will discuss are elementary, and should already be a sturdy foundation to the subject matter. More importantly, and I hope your puny brains remember this, there may come a time when the starship you're on, or the outpost your assigned too, which could be located on some God awful world in the icy cold of space, has no power, and your computers are off line. When that happens," Jennings said, with an eerie grin on his face, "you will understand why I hate computers."

Jennings cleared his voice, and then dove into his lecture. As he spoke, student volunteers handed out large textbooks.

"Consider these large items, filled with pages, your computer. They're called books, textbooks to be more precise." Jennings said, as he watched the books being handed out. "Oh, and do not waste time looking for versions on the galactic-web, you won't find one, I should know; I WROT E IT!" He said gleefully. "You're going to actually have to touch the books, open them, smell them…and read them."

A choir of moans could be heard throughout the class.

"Ahh," Jennings said, smiling for the first time. "I love that sound," he told them with genuine glee. "Now, physics, if you don't know already," he began, "has the nature of the science that a God would use to control the universe, if there were Gods. Since I am very learned in the subject, and since there are no Gods, I will stand in for them with much gusto…"

The lecture went on, and was just about as tense as Dr. Jennings could make it. Finally, after five hours, the first day of basic physics was over. Rebecca Sisko made her way back to her quarters. While on the way, she stopped at the food-court and got some Chinese takeout and took it back with her. She finally made it to her quarters and went inside.

Two hours later, her eyes getting tired from reading the textbook, Rebecca Sisko was about to closer her eyes for a nap when suddenly there was bright flash in her room, right before her bed. The flash was gone in an instant, but then there was another one. And then the bright flash, which was now a swirling mass of energy, solidified. It was as if a door had opened in her room; a door of light. A very loud wind sound swooshed about as well. Rebecca had no idea what it was, and in fright, stood up on the small sofa she was on.

The room to her door opened and Lal stepped in, and the android was taken aback at what she saw.

"Lal," Rebecca yelled! "Stay back, its some kind of," Rebecca thought for a moment, "hell, I don't know what it is; but it isn't good!"

The swirling sound got louder and louder.

"Rebecca Sisko; run," Lal yelled. "Get away from it!"

Other cadets, who heard the loud swirling wind sound, ran to the door, and they were all in shock at what they saw.

And then, as Rebecca looked at the light, she saw something come out of the light; an arm. The hand on the arm was reaching out for her. Rebecca pushed her back against the way, trying to get away, but there was nowhere to go.

Without a moment's hesitation, Lal ran into the room, and at full speed, she jumped on the bed, and grabbed Rebecca, and pushed her out of the way. The hand lunged, and grabbed Lal by the back of the shoulder, and then the hand, the swirling wind, and Lal, instantly vanished!

And then there was nothing but silence, following by the gasps of the gathered throng of cadets. Rebecca was safe; but Lal was gone. But then, suddenly, the swirling light reappeared, and Lal fell out of the light, and onto the ground. The light vanished again, and this time for good.

Rebecca ran over to Lal, who was stretched out on the floor.

"Don't move," Rebecca said, "someone please call for help," Rebecca said to the gathered crowd of students.

"There's no need for that," a voice replied.

The crowd parted at the sound of the voice of man. He was instantly recognized as one of the professors at the school, and Rebecca Sisko recognized the man instantly; his name was Geordi Leforge.

Continued….next season...


	99. The Needs of the Many

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Needs of the Many….**

Jim Kirk opened his eyes. He was no longer atop a hillside with his wife Myran, but instead he was sitting in the command chair of the USS Enterprise. Sulu, who was at the helm, and Ensign Carlson, the navigator, was both slumped over their posts. Kirk looked around and saw that Nog wasn't anywhere on the bridge.

"Jim," Spock said, standing next to Kirk, "the crew is fine."

Kirk stood up and saw that Spock wasn't alone. S'vath and the ship's Chief of security, Jaden Weer, were with him.

"Alright, I understand why the three of you are unaffected," Kirk said, "you're all telepaths to one degree or another."

"Correct," Spock said. "Jim, moments ago, you were existing in a false reality, a menagerie if you will, created by the three aliens inside of the Planet-killer. The rest of the crew, and passengers, are still in their own self evolving menageries."

"The three of us," Jaden Weer continued, "were able to create telepathic bubble around ourselves."

"By combining our abilities," Spock added, "we have been able to take your mind into shelter with ours."

"Where is the Planet-killer now," Kirk asked his tactical officer, S'vath.

"See for your self sir," S'vath said, as he looked beyond Kirk, at the main screen behind the captain.

Kirk turned around and saw a most incredible sight; the Planet-killer. He also looked at the tactical readings on the screen and saw that the Enterprise was seemingly in an accompanying course off the machine's starboard bow.

"What's happening?" Kirk asked, as he turned back to Spock.

"The Klingon fleet is approaching our position," S'vath answered for his father, Spock.

"And it would appear," Spock went on to say, "That the abilities of the three aliens aboard the Planet-killer are not as powerful we once thought."

"What do you mean?" Kirk asked. "They were able to get the USS Algiers and the three Klingon ships she was with to attack and destroy each other."

"Captain, that was just four ships," S'vath interjected. "The approaching fleet has over forty ships or so."

"Over thirty-five thousand minds," Weer said, doing the math for Kirk. "We are overloading their minds."

Suddenly, on the screen, three Bird of Prey Klingon ships uncloaked ahead of the Planet-killer, shooting their weapons as they did. The disrupter beams bounced off the outer skin of the Planet-killer. The Planet-killer filed its anti-proton weapon, destroying two of the attacking Klingon ships instantly.

"Why doesn't it attack us?" Kirk asked.

"The aliens aboard the Planet-killer are in fact peaceful," Spock told Kirk. "They want us to convey a message to the attacking Klingons to stand down."

"Spock," Kirk said, "you told me the aliens aboard that thing want to destroy Talos IV. Now you're telling me that they don't? You can't have it both ways."

Suddenly, the reality around Kirk shifted, and he was no longer on the Enterprise bridge, but back on the hillside with Myran, his Romulan wife, overlooking the Valley of Chula on Romulas.

"Jim," Myran said to him, sitting on the blanket with her hand reached out to him, "Please come sit down. Look at the distant lava falls, are they not beautiful?"

Kirk looked at the apple, and Spock's face was still there.

"Fight it Jim," Spock said, "fight them with all that you can. You must use your mind."

"Spock, what is happening?" Kirk asked the apple.

"The aliens, inside the Planet-killer," Spock explained, "they are probing our minds, one by one, trying to find the location of Talos IV. The Talosians, for their part, are reaching out with their minds, at this very moment, shielding our minds and holding that piece of information, the location for Talos IV, from the aliens."

"But I don't where Talos IV is," Kirk said. "I've never been there."

"Because you're not really Captain Kirk," the Spock apple replied, "your name is Nog. Weeks ago I created this bubble inside your mind, filtering it with information that I knew of the Captain. I suspected the aliens would attempt this action, and try to gain knowledge of Talos-IV. Thankfully the breakdown of the reality I had implanted inside of your mind just made them weary, and they have moved on."

Nog now knew who he really was, and that he was not James T Kirk.

"What am I to do?" Nog asked.

"Listen carefully," Spock apple said. "You are not on the bridge; you are on the battle bridge. You must separate the saucer section of the Enterprise, and then pilot the battle bridge into the maul of the Planet-killer and create a warp core breach once you are inside."

"I will die, and many others will die if I do this," Nog pleaded.

"The needs of the many," Spock explained, "out weigh the needs of the few. If you do not do this, then these beings will absorb the power of the Talosians and destroy the galaxy."

Nog opened his eyes…he was indeed on the battle bridge of the USS Enterprise. The older ship had been modified and now sported a battle bridge. Not only was he on the battle bridge, he was also the only one there, and Nog knew why. He was the only one, aside from Scotty and Kirk, who had the knowledge to do what Spock wanted; and do it alone. And only he, and Kirk, were authorized for such an emergency action and could input the commands needed into the computer. So it had to be either Kirk, or him, Nog.

"Is this the only way?" Nog asked with his mind, not really wanting to die.

"Yes," Spock replied. "And you must hurry. Before the aliens used their minds to attack this ship, I flooded the rest of the ship with neuron gas, rendering their minds useless to attack. The aliens are probing Jim Kirk's mind at this moment, here on the bridge. They will start at his youth and work their way to his older ages. The Talosians will prevent Kirk's mind from revealing Talos-IV's location. However, once the aliens reach Kirk's more recent memories they will see duplication in his memories, having just seen them in your mind, and they will exert more effort and overcome the Talosian interference with Kirk. If they do that, before you do what must be done, they will obliterate the approaching Klingon fleet and destroy us in the process, and then they will go onto Talos-IV; we can not allow that. You must hurry Nog; you are our last hope."

"But I don't want to die," Nog thought back to Spock.

At that moment, on Talos-IV, the Keeper, who had been monitoring Spock's thoughts with Nog, exerted control over Nog's body, realizing that Nog's hesitation was jeopardizing what had to be done.

Nog could only watch, and listen, as his voice spoke the commands and he initiated an emergency saucer separation.

But the Keeper was under stress as well. The Keeper's eyes opened, revealing a gruesome scene as the monster that had arrived on Talos-IV was devouring two other Talosians. Their heads had been decapitated, and the monster, a female Vulcan, was devouring the flesh exposed from the stumps of her victims. And then the monster saw the Keeper looking at it, and then the monster approached the Keeper.

Nog's fingers pressed the button, and the main section of the Enterprise dove into the maul of the Planet-Killer, seconds after it had fired its anti-proton weapon at the approaching Klingon fleet….

Next time...issue #100!


	100. Repercussions

**James T Kirk: the Next Generation**

**Repercussions (PART ONE)**

**DEEP SPACE NINE**

The saucer section of the USS Enterprise had been towed to DS9 with the help of the Klingon fleet. The Planet-killer had been obliterated when the warp core of the Enterprise breeched. The resulting explosion had destroyed it, the three beings inside, and five of the attacking Klingon ships, costing the lives of over a thousand Klingon warriors, which, to the Klingons, was a glorious ending. But thanks to the heroic sacrifice of Commander Nog, there were no casualties aboard the Enterprise. Due to the many years Nog had spent on DS9, a special memorial was to be held in Nog's honor aboard the space station.

But…all was not copasetic…

* * *

Captain Kirk stood inside of Admiral Janeway's office and stared out the window at the Enterprise saucer section, which was now docked at one of the upper pylons. Janeway sat behind her desk, and sitting in front of her were Admiral Picard and Benjamin Sisko. Lt. Commander Julian Bashir was there as well, standing by the door.

"Nog was hero," Kirk said softly, staring out window.

"Yes he was," Janeway said, "but in your report, you make it clear that Ambassador Spock had intended Nog to be used as a back up measure all along, without either letting him know, or you."

"I can't believe that Spock would be so arrogant as to not inform you," Picard said to Kirk's back, "of all people."

"And," Janeway continued, "thanks to that contingency, the Talosians were saved and the Planet-killer was destroyed; but I can't help but ask what might have happened had they, Spock and the Talosians, been honest with us at the start."

Kirk nodded in agreement; and he was mad inside as well. He knew Janeway was right. Why hadn't Spock been honest about being in contact with Pike's daughter and the Talosian's concern about the Planet-killer and the beings inside of it? They were aware of the situation before most of the events had happened.

"And I must point out," Picard said, in a reserved voice, "Their silence may have cost the life of Lt. Michael Donovan, the Pakleds who came to that observation post; and that's not to mention the life of Lt. T'av, the Vulcan female we still do not know the whereabouts of."

Kirk whirled around.

"Look," Kirk said, "I trusted Spock, I admit that. I take full responsibility for what Spock has done here."

"Jim," Janeway said, "no one is blaming you for the Ambassador's ambiguous actions. In fact, maybe I was to blame for trusting him too much. In your defense, Ambassador Spock is not the same Vulcan you knew a hundred years ago."

Picard nodded in agreement.

"Kate is correct," Picard added. "I really only interacted with Spock one time. And even then his actions were unconventional. And that's not to mention the strained relationship he had with Sarek, until his passing."

"I agree," Janeway said, "I read some of Spock's arguments with Sarek, public debates they had with each other over political concerns, and some of them were, in my opinion, illogical."

"Well, this is all very interesting," Sisko finally said, "all I know is this; Nog died a hero. And who is to say he wouldn't have done the same thing with or without Spock's manipulation."

"I agree," Bashir chimed in, backing Sisko up. "I believe Spock chose Nog because of the unique nature of the Ferengi mind. It is a well known fact that telepaths can not totally penetrate deep layers of the Ferengi mind."

"And as for his not telling Jim," Sisko continued, "perhaps he was worried the beings on the Planet-killer would have read Jim's thoughts and found out the truth."

"We won't know for certain until Ambassador Spock returns from Talos IV and gives me a full report in person; which I fully expect him to do," Janeway concluded.

"Spock will return," Kirk said abruptly. "If he doesn't; I'll go get him my self."

And then Kirk charged toward the door and left the office. Picard was about to go after him, but Sisko stood first.

"Jean-Luc," Sisko said to Picard, "let me talk with him first."

Picard nodded and Sisko left the office.

* * *

For the second time in nearly a year, the massive loading dock of DS9 had been converted for the memorial service. A year earlier it had been for Commander Thomas Riker. And, just as before, Quark, Nog's uncle, made the arrangements. But as the service neared, Quark sat alone in his bar, having closed it for the ceremony. Quark had decided not to attend, not wanting to grieve in public, and not to be seen offering any support for the Federation and Star Fleet. The door to his bar opened.

"Leave now; the bar is closed," Quark said to whoever the visitor was, not bothering to turn and face the door.

"It's me brother," Rom said.

Quark turned to see Rom, Grand Nagus Rom, as the doors closed behind him.

"Don't tell me you're here for the service," Quark said with coldness in his voice. "I told you, I told you both, this was going to happen to him. Losing his leg should have been enough warning to get out, and now he's dead."

"I know you don't really believe that," Rom said, as he came over to Quark. "Nog chose to do join Starfleet, and he did so with honor. I was never more proud of him when he graduated."

Rom's words had no effect on Quark.

"Your son, my nephew, is dead," Quark said. "And you have the gall to stand there and tell me you would let him do it all over again? Ferengi are not warriors; we don't die in pools of blood or exploding ships. The whole galaxy knows this."

Rom had had enough.

"No; BROTHER!" Nog shouted back. "Now you listen to me. Nog has changed that image of Ferengi. Throughout my travels as the Grand Nagus I have heard nothing but praise for him, and more respect for our people because of him. Did you know there are fifty Ferengi cadets at Star Fleet academy this year?"

"All of them are fools,' Quark said beneath his breath.

"No, not fools; brave Ferengi, and that was what my son was," Rom countered. "I read Captain Kirk's reports. Had Nog failed, it's quite possible the telepaths Nog stopped would have wiped out the Klingon fleet, and could have used their telepathic abilities to destroy us all."

"You don't know that, nobody does, not even the great Captain Kirk." Quark fired back. "The Klingon fleet may have destroyed that thing just as easily."

Rom stood defiant

"Rom was my son," Rom said quietly. "Whether or not you accept his death as a brave and honorable act really doesn't matter to me. Go ahead and sit here in this bar, inside your pathetic little world, while I and many of Nog's friends celebrate his life. As of this moment," Rom said as he turned to leave and the doors to the bar opened, "you are my brother no more."

The doors slid closed, leaving Quark alone again…naturally.

Continued…


	101. Repercussions   Part Two

**James T Kirk; the Next Generation**

**Repercussions (Part Two)**

**Talos IV**

Two small space ships soft landed on the surface of Talos IV. Moments later the two pilots of the crafts exited their ships. Elizabeth Pike ran over and hugged Spock.

"I assure you," Spock said, as Elizabeth placed her head on his shoulders, "this kind of welcome was not necessary."

"I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come my way on the way here. I was heading out, trying to find the Enterprise, so as to warn you that the others had found Talos IV's position."

"Yes, the Vulcan female," Spock acknowledged as Elizabeth stood back. "The Keeper told me as much while communicating with my mind."

"What happens now?" she came back with.

"Not now," Spock told her. "We need to get inside. I fear the worst has happened. I have lost contact with the Keeper's mind."

And then, without another word, they both entered the hidden entrance which was behind an outcropping of massive rock faces. A long dark tunnel winded its way deep into the surface of the planet.

"Did she kill them all?" Elizabeth asked.

"I do not know, though," Spock answered. "The amount of mental control it took to shield our minds on the Enterprise is what weakened them."

"The transmitter on my ship, which my father built, was able to decode several subspace communications. One of them said that five Klingon ships had been destroyed, as well as a plant millions of innocent souls." Elizabeth said.

"Correct," Spock said as he, and she, went deeper into the planet's surface. "My actions as well as the Talosian actions will no doubt face scrutiny for many years to come."

"That Ferengi Star Fleet officer the reports mentioned," Elizabeth continued, "he gave his life to save us all. He was very brave."

"Nog is a unique individual," Spock came back with.

Elizabeth found Spock's last statement interesting in that it left the impression that Spock thought Nog was still alive. She just attributed it to Spock's advanced years.

They finally made their way to a Turbo-lift that took them even deeper inside the planet's interior. Finally they were deposited at the main control center, the place Elizabeth had called home for her entire life. Several dead Talosian bodies littered the area.

"There were about fifty of them left," Elizabeth told Spock, as they carefully stepped over the partially devoured bodies of the dead Talosians. "They stopped procreating two hundred years ago, knowing that they had to be the last of their kind in this part of the universe. Spock," Elizabeth said directly to Spock, "Will you be able to stop this Vulcan creature should we come upon it?"

"Yes," Spock replied, "and so could have they; they just decided not to."

Finally they came to a cave door that slid opened, and they both stepped into the secluded holding area. The Keeper was inside, alive, waiting to greet them. The Vulcan female, T'av, was hunched in the corner of the room, with scraps of real food near her.

"This child is not to blame for her actions," the Keeper said, looking over at T'av. "The others no longer control her mind; however, she still retains the memories of what they made her do. I hope your people do not cast judgment on her without taking everything into consideration."

Spock nodded in agreement. Suddenly the Keeper seemed to have several spasms of pain, and stumbled backward. Spock helped the Keeper slowly to the ground, and into a sitting position against the rock wall.

"You are near death," Spock said, kneeling down next to the Keeper.

"No…" Elizabeth said, as she knelt down next to the Keeper as well.

The Keeper looked at Elizabeth and smiled.

"This time had to come, child," the Keeper said. Then the Keeper looked at Spock. "I read your thoughts, Spock. I know that your people will not understand the actions we took, and may very well pass judgment upon you."

"I am prepared to face such inquiries," Spock replied.

"What about the Ferengi?" The Keeper asked. "He survived."

"Yes, I know," Spock said. "I will look into the matter in time. However, I am quite sure Star Fleet will want other answers."

"Very well," the Keeper said, "though you must not tell them everything."

"Why did we act so slowly?" Elizabeth said to Spock and the Keeper. "That entire world was destroyed by that blasted device. If we had acted sooner, then those lost souls would still be alive."

"Unfortunately," Spock told Elizabeth, "it had to happen in this way."

The Keeper closed its eyes as more spasms of pain came. With little strength, the Keeper raised its hand and placed it on the side of Elizabeth's face.

"The place you hoped your parents were reunited in after life;" the Keeper said softly, "do you believe I will be there with them?"

Elizabeth smiled down at the Keeper.

"Oh yes I do," she replied.

And then Elizabeth's mind was flooded with a new image. She saw her father Christopher Pike, young and fit, as well as her mother, Vina, and they were standing by a tree which was located near a stream. Suddenly the Keeper walked up to the two of them. And then, just a fast as it came, the images in her mind were gone.

"I saw them and you too" she said to the Keeper, with a smile. "Thank you for creating that memory for me."

"Child," the Keeper said, with its final breath, and dropping its hand to the ground, "that was not a created memory…"

And then the Keeper closed its eyes, and was gone.

"What happens now?" Elizabeth asked as both she and Spock stood back up.

Spock looked at the Vulcan female, T'av, in the corner of the darkened room.

"What happens indeed," was Spock's only reply.

Continued…


	102. Extended Family

**James T Kirk; TNG **

**Extended Family**

Our story picks up two weeks after the last issue….

Jim Kirk opened his eyes. In the aftermath of the Talosian/Planet-killer incident, and with a ship no longer to command, Kirk did what Admiral Janeway had suggested; he took a sabbatical on Bajor where he was finally reunited with his Bajoran wife Myran. And, thanks to the hospitality of Benjamin and Kasidy Sisko, the two were currently staying at the home of Benjamin Sisko. Kirk looked over and saw his wife still sound asleep and smiled. He looked over at the crib and was happy to see that Mathew, their son, was still sleeping too. It was just another peaceful quiet morning; and that was fine; for now.

As Kirk tried to dive back into sleep, he heard voices. He could hear Benjamin and Kasidy talking about something, and whatever it was, they were both agitated by it. Kirk crawled out of bed, put on some simple clothes, and then left Myran and Mathew to sleep some more.

Kirk came out into the kitchen area when Ben noticed him.

"I'm sorry if we woke you Jim," Ben Sisko said, with a look of embarrassment on his face.

"Not at all," Kirk said, with a slight wave of his hand, "I was up already. I couldn't help but hear you voices, and I thought I heard you mention Rebecca. She's still at the academy right?"

"Yes," Kasidy replied. "What has us riled up is this message we got from her. Apparently there was an incident with her roommate, Lal."

Kirk poured himself a cup of coffee, which was already brewed, and sat at one of the wooden stools at the counter.

"What kind of incident?" Kirk asked.

"Some sort of," Ben began to explain, "atmospheric phenomenon appeared in their room. And, according to Rebecca, Lal vanished for several moments before returning."

"An atmospheric phenomenon just appeared in their room?" Kirk asked. "Did the academy make an official report?"

"As it turns out," Sisko went on, "Master Chief Obrien is currently holding two classes there, and Commander Leforge happened to be visiting, and the two of them are still investigating the incident. At this point, at least from what we read, no conclusions have been made."

"And so," Kasidy interjected, "I think Ben should go to Earth and find out what is going on. Rebecca could be in danger, and that poor child has had enough traumas in her life, recently, if you asked me."

Kirk sipped some of his coffee.

"I think we should both go," Kirk said to Sisko.

"Jim," Kasidy came back with, "you can't keep zipping off, while leaving your poor wife here."

"Actually," Kirk replied with a smile, "I was thinking of taking Myran and Mathew with me. They've never even been to Earth. We can go there, check up on Rebecca, and then I'll take them on a tour of Earth."

"Then we should all go," Ben said to Kasidy. "The four of us," Ben said. "You've never been to my father's restaurant, have you?"

"No I haven't," Kirk said, as he downed his coffee. Then he stood up and came over to Kasidy. "Kasidy," Kirk said, "I'm sure if there was something more urgent happening, they would have sent you a communiqué. But to be sure, we'll all go there, make sure she's okay, and then see the sights."

Kasidy gave both men a perplexed look. Having the two of them, Ben and Jim, together was like having two teenage boys, making all kinds of rash decisions.

"Well," she finally said, "I will have to start packing now. What will I wear," she said, as she ambled off towards her room.

"Jim," Ben said softly. "Are you sure you should do this? I thought Jean-Luc was expecting you to come back to DS9 and give more statements about what happened."

Kirk shook his head.

"I forgot to tell you," Kirk said. "Last night I got a message from Picard that our meeting has been postponed for two months. He didn't go into specifics, but I guess he and Kate are on their way to the Naissance Dysonsphere for some reason."

Ben was about to go start packing himself, when he stopped and looked back at Kirk.

"You don't have to do this, Jim. Maybe you and your family should share some quality alone time while Kas and I go to Earth," Sisko told Kirk.

"Ben," Kirk began to say, "You've opened your home to my family, and I thank you. The reason I'm really going back to Earth is to help you look into what's ever going on there with your daughter and Lal. Rebecca is almost like a daughter to me, after all we've been through, and if she's in any kind of danger, I'm going to do what I can to find out what it is."

Sisko smiled, and then headed off to pack. Kirk set down his coffee and headed back to the guest room to inform his wife that they were going to Earth.

Several hours later, a Transport ship left the space-dock in orbit of Bajor, and headed for DS9. Jim Kirk, his wife Myran, and their son Mathew, as well as Benjamin and Kasidy Sisko, were on their way to the famed space station, from which they would catch another Transport that would take them all the way to Earth. Little did they know that an act of terrorism was about to take place; and it would most certainly alter their plans.

-continued…


	103. What Child is This

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**What Child is This….**

Admiral Jean-Luc Picard had never been more stressed than he was at this moment. Sure, he had faced down the Borg, had numerous run-ins with the Cardassians, and dodged the flirtatious mother of Deanna Troi on several occasions; but none of that approached what he was facing now. Staring down at his bloodied hands, Picard was about to put them inside the birthing canal of a woman! He smiled, just for a second, as he thought back over the past two hours.

(FLASHBACK begins)

It had actually started three hours earlier. Picard, as well as Admiral Kate Janeway, Commander S'vath, his wife Amanda and their child Lenora, as well as two other passengers, had departed DEEP SPACE NINE in a standard runabout. The need to use the runabout was driven by the fact that the Enterprise was still undergoing maintenance at one of the upper pylons, and no other Starships were available, when Janeway had requested he accompany her to the Naissance Dysonsphere for an important matter.

As it turned out, Commander S'vath and his wife Amanda, had accepted assignments at the Dysonsphere, and would accompany them on the journey, as well as three other crew transfers, including a pregnant officer, Ensign Kari-Ann Giles. Even though Ensign Giles was very pregnant, all medical scans pointed towards another three weeks of pregnancy; WRONG! And, even in the extreme, if she went into labor, Amanda was a very accomplished medical officer who would be able to step in if needed; WRONG!

The runabout left Deep Space nine and the passengers all settled in as Commander S'vath expertly piloted the agile vessel. One of the other crew transfers, Ensign Kylon, a male who hailed from the planet Imba-7, sat in the co-pilot's seat. As typical of those from his species, the tip of Kylon's had five strands of long hair. The tail was held up in the back, and its five strands of hair were braided expertly with the white hair on its head. Dark brown skin for the rest of its body contrasted well with the color arrangement of the tail and head.

S'vath looked over at Kylon.

"Excuse me, Ensign Kylon, but I have never met anyone from your planet before," S'vath said, "Is there any significant social dynamic given to the five tail strands woven with the hair on your head?"

"Thank you Lt. Commander S'vath," Kylon replied, "I am only third of my kind to enlist in Starfleet," Kylon explained, "and, hopefully, we three will be an inspiration to others on my home world of Imba-7."

"I am quite sure that the inspiration you seek will be successful," S'vath said to the young Ensign.

"As for the colors on the tip of our tails, they indeed denote social class. Thankfully, in these times, such antiquated beliefs are not longer followed, or, I being in from the military class would have killed all the males on this runabout and claimed its women as part of my mating harem."

"Why do I not find that surprising," Amanda said from the passenger cabin, upon hearing the conversation.

"I agree," Admiral Janeway said, with a slight smile. "It is amazing how women, no matter where we are in the universe, are nothing more than prizes of conquest."

"Angel-one would challenge that dogma," Picard, with his rich accent, said, as he looked up from the data-pad he was reading.

"Is that a holo-novel?" Amanda asked Picard. "What are you reading?"

"Jake Sisko's new collection of short stories," Picard said, as he turned the pad around so as to show the novel's cover. "I actually find his writing to be quite, how shall I say, relaxing."

"Admiral, have you read Sisko's Last Autumn?" Ensign Kari-Ann Giles asked from where she sat.

"Actually I haven't," Picard replied. "However, I believe Jake has a signed copy he is going to give me next time we run into each other."

Before Picard could say anymore, the runabout suddenly lurched, and came out of warp. The sudden loss of power, and the fluctuating of the anti-gravity units, caused the passengers to be tossed violently in the cabin. S'vath did his best, and with help from Kylon, the runabout was eventually brought back under control, but there had been casualties. Both Admiral Janeway and Dr. Amanda Grayson had sustained injuries sever enough to render them incapacitated while the runabout's communication grid was damaged.

"Admiral; what do you think happened?" Kylon asked, as Picard came up to the front of the ship.

"Its hard to say," Picard said, "however, it felt like the main drive became overloaded. Now," Picard said to S'vath and Kylon, while also directing his comments to the passengers who were still able to hear him, "the Admiral and Dr. Grayson are stable."

"Admiral, my wife is with child," S'vath said, showing slight worry on his face.

"Yes, I know," Picard said to S'vath, "however, do not worry. According to the medical-Tricorder, your unborn child is just fine, and this one," Picard said, referring to the child who was still sleeping soundly in a baby carrying sack, and was being held by Ensign Giles, "seems to have slept through the entire ordeal. And, thankfully," Picard said to Ensign Kari-Ann Giles, "your pregnancy hasn't been affected by what happened either."

Suddenly a spasm of pain rocked Ensign Giles' body, and she held out the carrying sack containing the baby to Picard, who then handed it to its father, S'vath. Picard sat down in the chair next to Ensign Giles and scanned her with the Tricorder; and then a look of anxiety came over his face.

"Well, now, that is quite interesting," Picard said. "According to these scans, you're to go into labor."

"Do you mean my baby is going to be born here; on a runabout?" Giles asked, in a worried tone. Then she looked over at the only doctor on the ship, and then looked back at Picard. "Who will deliver my baby?"

Picard looked back to S'vath and Kylon who were both now looking conspicuously in the opposite direction. Picard knew what that meant; he was going to deliver a baby.

"Alright," Picard said to Ensign Giles, "it looks like it's going to be up to you and me to deliver this baby. Now, Lt. Commander S'vath," Picard said, with authority in his voice, "have the replicator make us some warm water, and I want you," Picard said to Ensign Kylon, "to go into the back and open the emergency med-kits and find as many blankets as you can."

"Aye sir," Kylon said, as he hurriedly walked past Picard to retrieve the items.

(End of FLASHBACK)

It was now three hours later. S'vath sat on one side of Lt. Giles, holding one of her hands with his, while Kylon sat on the other side holding the other hand. Lt. Giles was doing her best to push the baby out, as Picard and the other two cheered her on. But it was clear something was wrong. And as Picard slid his hands inside of the pregnant woman's birthing canal, he realized right then and there that something was wrong.

"S'vath," Picard said, "please scan her again with the Tricorder. This time I want you to concentrate on her lower abdomen," Picard said.

S'vath let Ensign Giles' hand go and scanned her with the Tricorder, and then he showed the images as data to Picard.

"Just as I feared," Picard said softly. "It's a breech."

"What does that mean?" Kylon asked. "On my world, our offspring do not come into the world in such a matter."

"In this case," Picard said, "the child is facing the wrong direction. But do not worry," Picard said, as he looked down at Lt. Giles, "We'll get through this."

Once Picard saw that Lt. Giles had closed her eyes for a moment, he gave both Kylon and S'vath a more worried look and carried with it the ultimate concern; the unborn child's life was at stake!

Continued…


	104. The Slide to Life

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Slide to Life….**

As Picard prepared to reach his hands inside of Ensign Giles' birthing canal, he told Kylon to hold the data-pad up so that he could read the instructions as they were displayed on the pad. The instructions were somewhat brief, but the accompanying diagrams were going to be helpful until…

"Ensign Kylon," Picard said, with a little note of urgency in his voice, "those are the instructions for the birth of a Ritilian Mogath Demon bat," Picard explained.

Kylon, embarrassed, pulled down the Tricorder and quickly did a search for instructions of human births, and then he held those instructions up instead.

"Thank you," Picard said, with relief in his voice. "Now, Lt. Commander S'vath," Picard said, "while Kylon is holding the data-pad, perhaps you can check your wife's condition and see if she's any closer to coming around. I would feel more at ease if…"

Suddenly Ens. Giles' body was rocked by another spasm. There was no time to waste, Picard decided. The instructions on the pad were quite clear. If the process lingered on, then oxygen deprivation was a real threat to the unborn child. The pad also suggested, if at all possible, that a caesarian section be attempted. But a caesarian was out of the question due to the lack of any real medical environment.

As Picard pushed on, S'vath sat on the seat next to his own wife. He scanned her with the other medical Tricorder, and then spoke to her softly.

"Amanda; can you hear me?" S'vath asked, as he looked over at their one year old child Lenora, who was softly sleeping on the seat next to her mother.

"I'm going to attempt a mind-meld with my wife." S'vath finally said.

"Will that not be dangerous?" Kylon asked, as he looked over at S'vath.

"While it is true that mind-melds with individuals who have suffered head injuries can be challenging," S'vath replied, "I believe I can limit any possible risk by being diligent."

Picard slipped his hands inside of Ensign Giles, and found it much harder to do than he had anticipated. He didn't want to force his hands in, and so he just pushed little by little.

"Our minds are one," S'vath said, as he placed his fingers on his wife's head. "As I speak to you, your mind will come to know that I am of no threat…"

As S'vath continued the mind-meld with his wife, Picard finally had his hands around the child. It was now or never as he gently began to pull the child.

"I need you to push, Ensign Giles," Picard instructed the nervous soon to be mother. "I can't do this alone."

Ensign Giles looked directly at Picard, and nodded her head. With all she could muster, Giles took a deep breath and pushed with all her might, knowing that the life of her unborn child depended on it.

"Push," Kylon repeated for Picard, "you can do this Ensign Giles. Just pretend you're back on the Golden Gate Bridge, running in that last marathon you won."

"You won that marathon?" Picard asked with a smile.

"The female division," Giles said, nearly yelling due to the pain in her body.

"Well, I am very impressed," Picard said, as he gently kept pulling on the child. "I won the male division race twice when I was at the academy."

"That old grounds keeper," Kylon began to say, "Boothby. He still talks about those two races of yours." Kylon said to Picard.

"Actually," Picard said in response, "he suggested a new breathing pattern just before the first race, and I really think it made a…"

And then…it happened. Without any real effort at all, Picard felt little resistance from inside of Giles, and the infant seemed to just glide the rest of the way, out into the world, just in time for Picard to hear…

"Well done Admiral," Amanda said, as she sat up next to S'vath, "I couldn't have done it any better."

"Congratulations," Picard, grinning, said to Giles, "you're the mother of a beautiful baby boy."

"Um, Admiral," Amanda said, "that's the umbilical cord," she said with a slight laugh.

Amanda came over and cut the cord, and handed the baby girl to Kylon, who then proceeded to clean the baby girl off with an assortment of towels he had collected. Amanda assisted with the clean up and then expertly wrapped the new born baby in a blanket, and handed it to the young mother.

Joy came to the passengers of the runabout as they all took turns holding the baby.

"On my world," Kylon told them, as he held the baby, "it is customary that we create a song for a new born. Does the child have a name?"

Giles, who was smiling with happiness, nodded her head.

"I am going to name her," then she looked at Picard, "Jean Lucy Giles."

"Thank you Ensign," Picard said, realizing the child had been named after him. "However, you must have had another name prepared, perhaps in honor of a family member. I would suggest you go with that name."

"Uh-uh," Ensign Kari-Ann Giles said, "that's the name I want."

Then, without hesitation, Kylon began singing a traditional Imba song, in tribute to the child. The words to the song were unrecognizable to the others, except for the words JEAN-LUCY-GILES, which were sung intermittently with the rest of the words. After a few cycles, the others on the runabout joined in and sang along.

Admiral Janeway heard this strange song, and opened her eyes at the strange sight of Picard, S'vath, Amanda, Kylon and Ensign Giles, holding a baby, singing the interesting song. Janeway had the funny sensation that something out of the ordinary had happened, and she had missed it.

After another couple hours, two Federation starships came out of warp. One of the ships extended a tractor-beam, and towed the runabout the rest of the way, and soon they all arrived at the Naissance Dysonsphere.


	105. Reasonable Cause

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Reasonable Cause…**

The civilian Transport was originally on the way to Starbase-147, but that was until four passengers, who were actually terrorists, commandeered the vessel and forcibly changed its course for the planet Dantha-7. The terrorists were also well aware of the fact that two of their hostages were Starfleet legends; James T Kirk and Benjamin Sisko. Kirk and Sisko, who were each put in wrist restraints, were brought to the small bridge of the Transport vessel, by request of the terrorists' leader; Navon.

Jim Kirk had never seen a citizen of Dantha-7 before. Danthians were humanoid in appearance, with slightly pronounced ridges below each eye. The leader of the terrorist was actually a female. Her name was Navon, and it was clear to Kirk and Sisko that she carried herself with confidence and would not be easy to talk out of her course of action.

Navon nodded at her assistant, who had brought Kirk and Sisko to the bridge. The assistant released the wrist restraints on both Kirk and Sisko.

"I wanted you both to understand that I am not a barbarian," Navon said. "However, if you try to escape, I will not hesitate to order your deaths."

"Funny you should put it that way," Sisko said, with indifference in his voice. "Terrorists always claim their causes are civilized, and yet, they take innocent people as hostages to shield their so called acts of honor."

"Having spent so much time with the Bajorans," Navon came back with, "I would have thought you would have had a more open mind."

"You are confusing open mindedness with a working relationship," Sisko countered, "Neither of which I see in your immediate future."

Navon switched her glance over to Kirk.

"I have been told much of your career, James T Kirk," Navon said, with great respect in her voice. "You are a legend to your people, and I have taken from what I was told that you are someone who is known to challenge the status-quo."

"I am not sure what your source material is," Kirk said, "but like my friend just said; civilized people do not hide behind innocent people."

Navon smiled at both men, and then she activated the main screen. The image of space was replaced with the image of another Danthian, a male, and who also appeared to be much older.

"This is the ruler of my world," Navon began to explain. "He also happens to be my father, and, is currently in final negotiations to join your precious Federation. In fact, as we speak, he is on Earth finalizing the final wording of our agreement with your Federation."

"And what is wrong with that?" Sisko asked. "From what know of Dantha-7, your people were finally united after a violent civil war, decades ago. With the development of warp technology, first-contact was made with your civilization. And now, after a decade of successful applications, your world is on a fast track to being admitted into the Federation."

Navon chuckled.

"I fail to see what you find so funny," Sisko said.

"You stated my world's history as though it came straight out of a history text," Navon said, her youthful voice in sharp contrast to the seriousness of the situation.

"Excuse me, Navon," Kirk said, "but what does any of this have to do with the two of us, or the other passengers? Why go through the trouble of hijacking a ship of civilians. It will not help whatever your cause is."

Sisko continued before Navon could reply to Kirk.

"Is this situation the result of some family dynamic between you and your father?" Sisko asked. "If that is all it is, then I can assure you, if you release us now, the consequences will not be as grave as they will be if you continue on your current endeavor," Sisko explained.

"Trust me," Navon said, after hearing Sisko's words, "we have no intention of hurting you or anyone else aboard this ship. In time you will come to understand why we have taken this course of action."

The door opened and one of the other terrorists came in and handed Navon a data-pad of some sort. Navon read it, and nodded her head upon completion. She handed the pad back to the other terrorist, who then left the bridge.

"We are in luck," Navon said to Kirk and Sisko. "Very soon this Transport will arrive at Dantha-7, and once we arrive on my home world, everything will be explained in more detail. And do not hold out for rescue," Navon said, as she stood to leave the room. "We have deactivated the ship's beacons and other means of detection."

"We will never assist you," Sisko said.

Navon turned back and smiled at Sisko.

"Perhaps not," Navon replied, "but I think you will."

"Meaning; after you threaten to kill the others, and or our loved ones," Kirk added.

Navon shook her head, and then nodded to the guard who then put the wrist restraints back on, and led Kirk and Sisko back to the passenger cabin. Myran and Kasidy were glad to see their husbands. Sisko and Kirk sat back down next to their spouses. Kirk could see the other passengers casually looking back his way, and at Sisko too. Myran noticed Kirk noticing the glances.

"These people know who you are, James," Myran said. "No one is really concerned because they believe that you, and Ben, will save them."

Sisko gave Kirk a wry look.

"I hope we don't leave them disappointed," Sisko replied.

"You won't, Ben," Kasidy said with a smile. "Now," Kasidy added, "what do these hijackers want?" Kasidy asked.

As Ben Sisko explained what little they knew to Kasidy and Myran, Kirk glanced out the window of the Transport, and the vastness of space beyond. He had a funny sensation that there was much more going on than Navon allowed. He also had the funny sensation that the act of hijacking the Transport wasn't as coincidental as it appeared, and that he and Ben Sisko were the targets all along.

Continued…


	106. Above the Law

James T Kirk; the Next Generation

_previously..on James T Kirk: The Next Generation…_

_Jim Kirk and Benjamin Sisko, along with their wives, were on their way to Earth to look into mystery surrounding Lal's recent momentary disappearance at StarFleet Academy. But before Kirk and Sisko arrived, they, as well as all the other passengers aboard a civilian Transport ship, were hijacked by a terrorist group from the planet Dantha-7._

The private travel pod of Lawrence Xavier Thorn came to rest on the top level of the San Francisco travel hub. There was a slight wind, and even a little mist, as the door to the pod slid opened. The lower levels of the travel hub were for the local traffic, the top level being reserved for official concerns, or in Lawrence Thorns case, privilege. As Thorn exited his private pod, he was greeted by one of Starfleet's most accomplished security officers; Lt. Commander Mike Stone.

Stone was approaching his mid 60's, and had declined offers of promotion, favoring a more active position. For even though Earth was not as crime ridden as it was in earlier centuries, there were occasional needs for law enforcement, which is where Earth's internal security came into the picture. And, being one of the most important worlds of the Federation, Starfleet was tasked with Earth's security.

"Ahh," Lawrence Thorn said, as he recognized Lt. Commander Stone. "You must be Lt. Commander Stone," Thorn said, with a slight eastern-European accent, "I am glad they have you investigating my brother's death. I am sorry that it's taken this long for me to get here, but I was off world when it had happened." (Readers will recall that Lawrence actually killed his brother in an earlier installment, and is, of course, telling lie. Obviously he covered his tracks...)

"Yes," Stone replied, "we tried contacting you when the cause of death was in question. You have nothing to worry about." (unknown to Lawrence Thorn; Lt. Commander Stone could tell a tall tale too.)

The two made their way across the tarmac.

"Unfortunately my brother was known to drink heavily," Lawrence said, in a somber tone. "So believe me, Lt. Commander Stone, ff you were to tell me he fell off the building in one of his drunken stupors, then I wouldn't be surprised."

The two men walked along the landing pad and then entered the massive receiving area inside the travel hub.

"Unfortunately, Mr. Thorn, I have to admit you may be right on that count." Stone offered. "The toxicology report indicated elevated levels of alcohol in his system."

Lawrence grimaced at the thought, though it was just for Stone's benefit.

"Such a fool," Lawrence finally said. "I my self do not drink, having watched my father be obsessed with it. You would think, in this time, such vices would no longer be part of the human condition, and yet, something like this can still happen."

Stone sought to change the subject.

"Your corporation," Stone went on to say, "I've done my research and I see that it is very active here in this part of the world. I must admit, the various charities, both here on Earth and abroad, you have sponsored have benefitted greatly from your generosity."

"Yes," Lawrence said, nodding his head. "Before my father passed away, he made sure to instill into Andrew and myself the need to help others. "

"And you have," Stone said, appreciatively. "Thanks to your efforts, after the Dominion War for example, many supplies made it to those who needed them on many worlds across the Federation, and even to as far as to Cardassia."

Lawrence Thorn looked at the time, which was displayed on a screen that displayed up-coming departures from the travel hub.

"Well, it's been nice meeting you Lt. Commander Stone, and I want to thank you for taking the time to update me on my brother's unfortunate death," Thorn said. "However, I must be on my way to my corporate office over in Alameda."

"No problem," Stone said with a smile. "It was good to meet you too, and I am sorry for your loss."

Lawrence Thorn smiled at Stone, turned, and then walked away. Thorn had taken three strides when he heard Stone's voice call out to him.

"Oh, Mr. Thorn, if you would, I have one more thing to add," Stone said.

Thorn flashed an annoyed look in the other direction, then turned to face Stone.

"No problem, Lt. Commander Stone," Lawrence said with a smile. "Do you have another question?"

"No," Stone said with a dismissive shake of his head, "just an observation. Your brother worked here in the Bay area for quite sometime." Stone said. "Andrew had many friends and relations here. And do you know what they told us?"

"He was a kind man," Lawrence said, "I'm sure they all had nice things to say about him."

Stone nodded in agreement.

"That is the other thing they all agreed on," Stone said, "how nice he really was. But they also agreed on something else."

Lawrence could only stare back at Stone, wondering where it was leading to. Stone stepped closer, and lowered his voice, as if to make a point.

"None of them," Stone said, "not any of his friends, the people who worked for him at the Thorn complex in Alameda, his lovers be they both men or women, and he seem to have many, ever saw him drink. We searched his residence and could not find one alcoholic beverage, or any evidence that he drank at all. For a man, who as you put it, with such a vice, doesn't that sound peculiar?"

Lawrence didn't like the tone in Stone's voice, for it sounded like the voice of accusation.

"My brother was a quiet man who lived the way he wanted to, and had a," Lawrence searched for the right word, "complex life style. Because he did a lot of business with humans, and aliens, he no doubt kept his business life, and private life, as separate as he possibly could. Perhaps these social relationships of his decided to keep that part of his life private, as it should be."

Stone nodded his head.

"I could see the need to do that for a man in his position," Stone finally said.

"Will that be all Lt. Commander Stone?" Lawrence asked, with coldness in his voice.

Stone nodded, and then watched as Lawrence Thorn turned and walked away, disappearing into the throng of people that flowed in all directions of the travel hub. Finally, Stone turned and headed in the opposite direction; with a smirk on his face.

Continued….


	107. The Other Side

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**The Other Side**

_**Previously…**___

Jim Kirk and Benjamin Sisko, along with their wives, were on their way to Earth to look into the mystery surrounding Lal's recent momentary disappearance at Starfleet Academy. But before Kirk and Sisko arrived, they, as well as all the other passengers aboard a civilian Transport ship, were hijacked by a terrorist group from the planet Dantha-7.

Jim Kirk had managed to get some sleep, and was gently wakened by his wife, Myran. She handed him a small cup of coffee, which she had gotten from a food replicator.

"Good morning, mister late sleeper," Myran said as she watched Kirk sip from the coffee cup.

Kirk noticed that Ben Sisko and his wife Kasidy were not still sitting across from him in their passenger seats.

"Where'd they go?" Kirk asked his wife.

"Our captors are allowing us to get up and walk around." Myran replied. "We came out of warp about a half hour ago, and Ben thinks our captors are waiting to rendezvous with another ship."

"That isn't good," Kirk said ominously, "If they take us off this ship, Starfleet will have a hard time finding us."

Myran nodded her head.

"Ben said the same thing," Myran said back to Kirk.

Myran could sense the worry in her husband, then reached  
and caressed his face.

"Honey, none of this is your fault, so stop blaming yourself," Myran said.

Kirk took her hand and kissed it, then held it tight.

"I'm so glad you convinced me to leave Mathew behind with your cousins," Kirk said. "The last thing I ever want to do is to put either of you in harm's way."

At that moment, Ben Sisko and Kasidy returned and sat down in their seats. Ben was eating some sort of pastry, while Kasidy was drinking her own cup of coffee.

"I thought Navon told us we would be arriving at Dantha-7 in a short while," Kirk said to Sisko. "Apparently they have other plans."

"Actually," Sisko replied with, "I have the distinct impression that they are waiting for another ship."

"Myran told me you thought that was a possibility," Kirk said, "The only reason I can think that we weren't taken to Dantha-7 is due to the fact that Starfleet may already be aware of our abduction, and sent a ship or two to parlay for our release."

"Oh I hope so," Kasidy said, with a smile on her face. "I'm very worried about Rebecca, and none of this is getting us any closer to Earth."

"Ben," Kirk said after a moment. "If they try to move us to another ship, which this could be all about, we have to resist."

"I agree," Ben Sisko replied, "but I am not quite sure how we will be able stop them from transferring us to another ship, if that is indeed their intent."

Kirk looked at the other passengers, then back to Sisko.

"What do you think?" Kirk asked, as he eyed the other passengers. "Do you think the others could be counted upon if we make a move?"

Sisko looked at the collection of passengers, and shook his head.

"I'm sure they would help, but I'm not too confident it would make much of a difference," Sisko said. "There has to be some way other than risking innocent lives."

Kirk nodded in agreement, and began figuring out what that other way would be.

-

**Earth  
Starfleet Academy**

The food-court was crammed with cadets eating lunch. There were two dozen merchants serving several different varieties of food.

Rebecca Sisko chose to get her self a plate of Bajoran food due to its spicy nature. She took her plate, and then joined Lal at a table. They had just finished several hours of basic chemistry, and Rebecca was determined to enjoy the down time.

It had been two weeks since the strange accident inside of their quarters, and finally routine was setting back in. Lal had become the talk of the academy for over a week, but studies were becoming harder and harder,her notoriety finally ebbed.

"I'm so glad things are finally getting back to normal," Rebecca said.

"As am I," Lal said. "The last thing I wanted to do was to stand-out as someone different."

"Would you stop that," Rebecca said, with mock anger. "We are all cadets here, and we are all trying to find our ways when it comes to fitting in."

At that moment, Master Chief Miles O'Brien, with a plate of Bajoran food as well, sat down at the table with them.

"Hello girls," O'Brien said with a mile, as he sat down. "I thought you would both like to know the final results of the tests Geordi and I came up with regarding what happened two weeks ago."

"Do you know where she went yet?" Rebecca asked referring to the several moments Lal had vanished through was appeared to be a Quantum Singularity on that fateful night two weeks earlier.

"As far as we can tell," O'Brien said to Lal, "you were moved forward into the future. How far or for how long, we can not determine that at this time. And you remain quite sure that you remember nothing of what you saw on," O'Brien paused, "the other side?"

"I don't," Lal said. "It happed too fast."

"Who would have done something like this?" Rebecca asked? "Why, of all the people to choose from, did they choose her?"

"We're not sure of that either," O'Brien said. "And without any concrete proof of what was on the other side, we may never know. The only thing we do know is that the singularity was emitting T-Xz neutrinos."

"And what is the significance of that?" Rebecca asked.  
Before O'Brien could answer, Lal did.

"Star Fleet has recently begun researching the possibility of using T-Xz neutrinos to create singularities," Lal said.

"I thought the Romulans had that kind of technology. Don't they use it to power their ship?" Rebecca asked.

"They do, however," O'Brien said, "the singularity that appeared in your room had an entire different powering mechanism that, if harnessed, would make what the Romulans do as archaic as paper airplanes are to starship." O'Brien took a quick bite, and stood to leave. "Well, I only stopped to let you know of what we found, I have to get going."

"Thanks," Lal said to O'Brien.

Lal and Rebecca watched as O'Brien headed off.

"Well," Rebecca finally said, "I suggest we just forget it and move on."

Lal nodded in agreement. And though she really wanted to tell her friend the truth, Lal knew she couldn't.

Because, despite what Lal had told everyone else, Lal did indeed know what happened on the other side of the singularity; and secrecy was not only needed, it was a order.

_Continued…_


	108. Stirring

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Stirring**

The hostages aboard the transport were being fed once again by their captors. It was the third day of captivity aboard the ship, and the ship was still in a stationary position somewhere in deep space. Some of the passengers were becoming impatient with the stagnation, Kasidy being one of them due to her concern for Rebecca, but for the most part there had been little if no run-ins with the hostage takers.

"One thing is for sure," Kasidy said, as she ate her food, "these are the most polite hostage takers I have ever heard of."

"Kas is right," Myran said to Kirk. "We've all read about these kinds of things happening, but if it wasn't for the fact we were being forced to stay here, these so called terrorist could be in command of a leisure ship, for all we knew."

"Even still," Kasidy said to Mryan, "I want them to let us go so we can get to Earth and make sure my little girl is safe."

"Kas," Benjamin said, caressing her hand, "I'm sure Rebecca is just fine. We're just going to be delayed a bit, that's all."

"We've be waiting her for two days now," Kirk said to Ben Sisko.

"I wonder what we're waiting for." Ben Sisko wondered out loud.

Suddenly a voice, which Ben Sisko and Jim Kirk recognized as belonging to Navon, the female leader of the hostage takers, began speaking over the ships on board communication system.

"Heton," Navon said, "bring Jim Kirk and Benjamin Sisko to the bridge."

One of the captors, who were serving food, looked over at where Kirk and Sisko were seating and headed over to them, with weapon in hand.

"Please come with me," Heton said.

Kirk and Sisko had decided, with quick glances at each other, to go along with Heton without any resistance. The captors had indeed been civil, and now wasn't the time to change that dynamic.

They were taken to the bridge, where Navon sat in the command chair. Her beauty was not lost upon Kirk and Sisko, and neither was the fact that she was a warrior.

"It appears as if there will be a change in plans," Navon said to the two. "My father has requested asylum from the Federation, and has turned over power to me. I am not the ruler of Dantha-7."

"And so it ends, just like that?" Sisko asked. "You abduct us, and just let us go like nothing happened?"

"Yes, just like that. I will relinquish control of this transport immediately, and we hope the Federation will look beyond this," Navon paused, "unfortunate misunderstanding."

She nodded to Heton who ushered Kirk and Sisko off of the bridge. Nearly an hour later, a Dantha space cruiser arrived and Navon, and her fellow abductors, beamed over. Moments later, the civilian transport was back on course for Earth.

Later, on the Dantha space cruiser, Navon was in her quarters, talking with someone on the com-screen in her room.

"We're you sure you did exactly as I asked?" The person on the screen asked.

"Yes," Navon replied. "You explained what had to be done, and so we did it exactly as you instructed. Their arrival on Earth has been delayed, and we have lived up to our part of the deal."

"Very well," the other person replied. "Your payment will be transferred without haste."

Navon nodded her head and then the screen went blank.

-  
**elsewhere in the galaxy; The Naissance Dysonsphere  
(readers will recall this Dysonsphere is not the same one found in the episode "Relics". It is another one that is somewhat smaller, and will be used by Starfleet to save endangered animal/plant life from worlds that face certain destruction **

S'vath was dressing for his next shift, and watched as his wife, Amada, who was still in bed, was using a standard pad writing a letter to her mother. She was still in a gown, and intermittently watched him as he got dressed, frowning with each layer of clothing he added, not wanting him to go to work. He came over to the bed they shared and sat down.

"Get back in bed with me," Amanda said, smiling up at him. "We can have a little more fun before you have to go to your shift."

"The shift you're referring to," S'vath said, "is my first shift, and no, it would not be wise for me to be late. Admiral Janeway did us a favor by having us stationed here, during your pregnancy, and I do not wish to disappoint her."

"You're a party pooper," Amanda said with mock anger.

S'vath took the pad from her, and read the letter she was composing to her mother. He read from the letter.

"Mother," S'vath read, "S'vath and I have arrived at the Naissance Dysonsphere. I have entered my second trimester, and I promise that this time we are not going to keep the sex of our baby a secret from you. Lenora will soon be an older sister to a younger brother."

S'vath gave Amanda the pad back.

"You've been writing about this letter for nearly two days, and this is all you've accomplished?"

"Well," Amanda said with a coy smile, "I could put back in the parts detailing our new home here as well as the the fact we've had sex in the bathtub, sex in the living-room, sex in the kitchen, sex in the…"

"Please," S'vath said finally, "the letter I just read is perfect."

"Thanks, I knew you would agree," Amanda said with a smile. "I'm next going to try to and explain to her that we, more or less, live on the inside skin of a ball that has a star at the center of it, with tens of thousands of miles of terrain for all kinds of life forms."

"If you wish, I will provide the schematics," S'vath offered.

"Are you out of your Vulcan mind?" Amanda asked, "My mother would look at your schematics and her head would explode. I'll have to explain this in mother-daughter talk."

And with that S'vath kissed his wife, and headed out of their quarters, on the way to his first shift as the first officer of the Naissance project. Soon, with her husband gone, Amanda prepared a bath for herself. The special mood soothing Andorian bath oil, which she had gotten on DS9, did wonders for her mind and calmed her. Lenora was soft asleep, and in the portable crib near the bath, should she awake.

Finally in the bath, covered in bubbles, Amanda caressed her round tummy, which contained the child within her. She smiled at the round, ball shaped protrusion, and began humming an old lullaby. Suddenly, and without warning, there was a sharp pain inside her mind.

She didn't know it at the time, but the sharp pain in her mind was the first attempt at being communicated to by her unborn child. And what she also didn't know was that the DNA of the unborn child had been manipulated from the very beginning by none other than S'vath's uncle; a Vulcan named Sybok.


	109. Vanishing Act

**James T Kirk; the Next Generation**

**Vanishing Act**

The small Vulcan scout class vessel came out of warp, and instantly its two occupants, Spock and Elizabeth Pike, prepped the onboard sensors and other equipment. As Elizabeth expertly activated the programming, Spock looked on, and was very satisfied with her work.

Elizabeth Pike was the daughter of Christopher and Vina Pike. Christopher Pike was a former Star Fleet officer who, after a tragic accident, lived the rest of his life in the safe confines of fabricated worlds that his benefactors provided for him with their vast telepathic powers. Vina, like Pike, had survived an accident of her own, and so the two humans spend the rest of their lives together on the planet of Talos IV, with Elizabeth being a product of that union.

"Tell me again why we are in such a hurry?" Elizabeth asked, as they both did their work. "You're an Ambassador from the planet Vulcan, a charter member of the United Federation of Planets. Why anyone should dare challenge your actions?"

"You have described my predicament quite logically," Spock said, "It is because of that notoriety that I am attempting to keep our journey here as much as a secret as I can," Spock reminded her.

"You already told me we were coming here; to this area of space where the Ferengi sacrificed his life, and saved the rest of you. But what you haven't told me is why no one else can know, and, what exactly we are supposed to be doing."

Spock attempted to shift the conversation.

"Elizabeth, I am genuinely surprised at your ability to operate the computers," Spock said to her. "Most of them are experimental, and have not yet been made readily available beyond Vulcan usage."

Elizabeth activated several banks of scanners, and then she looked back at Spock.

"Just like my father, I am a natural," Elizabeth said back to Spock, "Even though I was his precious little girl, dad always took every opportunity to teach me the mechanics of computers. His wish was that I would return to Earth, and find a career in Star Fleet."

"Christopher Pike was a most efficient officer; and a friend." Spock said, as he too began to activate various controls, "His accident was not only misfortunate for him; it was also a major loss for Starfleet."

"Spock," Elizabeth said, as she stepped back from her work, having completed the start up procedure, "I know when someone is trying to deflect a conversation, so would you please stop? Just tell me what we're doing?"

The Vulcan turned away, as if to start analyzing the data that would soon be recorded by the computers, then he looked back at Elizabeth, and realized that she deserved to know the truth, even as outlandish as it might sound.

"Nog did not die aboard the Planet Killer, as most believe he did," Spock said flatly.

Elizabeth nodded her head.

"I was wondering why you spoke of Nog as if he were alive when we last saw the Keeper on Talos IV," Elizabeth. "Well, then, if he didn't die aboard the Planet Killer, then where is he now, and how did he get off of the Planet Killer before it exploded along with the Enterprise?"

"That is why we are here," Spock said. "I must first ascertain his departure from the Enterprise, and then go from there. As of now, all I have to go on is," Spock settled on the most logical word for the moment, "a hunch."

"You're following a hunch?" Elizabeth asked with a gasp.

"A good friend of mine, Leonard McCoy, often urged me to make guesses without facts," Spock said, in fond memory of his friend and antagonist, "it is fascinating that long after his passing I should find my self using them more often than not."

Elizabeth looked at the various computer displays and began putting it all together, based on the type of equipment they had brought.

"You're scanning for Black Holes, aren't you?" she finally asked.

"Not precisely," Spock said, "we are scanning for singularities."

"Spock," Elizabeth said, with doubt in her voice, "the kind of singularity you are scanning for, with this type of equipment, would be far too small to occur naturally. Are you following some kind of belief that Nog got off the Planet Killer through an artificially created singularity?"

"I am," Spock replied. "And now the reason for the secrecy should be apparent to you as well."

"If someone had such a technology, it could pose a threat to Federation," Elizabeth came back with.

"Quite correct," Spock said as the data started coming in, "however, there is another mystery as well; why did someone use such advanced technology to save Nog when they did?"

"Do you have a theory about that?" Elizabeth asked.

"No, I do not. For while Doctor McCoy urged hunches, in times where action had to be decided, in these matters, before even a hunch can be acted upon, there has to be more facts, and as of now, I have none."

-  
For several hours, Spock and Elizabeth Pike looked at the incoming data, trying to make sense out of the readings. At one point they monitored a standard Star Fleet frequency and Spock was relieved to hear that the transport which had gone missing with Jim Kirk aboard it had been found, and there had been no casualties.

It was in the eighth hour of scanning when the first clue was found.

"Spock," Elizabeth said, as she sipped on some tea and looked at computer display, "I think you might find this interesting."

Spock stood up from where he was standing and came over to where Elizabeth was. She scooted over to the next seat so that Spock could sit down and analyze the data.

"Fascinating," Spock said, as he arched an eyebrow.

"What are T-Xz neutrinos?" Elizabeth asked.

"Recently Federation scientists, as well as private Federation, have been experimenting with the mechanics of singularities. T-Xz neutrinos are a direct byproduct of their research efforts," Spock explained.

"Are you saying that these neutrinos are exclusive to Federation research?" Elizabeth asked.

"Affirmative," Spock replied.

"So what you're now saying is that someone, using a Federation created singularity, rescued Nog from the Planet Killer?" Elizabeth asked back.

"I am not saying anything at all," Spock replied, "however; there is enough circumstantial evidence to take our investigation to Earth."

"I've never been to Earth," Elizabeth said, with a fondness in her voice. "Is it as blue and wonderful as my mother often said it was?"

Spock dismissed the question.

"I shall now plot a course to Earth," Spock said. "And as soon as we pack away the equipment; that is where we will go."

As they began to pack up the equipment, Spock noticed a little extra zip in Elizabeth's pace.

Continued…


	110. Welcome homeLegend

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Welcome home; Legend!**

Jim Kirk did not feel like a hero. Sure, in the past year or so after his existence had been revealed, he had taken part in some really interesting adventures. But when he, as well as his Bajoran wife Myran, and Benjamin and Kasidy Sisko, beamed down to Star Fleet Academy's administration complex, Kirk was immediately greeted by the welcoming staff of the Academy, as well as a several cadets, as if he were some kind of old time rock star. Kirk immediately recognized Master Chief Obrien, who could see the look of apprehension on Kirk's face at the large reception in his honor. Admiral Jalok, a Tellerite who stood, at best, four feet tall, was really enthusiastic about Kirk's arrival and demanded the chance to show the living legend, Kirk, Star Fleet Academy. Several times Kirk tried to make excuses why he had to go, but Jalok would have none of it and insisted Kirk take the tour.

Kirk couldn't help but realize they were all transferring some of their adulation from the other Kirk, the one that had returned from Triskelion and had gone on to do so many wonderful things, on to him. Although both Kirks were exact duplicates, they only shared the same memories up until the moment they had been abducted from the Enterprise many decades earlier. Although he didn't welcome the attention, he understood the reasons and did his best to be an amiable legend.

One of the more interesting things to see was a great mural just beneath the Star Fleet Delta Shield at the entrance to the building. The mural was actually a painting of past alumni who had gone on to have extraordinary careers in Star Fleet. Kirk recognized the image of Christopher Pike, as well as Matt Decker's. Kirk was happy to see that Decker's mistake had been forgiven over time. Kirk also saw that Jean-Luc Picard had managed to become a legend, and has an image on the mural, as did Ben Sisko and Kate Janeway. But the two figures that had the largest images on the mural were of Kirk and Spock.

Although Kirk had been back to Earth after the events revolving around Project Diamond, he had never made it to Star Fleet Academy. Now was his chance, and even though Admiral Jalok made the tour seem even longer than it was; Kirk was genuinely impressed.

The Siskos excused themselves from the large greeting, and left Jim and Myran with the celebration, and then headed off to find their daughter. While exiting the administration building, they accidentally bumped into Commander Geordi Leforge, who was currently at the Academy teaching a special class on Entropy Physics.

"Commander Leforge," Ben Sisko said with a wide smile. "It is good to see you."

"How is our daughter doing?" Kasidy cut in with, still worried about her daughter.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be more specific in the messages I sent you," Geordi said. "But some of the subject matter is highly sensitive. Hey look," he said, changing the subject, "I need to get to a class that's about to start. Your daughter is in her quarters, so if you want to hang out there for a couple hours, I'll catch up with you then and catch you up."

"We understand," Ben Sisko said.

"Oh hey," Geordi said, as he paused just as he turned to leave, "is Jim Kirk really with you two?"

"In the flesh," Ben said with a smile, "though our arrival was delayed by a tiny kidnapping incident."

"Yes, I heard about that," Geordi said, but then he sighed, "look, I really gotta go. I'll see you in a bit."

Geordi shuffled off in another direction.

"I like him," Kasidy said to Sisko, "he is always so polite."

"Come on," Ben said, as he took his daughter by the hand, "let's go see Rebecca."

Not far from where the Siskos had been standing was the Academy's promenade. There were several food establishments, and other places for the cadets to hang out at. One such place was a place that dealt with holo-cameras. Lawrence Thorn was inside of the store, asking questions.

"Can I help you?" one of the store clerks, a human male, asked.

"Yes," Lawrence said, "I think you can. I was wondering if you sold this kind of camera."

Lawrence showed the clerk a picture of the old style holo-cameras. The sensors taken on the day Lawrence had killed his own brother had detected the use of such a camera from the city streets of San Francisco. And according to the scans, the holo-grams laser sight was trained on the area of the skyscraper where Lawrence had killed Andrew.

"No, I'm sorry," the clerk said. "In fact, we sold our last one to a cadet here on campus."

"Oh really," Lawrence said. "My wife wants this camera so badly because her father gave her one several years ago, and we've recently moved and lost it. I would be so grateful to you if you can help me contact this cadet so I might offer to exchange something for it."

"Sure," the clerk said. "Her name is Lal, and I think she is the Alpha dorms somewhere, though don't hold me to it."

"Thank you," Lawrence said with a smile. "Do you happen to sale the isolinear data packets for the camera still?"

"I'm not sure. But as far as I know, she hasn't brought the ones that came with the camera back yet for defragging. I bet she only used it once and left them in the camera and just forgot about it."

"Women," Lawrence said with fake laugh of humor. "Maybe she will exchange those too."

With that done, Lawrence headed for the Alpha dorms, with the intent of finding Lal and taking the camera from her, and if necessary, by force.

Vulcan…

T'pring was in her bed, reading the private letter that her son' s wife, Amanda, had sent to her own mother. What Amanda did not know was that her own mother was T'pring's spy. The door to T'pring's room opened and Sybok entered.

"The whore is indeed pregnant with a male offspring," T'pring said with a slight smile on her face.

"Wonderful," Sybok said. "Very soon, with that child under my guidance, we will usher in a new era for Vulcan."

"True," T'pring said. "However, let us not forget my reason for helping you to attain the child."

"Yes, I know quite well your reason." Sybok said. "When the child is taken from its mother, and brought here, S'vath will turn to the one person who can offer assistance; Spock."

"Precisely," T'pring said. But then her voice lowered, with anger tipping each voice. "And Spock will no doubt want to bring Kirk along to help him. The three of us, Kirk, Spock and myself, will have a most interesting reunion indeed."

Sybok smiled at the meaning in her words.


	111. Ding Ding Arriving

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**(DING DING) Arriving!**

**The Naissance Dysonsphere…**

Sweeping in through the massive opening of the Naissance Dysonsphere was a Klingon D-7 war ship. The vessel was more like a tiny fly, with the back drop of the massive interior of the Naissance sphere surrounding it. The surface area of the sphere was equal to that of nearly three thousand Earths, and was a modern wonder, and the true impact of the size of the interior could not fully be appreciated without seeing it in person.

The sphere had been found ten years earlier by a Federation starship, and after years of being explored, with no life found on the vast continents, Admiral Janeway was able to convince the Federation to let her use the sphere for Project Naissance.

The project's goal was simple enough; the rescuing of unique life, plant and animal varieties, from worlds that face imminent destruction. After the loss of Kirk's new Enterprise, Janeway was in need of another ship to take on the Enterprise role, ferreting out the endangered life forms and bringing them to Naissance. After pleading her case to Chancellor Martok, the D-7 was donated to the cause, though Martok believed little of any value would come from saving plants; ever the true Klingon he was.

For several months, the large command complex been built on the first continent that was just inside the massive opening. There were just over 14,000 continents spread out over the sphere's innards, and they varied in size, and all registered as class-M life sustaining. The D-7 took up a parking orbit high above the complex. The complex itself was built with Federation, Klingon, Romulan and even Cardassian technologies. It had been hoped that one day the joint nature of the complex's construction would lead to a sharing of the sphere; but that had not yet come to be.

Admiral Janeway was accompanied by Lt. Commander S'vath, the first officer of the Naissance, as they exited the main complex and stood in an open area where there were trees and benches.

"Well, if we're lucky," Janeway said, as she looked up at the small dot in the sky, the D-7, "Captain Jonathan Canary is on that Klingon ship, and will be arriving at last."

"I have never had the honor of meeting him before," S'vath said to her. "However, I have read up on his career. He has the distinction of being reprimanded more than any other Star Fleet officer who ever reached the rank of Captain, sans one."

"Kirk," Janeway said with a smile. "I don't think Kirk's record will ever be broken, but if it is, Captain Canary will be the man who does it."

"I do not mean to question your decision," S'vath went on to say, "however, do you think it is wise to have such a," S'vath chose his next word carefully, "decorated officer command the ship that will be responsible for bringing back specimens for the sphere?"

"Trust me," Janeway said, "he is exactly the kind of Captain we will need heading those missions. And besides," Janeway said, looking over at S'vath with a smirk on her face, "your father managed to reign in Kirk to some degree, or trust me, that reprimand record of his would have been five times higher than it is now. So, if you're father could temper Kirk over time, you can do the same for Canary."

Suddenly the shimmering effect of three Transporter signals came into view. When the signals solidified, Janeway could only gasp what she saw; three Klingons, with General M'iaQua, the highest military officer in the Kling military, flanked by two other Klingons. The Klingon to the left of M'iaQua was holding a disheveled humanoid male in his arms, and then dumped the human on the ground before Janeway and S'vath. The odor that came from the man's body was that of alcohol and, most likely, bodily fluids of all varieties.

"Our task here is complete, by order of Chancellor Martok," M'iaQua spat his words out with very little respect. "We have also brought that human!" he pointed down at the human male, who was out cold.

"What did you do to him?" S'vath asked, as he knelt down and felt the human's neck for a pulse.

"You mistake us, Vulcan," M'iaQua said, "That human is a Klingon at heart!"

Instantly M'iaQua and the other two Klingons pounded their chests with their right fists, giving the Klingon salute of honor, to the smelly human, with hands extended for a brief moment.

"What is this all about?" Admiral Janeway demanded.

"He drank blood wine with us for nearly two straight solar days," M'iaQua, "and then he took to his quarters five of our most tempting female Klingon officers and matched their stamina! The fact he only broke five of his ribs was quite a fete indeed! He is worthy of song! Now, with our mission complete, a skeleton crew of your Starfleet officers is tending to the D-7. We will take our leave."

"How will you get back to Q'uonos?" S'vath asked.

M'iaQua looked up in the sky. Janeway followed his glance. The lone dot was now five dots.

"You brought cloaked vessels into this sphere?" Janeway asked. "That is against protocol."

M'iaQua smiled, and then he and the other Klingons shimmered away. Seconds later the four of the dots in the sky were gone, and only the one dot remained.

"Fascinating," S'vath said, looking at Janeway from where he was kneeling down next to Captain Jonathan Canary's limp body.

"Great," Janeway said, looking down at Canary. "Get the medics out here and get Canary into his quarters and have them clean him up."

Janeway turned to walk back into the complex, but a sound came from the lump of a human that was Captain Canary.

"Canary," the body whispered, "reporting for….reporting….for…du…..ty."

Janeway shrugged her head and headed back to the complex.

Continued…

(I like to cast my characters. And I can't seem to find the right person to play Captain Jonathan Canary. If you have a suggestion; please let me know. I'll give you credit in "credits".


	112. Just the Facts

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Just the Facts…**

**Earth**

**Star Fleet Academy…**

Rebecca Sisko opened the door to her dorm room and was happy beyond belief to find her mom and dad, Benjamin and Kasidy Sisko, smiling back at her with just as much happiness. Rebecca stepped back and let her parents into the dorm room she shared with Lal.

"Mom, dad," Rebecca said, "are you alright?" Rebecca asked as she hugged her mother then her father. "We heard about your Transport being hijacked by terrorist. But I wasn't worried, not at all. Not with you there dad and," a look of puppy love came over Rebecca's face, "Jim there too."

"Honey," Kasidy said to her daughter, "we are just fine. Now you tell us about what happened here."

Lal, Rebecca's roommate, came over to greet the Siskos as well.

"This is my roommate Lal," Rebecca told her parents. "Everything happened as I told you in my letter; this strange burst of energy, like the wormhole near DS9, but much smaller, appeared and then...poof…Lal was gone, and then, seconds later, she was back."

"Oh honey," Kas said to Rebecca, seeing the look of worry on her daughter's face. "Your father will not rest until this entire matter is cleared up."

Ben Sisko looked over at Lal.

"It is an honor to meet you Lal," Benjamin said, as he reached out his hand shook Lal's hand tenderly, "I had the pleasure of meeting your father on a few occasions, and while I did not know him well, it was clear that those who did, his friends aboard the Enterprise, did. Speaking of the Enterprise, we just saw Geordi Leforge before we came up to your room, and he seems to think everything is fine. I hope he isn't just saying that to put us at ease, because what Rebecca just explained doesn't sound like something I'd want anyone to have to go through."

"Thank you for your concern," Lal said, "however, according to the final tests they gave me, there seems to be no lasting effects. As for why or how it happened; it is something we may never know." (Though, of course, Lal knows more than what she is leading on.)

"So you still have no idea where you went after you went through the singularity?" Ben asked.

"Precisely," Lal said, "Master Chief Obrien and Commander Leforge scanned my neuronet themselves, and could find now alterations or damage. It may have been just as it seems; a random act of nature."

"Oh but girl," Kasidy said, "People just don't go falling through a rip in space on a usual basis, especially young girls attending Star Fleet Academy. Anyone who thinks this was an act of nature really needs to have their head examined."

"Kas," Ben Sisko said, "you're talking about Miles and Geordi. Do you think they need to have their heads examined?"

Kasidy shot her husband a look of annoyance.

"Well," Kasidy finally said, "perhaps not. Anyway, we're going to be here on Earth for about a week or so. I want you two to take it easy, and come visit us when classes are over."

"Kas," Ben Sisko said, with a sound of a reprimand in his voice, "I already told you. They are in the Academy, and need to spend their time here. Besides, cadets as new as they are can not leave the grounds."

"Unless," Kasidy shot back, with attitude included, "their fathers were once Star Fleet officers themselves, famous ones at that. Add to that the fact we are here with Jim Kirk; a living legend? They will let Rebecca and Lal bend the rules, trust me."

"Where are you staying?" Rebecca asked.

"Grandpa's old house," Ben replied to Rebecca. "According to Jake-o, your aunt fixed it up pretty good, and your mom has always spend the night in that old house; now's the time. Staying there will give me time to drop in on the restaurant and make sure the new cook is keeping up with the standards grandpa insisted be kept up after he passed away."

Rebecca was about to reply, when Kasidy cut her off.

"I know that look on your face," Kasidy said, "you're about to say no. Well, I'm not going to here it. Now either you come visit us in New Orleans, or I'll come here and be the kind of mother who embarrasses her child in front of all the other students."

"Dad," Rebecca pleaded.

"Don't look to me," Ben Sisko said, knowing full well that Kasidy was not the kind of woman to cross when she had her mind set. "I'll pull some strings with the administrators."

Suddenly there was a knock on the door.

"Maybe that's Jim Kirk," Rebecca said with excitement in her voice.

Rebecca opened the door, and a man stood there with a serious look on his face, and then a small smile came across his face.

"Can I help you?" Rebecca asked.

"I'm looking for a cadet named Lal? I was told I might find her here," the man said.

"Sure," Rebecca said, with a pleasant smile. "And who can I say is calling?"

"My name is Lawrence," the man said, "Lawrence Thorn," Lawrence said with a pleasant smile of his own.

The massive mushroom shaped space station that was in orbit of Earth opened it's massive doors, and then a Vulcan scout class vessel entered the massive docking structure inside the space base. In moments the small vessel landed in an area designated for other ships like it. In moments the doors of the vessel opened and out walked Ambassador Spock and Elizabeth Pike.

"Do you think we will have time to look around Earth while we are here?" Elizabeth asked Spock, as they made their way towards the reception area.

"It is possible," Spock replied, "however; not until my meeting with Geordi Leforge is over."

And with that, Spock and Elizabeth headed for the area where Earth bound Transports waited for passengers. As they made their way through the throng of travelers, they were unaware that someone was observing them; and his name was Nog.

Continued…


	113. Hallowed Walls

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Hallowed Walls**

**Previously on James T Kirk: TNG**

Lawrence Thorn, desperate to retrieve the holo-gram camera that may contain an image of him killing his brother, had tracked the unique energy signal of the camera to Star Fleet Academy, and eventually learned that its owner was Lal. Having arrived at the academy, he was making his way toward her dorm room to get the camera.

But, Lawrence Thorn wasn't the only one heading toward Lal's dorm room. The parents of Lal's roommate, Rebecca Sisko, had arrived as well to visit their daughter and to make sure that both she, and Lal, were no longer in danger after an earlier run in with a quantum singularity, that for a moment, took Lal away. Although Lal claims not to know where she had gone, it is clear, to the readers of this story, that she does.

_Suddenly there was a knock on the door to Lal's and Rebecca's dorm room._

_"Dad, didn't you say Jim Kirk came with you to Earth; maybe that's him now," Rebecca said with excitement in her voice._

_Rebecca opened the door, and a man stood there with a serious look on his face, and then a small smile came across his face._

_"Can I help you?" Rebecca asked._

_"I'm looking for a cadet named Lal? I was told I might find her here," the man said._

_"Sure," Rebecca said, with a pleasant smile. "And who can I say is calling?"_

_"My name is Lawrence," the man said, "Lawrence Thorn," Lawrence said with a pleasant smile of his own._

…**our story continues…**

"I'm sorry," Ben Sisko said, as he came closer to the door, "and who exactly would you be?"

"Dad," Rebecca responded excitedly, "this is Lawrence Thorn, without a doubt one of the most important movers and shakers on Earth. His company is responsible for many new tech advances in the past ten years, and," Rebecca said, after catching her breath, "he and his family have been very generous in that they have helped so many causes as well."

"Wow," Lawrence Thorn said, with a slight chuckle, "I have an entire PR wing that would take one hour to explain what your daughter just did."

As Lawrence smiled, and shook hands with Ben Sisko, he looked about the room and saw, on the far shelf, the camera!

"It is such an honor to meet you," Rebecca said, stepping into Lawrence's view of the shelf, "but I am curious as to why you are here?"

"As am I," Ben added.

Lawrence looked over to Lal, who had remained quiet since his arrival.

"You must be Lal," Lawrence Thorn said. "I must say that I am honored to meet you as well. As it turns out," Lawrence continued to say, "My own great-great grandfather was an acquaintance or Dr. Arik Soong."

"Dr. Arik Soong," Lal explained to the others, "was the great-grandfather of Dr. Noonien Soong, the man who created my father. Unfortunately, Arik Soong was also a criminal."

"What do you mean?" Kasidy asked.

"What she means," Ben Sisko said, purposely cutting Lal off, "is that Arik Soong dabbled in illegal medical research. And," Ben continued to say, as he looked over at Lal, "it would be wise not to discuss this matter any further, due to its sensitive nature."

"I understand sir," Lal said to Ben Sisko.

There was a moment of tension that seemed to fill the room, which Rebecca attempted to ease.

"So," Rebecca said to Lawrence, "what brings you to the dorm room of two Star Fleet cadets?"

"Its funny you should ask that," Lawrence said, as he casually made his way over to the shelf where the camera was sitting, "I would like to make you, or Lal, a business proposition."

"Really," Ben Sisko said, as he kept an eye on the strange man with shoulder length hair. "What possible business could you have with them?"

Lawrence stared back at Ben Sisko, their eyes meeting in a short glance.

"I detect a tone of suspicion in your voice," Lawrence said, with a smile. "However, if I had a beautiful daughter like yours, I would be suspicious as well. Now, trust me, it's really simple," Lawrence said.

Lawrence turned around and took the camera off of the shelf, and held it up for the others to see.

"My holo-camera," Lal stated, "that is why you have come here?"

Lawrence nodded his head.

"Yes, it is indeed," Lawrence said.

Across the campus, in the main lecture hall, Professor Geordi Leforge had just completed a lecture. The audience of cadets was slowly filtering out of the hall, when suddenly there was a growing murmur coming from one of the entrances. It was rare when a living legend could be found walking the hallowed buildings of the academy, but on this day, there were several. When Geordi looked up, he saw a small throng of students just standing at there seats in awe at who they saw; Spock.

"Wow," Geordi said, as he saw Spock approaching.

Spock lifted his hand and gave Geordi he customary Vulcan hand salute. Geordi froze for a moment, at seeing Spock, who was accompanied by a beautiful blond woman, and the Geordi gave the Vulcan hand salute in return.

"Ambassador, excuse me for acting with out respect a moment ago," Geordi said, "but earlier I saw Jim Kirk, and now here you are, and its overwhelming, not only for me as you can see."

Spock noticed the crowed of students who had gathered at the base of the stage.

"No offense was taken, Professor Leforge," Spock said. "I have come to speak with you on a most urgent matter."

Leforge motioned for Spock to follow him, so that what Spock said could be done in privacy. Once he, Spock, and Spock's female companion were in the backstage area, and alone, Leforge nodded his head.

"Go ahead," Leforge finally said.

"I recently read a classified communiqué that both you and Master Chief Miles O'Brien had sent to Star Fleet Command," Spock explained. "In the report you spoke of a singularity that had been encountered here, on Earth, and more specifically right here at Star Fleet academy."

"Yes," Geordi said. "It happened when…"

Spock raised a hand, and Geordi stopped what he was saying.

"I do not mean to sound curt," Spock said, "however; your final conclusion mentioned the presence of T-Xz neutrinos being present at the site. Am I correct in assuming that you still hold to that finding?"

"Oh yeah," Leforge said, "The neutrinos were there. However, Ambassador, that part of the report was classified and only a few others besides Miles and I even know about it. Can I ask you in return as to why you're asking me about the matter?"

Spock didn't reply, he just went on to the next question. 

"Will it be possible for you to show me where the singularity appeared," Spock said, in a matter of fact tone.

Geordi shook his head at not getting an answer to his own question.

"Sure," Geordi said with a genuine smile. "I will take you there my self."

-continued….


	114. Bonnie Moorhen

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Bonnie Moorhen**

A Transporter beam solidified on the Transporter pad of the Klingon D7 battle cruiser, which was in stationary orbit above the command center inside the Naissance Dysonsphere, and instantly Admiral Janeway stood there. Standing before her was Lt. Commander S'vath, who had been alerted to the Admiral's impending arrival.

"Well," Janeway said with a smile, as she stepped off of the pad, "you're an early riser aren't you? What time did you get up here?"

"Amanda _(his human wife)_ wanted to come up here and look over sickbay," S'vath said. "So, after we left Lenora _(their daughter)_ at the child facility, we came straight up."

Janeway shook her head. She had been genuinely impressed with the work ethic of both S'vath and his wife Amanda. They had been through much in the past year, taking part in a few of Jim Kirk's continuing adventures, and having them serve at the Naissance Dysonsphere had turned out to be a positive.

"I was there at the child care facility yesterday myself," Janeway said, "I was visiting Lt. Giles and her new baby. Admiral Picard asked me to keep an eye on the two _(savvy readers will recall that Picard delivered the baby, while in transit on a runabout)_ but I was impressed to find that Ensign Kylon was doing his best to entertain them as well. In fact, when I left, the baby was most fascinated with Kylon's tail."

"Ensign Kylon was most helpful, during that entire ordeal," S'vath said.

"Yes," Janeway said in agreement. "Now, as for your wife, she never ceases to amaze me," Janeway said, as the two exited the Transporter room and made their way down the corridor. "She's seven months pregnant, and no one would guess it, based on the energy she exudes everyday." Then, Janeway changed the subject. "So what is the condition of this rust Klingon bucket? Will it be able to do the mission?"

"Well, thanks to the arrival of Captain Montgomery Scott…" S'vath began to say, when Janeway cut him off.

"Captain Scott is here?" Janeway said, with total surprise in her voice. "Did Jean-Luc set this up before he departed for Bajor without letting me know?"

"Actually," S'vath replied, "apparently Captain Jonathan Canary and Mr. Scott are skilled with," S'vath paused, "the talent of playing a musical instrument called bagpipes. Apparently they have played together in the past at various functions, and have become good friends."

"I never would have guessed," Janeway said.

"I suppose," S'vath said. "However, I was on my way to engineering to get the first progress report. Apparently Captain Canary is down there with Captain Scott, assisting."

"I am not surprise," Janeway said with an innocent smile, "they're both Scottish; fixing things it runs in their blood."

After a short ride in a Turbo-lift, Janeway and S'vath arrived at engineering. The moment they stepped out, their ears were greeted by what, at first, sounded like to elephants howling. But the terrible sound actually that of two men singing; Captains Canary and Scott. And not only were they singing, it was clear, by their lack of any ability to carry a melody, they were tipsy as well. Janeway and S'vath stared in bewilderment as the two men attempted to sing. Scotty was holding a bottle of nearly finished scotch as they sang.

_My bonnie moorhen, my bonnie moorhen,__(BURP; CANARY)  
Up in the grey hills, and doon in the glen,  
It's when ye gang butt the hoose, when ye gang ben  
I'll drink a health tae my bonnie moorhen._

_My bonnie moorhen's gane o'er the faim,  
And it will be summer e'er she comes again,(BURP;SCOTTY)  
But when she comes back again some folk will ken,  
And drink a toast tae my bonnie moorhen._

Once they were done, Janeway clapped. And instantly the two men sprang to their feet, their eyes glossed over.

"We were just checking the barrins'," Scotty said, sheepishly.

"I'm sure you were," Janeway said. "Captain Canary, I've only been in your presence two times, and both times, you've been less than," Janeway searched her mind for the perfect word, "inspection state."

"Don't blame the lad," Scotty said, "I tricked him into thinking we were drinking punch."

Janeway was about to respond to Scotty, when Captain Canary cut her off.

"Admiral," Canary said, "the two of us, on our own, have readjusted the warp matrix, the auxiliary drive mounts, and," Canary added with a smile, "dumped all blood wine from their barrels and replaced them with scotch. All this we managed to do in about three hours and," Canary added, "it's just now 0800."

Janeway smiled.

"I'm not here to reprimand you," Janeway added with a slight smile. "Now, I understand the kind of man you are Captain Canary. You may have been bounced around a bit; but I really think you can help us. In fact," Janeway said, "you remind of my former helmsman. Just promise me that you can accomplish the tasks I set out for you; that is really all I want to hear right now."

"There will be no problems," Canary replied. "We will accomplish whatever mission you send us on."

"I'm sure you will, and Lt. Commander S'vath, who I am, as of this moment, promoting to rank of Commander, will be here to assist you the entire way."

"Admiral?" S'vath asked, who revealed a look of surprise on his face.

"It's something that Admiral Picard and I discussed, before he left, and we both agreed you deserved it."

"So," Scotty said, with a winkle in his eyes, "are ye telling us that Mr. S'vath here will be babysitting us?"

"I wouldn't call it that," Janeway said, "however," she said, as she came over and took the bottle of scotch from Scotty's hands, "he will make sure that the tap doesn't dry out to fast."

With that, Janeway turned and walked away, with the bottle in hand, leaving S'vath with the two tipsy men.

"Don't worry Commander," Scotty said to S'vath.

"I'm not worried," Captain Canary said, and then he smiled at S'vath, with a look of superiority in his eyes…"besides; I'm the Captain."

S'vath arched an eyebrow, turned, and headed toward the Turbo-lift and zipped away.

"Didn't you serve with a Vulcan first officer?" Canary asked his good friend.

"Yes," Scotty said, with a look of melancholy on his face, "don't worry; they pretty much mind their own business. Now," Scotty said, "let's go up to the second level and see how the new flow sensors are doing after the recalibration we did to them earlier."

-continued…


	115. Here we Go PART ONE

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Here We Go…PART ONE**

**Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere…**

**The Klingon D7 cruiser in high orbit above the main compound…**

The Klingons had given the D7 battle cruiser to the Federation, or to be more precise, Martok gave it to Janeway out of a favor he owed to his new friend Jim Kirk. Kirk had been very instrumental in saving the Chancellor's life, and so, when Admiral Janeway asked if the Klingons could spare a ship for Project Naissance, Martok decided to repay his debt to Kirk via giving the ship to Janeway.

And now that ship was Captain Jonathan Canary's to command. Since the D7 didn't have a Star Fleet designation, Canary decided that sinec he was the ship's first Star Fleet captain, he would name it. At first he wanted to name it the Red Bitch, however, he knew Janeway would never have approved. So, after getting another bottle of scotch, after Janeway had confiscated the previous one, Canary and Scotty made their way down to the bowels of the D7, where no one could find them, to discuss the issue of naming the ship.

They bantered about several names, amid several shot glasses of scotch. After each name they came up with, Canary scribbled it down on wrinkled piece of paper. After about an hour of coming up with names, they had ten on their list. Most of them were, unfortunately, either curse words or derivatives of women sexual body parts. However, there were two names that were devoid of such language.

"I like that one," Scotty said, as he leaned over and looked at the list, with a slight burp escaping his mouth.

"Whew," Canary said, fanning the scotch tainted aroma he smelt, "we better get some Lisnterine before Janeway or Spock …" (Nice to see Listerine is still in existence in the 24th century. I should buy some stock!)

"S'vath," Scotty corrected him.

"…S'vath finds the two of us."

"They can wait," Scotty said. "So what about that one; Emprenda," Scotty said softly, reading from the list. "It has a note of class."

"It's Spanish," Canary reminded him, "not Scottish."

Scotty stuck out his tongue and made the all too famous sound of "ppppssstpsptpstpstp…."

"What was that for?" Canary asked with a chuckle, as he was sprayed by the older man's spit.

"We Scottish can build ana'thing," Scotty said, proudly, "but when it comes to naming ships? We couldn't name a wheel barrel."

Canary was about to respond when the alert klaxon sounded.

"Red Alert," the voice of S'vath could be heard saying, "Captain Canary to the bridge."

"How can we have a red alert inside of a Dysonsphere?" Scotty asked, as he and Canary made their way to the nearest Turbo-lift. Then, as they walked on, Scotty thought about what happened when he and Geordi Leforge had to rescue the Enterprise-D from another Dysonsphere, "oh crap," Scotty sighed, "this could get ugly."

**Earth**

**Star Fleet Academy**

Jim Kirk, having finished the tour of Star Fleet Academy, followed the directions given to him to Lal's and Rebecca's quarters. He hoped the others hadn't eaten dinner yet because he was hungry. As he made his way across the campus, up ahead he saw three others walking, and recognized one of them immediately.

"Spock," Kirk called out.

Spock, Elizabeth Pike and Geordi Leforge all came to a stop and turned to see who had called out for Spock.

"What are you doing here?" Kirk asked as he caught up with them. "Is this Elizabeth Pike?" Kirk also asked, as he looked at the beautiful woman who was with Spock.

"Yes I am," Elizabeth said with a smile. "You must be James T Kirk. My father told me much about you."

"You're father was Christopher Pike?" Kirk asked. "Spock told me as much in a message he sent me, but seeing you here, right in front of me, makes it so hard to believe."

"Jim," Spock said, "you, of all people, should understand the uncertainly of space and time. She is indeed Captain Pike's daughter, and, she has proved to be valuable in my investigation."

"Spock," Kirk said, in a quiet tone, the denoted doubt in tone, "you're not still clinging to the notion that Nog is still alive are you?"

The mention of Nog brought a look of doubt on Leforge's face.

"Ambassador Spock," Geordi Leforge said, "is that what this is all about?"

"Yes Mr. Leforge," Spock said. "I no longer believe that Commander Nog died on the Enterprise when it exploded inside of the Planet Killer."

"What do you base that on?" Leforge asked.

"He's your friend," Elizabeth Pike cut in, with her words aimed at Kirk. "Why don't you just trust him?"

Kirk thought for a moment, and came to the conclusion that she was right.

"Alright Spock," Kirk said, "I believe you. Just tell me what you want us to do, and we'll do it."

Spock was about to explain his plan when Leforge cut in.

"Hey guys," Leforge said with a smile on his face, "I know you two are living legends and all, but I just can't suddenly dismiss the doubts I have," Leforge said. Then he turned to Spock, "Does this have something to do with the TX-z neutrons we found in Rebecca Sisko's quarters?"

"Indeed," Spock said. "When the Enterprise exploded, I was in an indirect mind-meld with the Keeper on Talos IV."

"I thought you told me that the Keeper died," Kirk interjected.

"The Keeper is indeed dead; this was before the Keeper had died," Spock said to Kirk. "I never believed Nog was dead because through the entire cycle of events, while I was in the meld with the Keeper, the Keeper was controlling Nog's mind, thus, I could sense the Ferengi's mind with mine."

"The Keeper did this all the way from Talos IV," Leforge asked with a tone of skepticism in his voice.

"Trust me," Elizabeth Pike said to Leforge, "the keeper had extraordinary abilities."

"Go on," Kirk said to Spock.

"After the Enterprise exploded, and sometime later, Elizabeth and I returned to Talos IV. We found the Keeper, near death. Just before dying, the Keeper told me that Nog had not died, and that somehow he had been taken off of the Enterprise."

"The Planet Killer's hull is made of solid neutronium," Leforge countered, "There is absolutely no way a transporter beam could have beamed him off of the Enterprise, when it was inside of the Planet Killer." Then Leforge snapped his finger. "The TX-z neutrinos; you believe Nog was taken off of the Enterprise by way of a quantum singularity, just like the one that appeared here at the Academy, in the quarters shared by Rebecca and Lal."

"Precisely," Spock said. "TX-z neutrinos are specific to the quantum singularities that create them. When Elizabeth Pike and I returned to the area of space where the Enterprise and the Planet Killer were destroyed, we found trace readings of TX-z neutrinos."

"And when you heard about the one here, you wanted to check if the two matched," Leforge concluded for Spock.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Kirk asked with a smile. "Besides, I'm supposed to be here visiting with Ben and his family."

"Follow me," Leforge said.

As Kirk and the others made their way toward the dorms, they were unaware that they were being followed; followed by Nog!

continued...


	116. Here we Go PART TWO

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation**

**Here We Go…PART ONE**

Previously….

_"So," Rebecca said to Lawrence, "what brings one of the most important men on Earth to the dorm room of two Star Fleet cadets?"_

_"It's funny you should ask that," Lawrence said, as he casually made his way over to the shelf where the camera was sitting, "I would like to make you, or Lal, a business proposition."_

_"Really," Ben Sisko said, as he kept an eye on the strange man with shoulder length hair. "What possible business could you have with them?"_

_Lawrence stared back at Ben Sisko, their eyes meeting in a short glance._

_"I detect a tone of suspicion in your voice," Lawrence said, with a smile. "However, if I had a beautiful daughter like yours, I would be suspicious as well. Now, trust me, it's really simple," Lawrence said._

_Lawrence turned around and took the camera off of the shelf, and held it up for the others to see._

_"My holo-camera," Lal stated, "that is why you have come here?"_

_Lawrence nodded his head._

_"Yes, it is indeed," Lawrence said._

…our story continues

"Why would a piece of antiquated technology like that camera," Sisko began to say, "have any interest to you?"

"Don't mind my husband," Kasidy said, "he's suspicious of everyone; even me," she said with sarcasm in her voice.

"I understand," Lawrence said, with a smile. "But amazing as it may seem, these kinds of holo-cameras are very hard to come by. My wife was very fond of hers, until she lost it, and when I found out they still sold them at the tech-store here on your campus, I decided to get one. Unfortunately, this was the last one they had."

"And so," Lal said, "you wish to have that one."

"Yes," Lawrence said, innocently. "And since the image rods that came with it are equally rare, I was hoping I could have them as well."

"Lal," Rebecca said, "aren't the pictures you took that day we went on that tour of San Francisco on the data-rods?"

"Yes," Lal responded, "however, they are not of importance to me. Mr. Thorn would have to swipe their memory codes."

"Oh trust me," Lawrence said, "that will be not problem at all_." (Which is what he really wants to do; of course.)_

Suddenly the door chimed.

"Who could it be now?" Rebecca asked, as she headed back towards the door.

When the door opened, and Rebecca saw who one of the new arrivals was, Kirk of course, her eyes became wide with glee.

"Uncle Jim," Rebecca said her obvious young girl crush on display for all to see. She hugged Kirk. "I'm so glad you're here."

"What about us? Kasidy whispered to Ben, with a slight chuckle.

But Kirk wasn't alone. Spock, Elizabeth Pike, and Geordi Leforge were in the doorway as well. Rebecca invited them in and introductions were made. Spock found it most interesting, but kept it to himself, that his search for the TX-z neutrons had not only brought him to the place where a singularity had appeared on Earth; but one of the architects of the new technology, Lawrence Thorn, was there as well.

"Ambassador Spock," Sisko said, as he walked over to where Kirk and Spock were, "What can I ask brings you to Earth?"

With Lawrence Thorn, of all people, present; Spock didn't want to reveal why, but that option was taken away when…

"The Ambassador is investigating the singularity," Leforge replied, "and if I'm not mistaken," he added, looking over at Lawrence Thorn, "aren't you Lawrence Thorn? In fact Ambassador," Leforge said back to Spock, "he may be able to help us here."

"Now isn't that interesting," Sisko said to Kasidy, with a very sarcastic tone in his voice.

"A singularity was here?" Lawrence Thorn asked, genuinely surprised at hearing the information.

"Precisely," Spock replied to Thorn. "I am here to ascertain if there are any residual TX-z neutrons."

"What are those?" Rebecca asked.

"TX-z neutrons are trace markers," Lal said to her friend, "Star Fleet is currently investigating technology to create wormholes for possible exploration of neighboring galaxies," Lal went on to say.

"And," Leforge added, "Mr. Thorn's research department is leading the research."

"Jim," Kasidy said, "where is Myran?"

"One of the Bajoran cadets here is her cousin," Kirk replied, "so she is visiting with her right now. She will meet up with us later, because, I don't know about the rest of you," Kirk said "but I'm starving. Why don't take this impromptu party down to that old pizzeria by the soccer fields; if it's still there."

"Oh, it's still here alright," Rebecca said, "in fact, some old dude who knows you dad," Rebecca said, "is running the place now. He's the grounds keeper; I think his name is Boothby."

Sisko was about to say something when, yet again, the door chimed.

"What is this," Rebecca said, as she rolled her eyes and headed to the door, "Grand Central station?"

As Rebecca made her way to the door, so did Lawrence Thorn.

"Aren't you going to join us?" Kirk asked.

"I'm sorry," Lawrence said, as he stopped to shake Kirk's hand. "It is a real honor to meet you, James T Kirk; however, I have other matters to attend to."

"DAD!" said a suddenly excited Rebecca, as she saw who was now in the doorway. It was Nog.

Sisko saw Nog, and then a broad smile came over his face, and Kasidy's, as well as Kirks. They all rushed over to the door.

"You were right," Elizabeth Pike said, with a whisper to Spock.

"Yes," Spock replied, as he arched his right eyebrow. "However, I believe there is more than chance involved with his being here."

Nog took out a hand phaser, and aimed it everyone.

"Commander Nog," Kirk said, as saw the phaser, and motioned for everyone to step back.

Lawrence Thorn did as Kirk motioned, as well.

"I cannot let any of you leave," Nog said, "and you will just have to trust me when I tell you that this is the only way."

"The only way for what?" Rebecca asked.

And, just as Rebecca asked that question, wind started to blow in the room.

"Where is that wind coming from?" Kasidy asked rhetorically.

And then, in the center of the living room, a swirling mass of energy appeared. Kirk and Sisko looked to Spock, who only had one word to say.

"Fascinating…"

And...at that precise moment, on the bridge of the Klingon D7 battle cruiser, aptly named the Emprenda by Captain Canary and Montgomery Scott…

Captain Jonathan Canary and Montgomery Scotty exited the Turbo-lift. First officer S'vath stood from the command chair and came over to them.

The bridge of the Emprenda was not the usual Klingon style. It had been modified into the circular module that Star Fleet favored, with a sleek modern look as well.

"What's going on?" Canary asked.

"The ship's censors are detecting some sort of atmospheric event happening on one of the continents several degrees from here." S'vath reported.

"What kind of event?" Scotty asked.

Before S'vath could answer, the image of Admiral Janeway appeared on the screen. Beside her was tactical display of the inside of the Naissance Dysonsphere.

"Admiral Janeway," Captain Canary said, as he went down to the command chair, "do you have more data on this atmospheric event?"

"We do indeed," Janeway said. "It appears as if it is a singularity."

"Is it a wormhole?" Scotty asked.

"Yes, however gentlemen," Janeway said, "It is a wormhole that could easily fit on the bridge of your ship."

"Admiral," Captain Canary said, "we'll check it out."

"I am sending you the exact coordinates," Janeway said, "but please," she said expressively to Canary, "don't take any chances."

"Oh Please Admiral Janeway," Canary added with a sardonic smile, "where would be the fun in that?"

Janeway rolled her eyes, and the screen changed to an image of the large continent beneath the ship.

Canary nodded at the two lieutenants who manned the helm and navigation stations in front of him, and then the Emprenda zipped away from its stationary orbit above the Star Fleet complex below.

Continued…


	117. Mystery

**James T Kirk; the Next Generation**

**Mystery….**

**Earth…Star Fleet Academy.**

**The dorm quarters shared by Rebecca Sisko and Lal….**

A swirling mass of energy, a singularity, had returned to the quarters shares by Lal and Rebecca Sisko. But this time, they were not the only ones to see it. As Nog held his phaser, aiming it at the others in the room, Spock looked to Kirk.

"You were right," Kirk said to Spock, and then he turned to Nog. "We thought you were dead; what's going on Commander?"

"Nog, there is no need for the phaser," Ben Sisko added, "We're your friends."

Nog nodded, and lowered the phaser.

"I apologize for doing that," Nog said, as the others relaxed. "But I didn't think you would listen to me unless I did something drastic like that."

"I demand to know; what the hell is going on?" Lawrence Thorn said. "Because it looks like you are using stolen technology from my science labs."

Before Nog could respond to Thorn, Kirk cut in.

"A singularity, like this one, is how you got off of the Enterprise, isn't it?" Kirk asked.

"Yes," Nog replied. "The strange thing about it; It was actually meant for you," Nog said to Kirk, "but sometimes the singularities are hard for them to pinpoint in time."

"Nog," Ben Sisko said finally, "who are they, and are they connected to the other singularity that appeared in this apartment recently?"

"We do not have time for this," Lal suddenly said, as she walked past the others, and snatched the phaser from Nog and aimed it at them. "Everyone, for your own safety, I must insist you enter the singularity; all of you."

"Lal, are you malfunctioning?" Geordi asked.

"No, I am not," Lal said, "but trust me when I tell you that we do not have time for this. Everyone in, now," Lal said, with a little more force in her voice.

Kirk looked to Sisko, and then to Spock, "Well," Kirk said to them both, "it would appear as if we have no other choice."

"I'm not stepping into that thing," Kasidy shot back at Kirk.

"Kas," Ben said to his wife, "we have to see this through. If we don't, whoever is behind this could just send this thing," he motioned at the swirling mass of energy, "back when Rebecca was alone."

Kasidy looked down at Nog.

"Nog, please tell me that we will be safe, if we enter," Kas said to the Ferengi Star Fleet officer.

"You will be safe; Mrs. Sisko," Nog said, nodding his head.

"Well, she may not refuse any longer," Lawrence Thorn, "but I have no intention of going with you."

"You have no choice," Lal said, aiming the phaser directly at Lawrence Thorn.

And then, reluctantly, they all, one by one, stepped into the swirling mass, until only Kirk and Spock remained in the apartment with Lal.

"What are you two doing?" Lal asked.

"I just have to know, for myself," Spock said to the android offspring of Data, "you were not forthright with your report, were you, as to what happened to you when you were pulled into the singularity that appeared here weeks ago."

"You are correct," Lal said.

"But why lie about something like that?" Kirk asked the attractive female android.

"I did not lie," Lal said, "I just didn't tell the entire story."

"You speak as if you were following orders," Spock said, as he appeared to step into the swirling mass of energy.

"You are correct," Lal said. "Now, please," Lal said, motioning toward the singularity.

"Well, my friend," Kirk said, as they both prepared to walk through the flow of energy together, "this isn't the first time we've stepped through something like this. This time it's a swirling mass of energy patterns, last time it was a giant doughnut hole."

"Yes, indeed," Spock said.

Kirk, Spock, and then Lal, stepped into the twisting and turning ribbons of energy.

**Somewhere..in space**

Admiral Picard sat beside Captain Tom Paris, who expertly piloted the Delta Flyer II through the atmosphere of a long desolated world. Soon, once the ship had cleared the cloud cover, the remnants of a long dead civilization could be seen; collapsed structures, roads, ect.

"What happened here?" Paris asked Picard.

Picard looked at the carnage below, and shook his head at what he saw.

"The beings of this world, Triskelion, destroyed themselves after evolving into life forms that no longer needed physical bodies, other than just their brains." Picard explained. "They became addicted to games of chance, and the euphoric sensation that winning and losing would bring them."

"I know the feeling," Paris said, with regret in his voice. "So why are we here?"

"Over a hundred years ago Jim Kirk, as well as two of his crew, Lt. Commander Uhura and Ensign Chekov, were all brought to this world to compete in gladiator style games."

"But wasn't that the other Jim Kirk, the one died while helping you on Veridian III?" Paris asked.

"Yes," Picard replied softly. "The Jim Kirk we know now claims to have been the creation of a duplicated transporter beam. One beam ended up here a hundred years ago, and one ended up here, three years ago or so."

"Alright, I'm following you," Paris said, "so why have we come here? Do you doubt what this younger Kirk is saying?"

"Before we left the Naissance, I received a priority message," Picard explained. "The message came from a very interesting source. Suffice to say, no one has ever verified Kirk's story; which is why we are here."

Paris set the Delta Flyer II down near a set of coordinates Picard had given him. It was an open field between two toppled structures of some sort. The doors to the ship opened, and Picard and Paris stepped out.

"What we're looking for should be just over this small hill," Picard told Paris.

The two Star Fleet officers made their way over the small foothill, and near a cropping of dead trees Picard saw their destination; a make shift grave site. They made their way over to a lone tombstone that stuck out of the ground. The writing on the tombstone was faded.

"Whoever did this must have carved the words with a phaser," Paris stated.

Picard kneeled down and began to dust off the faded letters with his hand, and then he stepped back and read the words out loud.

"Rest in peace my good friends," Picard said, and then he read the names on the tombstone, "Ensign Pavel Chekov, Lt. Commander Nyota Uhura and," Picard paused, as he read the final name, "James R Kirk."

"Wait a second," Paris said, "that isn't right. Everyone knows his middle initial was T not R. Who would make such a bone headed mistake?"

"Who indeed," Picard added with a nod of his head.

-continued


	118. A Strange New World

_**-MY WISHES TO THE PEOPLE OF JAPAN. I WAS WRITING THIS STORY WHEN THE NEWS OF THE MASSIVE EARTH QUAKE BROKE. I LIVE HERE IN CALIFORNIA AND HAVE BEEN THROUGH MANY QUAKES, BUT NOTHING AS POWERFUL AS THIS ONE. I HOPE ALL OF YOU ARE WELL-**_

**(The new title to our story)**

**James T Kirk**

**N a i s s a n c e**

**A Strange New World**

The moment Jim Kirk stepped through the singularity, and emerged on the other side, he knew something was wrong. The others had gathered around someone who had fallen to the ground; it was the Ferengi; Nog.

And before Kirk could do anything else, Spock called out to him.

"Jim," Spock said.

Kirk turned to find Spock struggling to keep a now deactivated Lal from falling to the ground. Geordi Leforge came over, and with his help, the three of them were able to lower Lal to the ground. Kirk took the phaser from her hand, and put it in his pocket.

"Well," Lawrence Thorn said, standing aside from the others, "what do we do now?"

"Where are we?" Kasidy asked.

"How is he," Kirk said to Ben Sisko, motioning to Nog as he spoke.

"I'm not sure," Ben Sisko replied, "it almost seems as if what happened to Lal also happened to Nog."

"But Nog isn't an Android," Kasidy said.

"Maybe they'll come around later," Rebecca said to her mother, with hope in her voice.

"As for where we are," Kirk said, "I have no idea. What about Ben, or you Geordi; does this place look familiar?"

Where they were was a giant plane of land that stretched, endlessly, in all directions. An out cropping of small hills could be seen to one side, larger mountains in the far distance. The sun in, whatever planetary system they were in, was warm but not blistering; not yet at least.

"It doesn't look familiar to me," Ben Sisko said, "and yet it could be any world that has this type of landscape and atmosphere."

Kirk looked to Leforge.

"I'm afraid Benjamin is right," Leforge said, "however, with my enhanced vision I would normally be able to tell you more."

"Why can't you now," Kasidy asked.

"I'm not sure," Leforge replied. "Perhaps whatever affected Lal, and Commander Nog, is having some localized effect on the higher functions of my vision."

"What about you," Kirk said, as he turned his attention to Lawrence Thorn. "You accused Nog of stealing this technology from one of your labs. Do you have any idea where we are?"

"No," Thorn said, with arrogance in his voice, "I do not. I can assure that Thorn Technologies would condone such use of this new technology."

"Interesting," Spock said, as he took in the surroundings.

"What is it Spock?" Kirk asked.

"Jim, in the limited time Elizabeth and I researched Star Fleet's and Thorn Lab's research on the creation of stable singularities, there was no information about a singularity being able to be created outside of a laboratory environment."

"That right," Elizabeth Pike chimed in. "In all cases, the singularities, which were only stable for mere seconds, required massive amounts of energy. And yet, this one deposited us here, and now," she pointed at where the singularity had been, "it is gone."

"The question must be," Spock added, "what powered it?"

"Mom," Rebecca said, as she hugged her mother, "I'm sorry you and dad have been caught up in this."

"Oh honey," Kasidy said, as she held her daughter close to her, "none of this is your fault. However," Kasidy said, looking down at Lal's motionless android body, "I can't say the same for her."

"What about Lal?" Ben Sisko asked Leforge. "Do you believe it is possible that when she went through the other singularity, weeks ago, she was not truthful about what happened on the other side then as well?"

"It's possible," Leforge said, as he looked at Lal as well. "Obrien and I climbed through her positronic web pretty good a week or so ago. However, she does contain most of Data's programming meaning…"

"…meaning she could have evaded your scans," Spock concluded for Leforge.

"Alright, everyone," Kirk finally said to them all, "why us? I find it very hard to believe that any of his is happening randomly. I'm not sure about any of you, but I had the impression that Nog knew we were all going to be there, at the dorms, at that precise moment in time."

"Yeah," Rebecca said, "he did seem a little strange."

"He has been missing for several months now," Kirk said, "and we have no idea where he has been in that time."

Kirk noticed that Geordi was staring up at the sky.

"Do you see something?" Kirk asked Geordi.

"I can't tell for sure," Geordi said, "but I think there's a ship of some kind up there. And, this may seem even stranger; my eye has detected no movement in relationship to the sun, which it normally would."

"Can you tell what kind of ship it is? Maybe we can contact it," Ben Sisko said.

"No, not yet," Geordi replied.

"Well, we better start thinking of a plan of action. I suggest we try to make it to those hills in the distance. At least they might provide shelter."

Spock bent down, and scooped up some of the dirt and ground they were standing on.

"Graminoid plant life," Spock said.

"Grass," Kirk said with a smile.

"I believe that is what I said," Spock said, as he dropped the dirt. "At least there is moisture on this water."

"Food and water," Kirk sighed, "we better start looking for some because we have no idea how long we're going to be here."

"We can carry Nog," Ben Sisko said, "but carrying Lal may be problematic."

"Leave it here," Lawrence said, with an obvious tone of disrespect.

"No," Rebecca said, as she went over and knelt down next to her friend. "We just can't leave her here."

Kasidy knelt down next to Rebecca.

"Honey, we have to. She will be just fine," Kaisdy said. "I'm sure, once we get to those hills, and set up a shelter, your father will have no trouble coming back for log."

"We might even be able to make something to carry her in," Ben Sisko added, as he pulled his daughter up. "But we have to get going. Staying out in this heat, although it isn't too scorching yet, will drain us."

And with that, the group began a steady walk toward the foothills in the distance. Jim Kirk, Ambassador Spock, Elizabeth Pike, Benjamin Sisko, Kasidy Sisko, Rebecca Sisko, Geordi Leforge and Lawrence Thorn, with Kirk and Sisko carrying Nog between them, made their way over the flat terrain.

What they couldn't possibly know was that the ship high above them was the Emprenda, under the command of Captain Jonathan Canary. And in the next issue we will find out why the Emprenda has been unable to contact Kirk and the others far below.

And we will also find out that the Naissance Dysonsphere has just undergone some serious changes…..


	119. Hello Down There

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

**Hello Down there….**

The Emprenda, an old Klingon warship, was in stationary orbit high above one the many continents located inside of the Naissance Dysonsphere. On the main bridge of the ship, which had been modified and more closely resembled a Star Fleet circular style bridge, Captain Jonathan Canary sat in his command chair and stared up at the main screen. The rest of the bridge crew was all busy attending to their duties.

The first officer of the Emprenda, S'vath, who was also the son of Ambassador Spock, was at the science station trying his hardest to indentify the cluster of individuals that the main screen was tracking. Scotty, the legendary engineer, stood to the left of Canary's chair.

"Alright," Canary said, as he pivoted his chair to face S'vath's science station "let me see if I have this straight. You're telling me that the moment the singularity closed, a dampening field of some unknown origin was activated and it extends some two hundred miles above the surface of not only this continent, but as far as we can tell, everywhere else inside the sphere."

"It would seem so; however, there is no way of being certain of how widespread the field is." S'vath said, as he looked at his readings. "It would also account for our inability to contact the main compound and Admiral Janeway."

"Who do you think those people are down there?" Scotty asked, looking at the main screen.

"There is no way we can determine who they are without the sensors, which cannot, at this time, penetrate the field." S'vath replied.

"Can they see us up here?" Scotty came back with.

"Most likely," S'vath replied.

"Can we take the ship closer to the surfaces so we can get a better view of them?" Canary asked.

"Not now, laddie" Scotty replied. "The field, whatever it is, is twistin' the innards of the engines. We go down any close'a, and we could find ourselves crashing, and I assume ye don't wanna that."

"A safe assumption," Canary said with a smile.

"How can the sensors not penetrate the field? We are outside of it." Lt. Kylon asked from the single navigation/helm post.

"For now," S'vath replied, "I can not ascertain why that is. Suffice to say, that until our scans can penetrate the field, we are limited to the optical abilities of this ship, and moving any closer could be disastrous."

"The optical units on this ship aren't so great," Canary concluded.

"So, we can see the cluster of people down there," Scotty said, "we just canna' determine who they are. For all we know they could be an invading Romulan force, or, visiting school children from Rigel-7."

"An interesting, and eclectic choice of groupings," S'vath said, with a slight smile, "yet it also happens to describe our situation correctly."

"S'vath," Canary said, as he stood from his command chair and walked over to the science station, "why can't we just beam down there and find out who our visitor s are?"

"That would be unwise," S'vath said, "Any transporter beam that entered the dampening field's range would be degenerated. What rematerialized would hardly be recognizable, and would be dead in mere second."

"And this ship came without any shuttle crafts," Scotty added. "So not only can we not beam'a them up, we canna go down there ourselves."

"Even if we had shuttles," Canary said, "wouldn't the field render them inoperable once inside of its range?"

"Yes," S'vath replied.

"Alright," Canary decided, after a silent moment, "if we cannot penetrate the field down, then we have to find someway of turning it off."

"And how do we do that sir?" Kylon asked, ever the anxious young officer.

"Well, for now, Lt. Kylon," Canary said, sitting back down in the command chair, "plot a course back to the compound. As far as I can tell, our friends down there have no mode of transportation, other than their feet, so we'll deal with them later."

"Captain," S'vath said, "we may find the same conditions at the compound as well. We will be able to see the compound, and they should be able to see us, but communication could be problematical."

"I know, but at least they will know we're still up here," Canary said back to S'vath.

"Course plotted," Kylon reported. "We should arrive there, at current speed, in thirty minutes."

Captain Jonathan Canary nodded at Lt. Kylon, the Imbian officer, with a most colorful tail.

And with that, the Emprenda pivoted to the left and headed back to the main Star Fleet compound, some thirty or so continents from where they were.

Amanda was in sickbay, doing her best to keep herself busy. Being seven months pregnant limited her mobility to some degree, but she managed. The door to sickbay opened and S'vath came in.

"Honey, you didn't have to come down here and check up on me," Amanda told her husband. "I know you're really busy up there on the bridge."

They hugged each other.

"No, actually, I did have to come down here and check up on your progress," S'vath told her with a smile. "You are my wife, and while my duties to this ship and Captain Canary are important; they are no as important to me as my wife, meaning," he said, as he handed her a rose, "you."

"Where did you get this?" Amanda asked with a smile.

"I brought it with me from the compound, before we beamed up here," S'vath said. "Admiral Janeway's garden has a small variety of roses, and while she wasn't looking, I plucked one."

"What was the occasion for giving me this?" Amanda asked her husband.

"No occasion," S'vath said, warmly. "We Vulcans have a bad rap of being unattached to our mates, in these regards." S'vath said.

"But not you," Amanda said, "making me the luckiest woman married to a Vulcan in the entire universe."

"You cannot quantify that statement," S'vath said, with a studious Vulcan voice.

"Yes I can," she said, as she placed his hand on his slacks, above his groin.

S'vath reached down and removed her hand, with a look of coyness in his eyes.

"Now would not be the time," S'vath said, "besides, sexual intercourse at this point of your pregnancy would not be advised."

"Well," she said, as she looked down at his lower torso, "there are other things I can do with that."

She then looked up at him.

"Honey," she said, as concern came over her voice, "what about Lenora. She's down there, in the compound. Promise me we will be able to see her when we get back to the compound."

S'vath held his wife close. He too had worried about the inability to transport down to the surface of the sphere. But S'vath was confident that a way would be found. He just didn't know when.

Continued….


	120. The Walking Dead

**James T Kirk; ****NAISSANCE**

**The Walking Dead**

**Earth;**

**Star Fleet Academy**

The Academy had been closed as soon as the event of a second singularity had been confirmed. Added to the urgency to close the Academy was the unexplained disappearance of several people known to have been inside the dorm room of Rebecca Sisko and Lal at the time of the singularity. Master Chief Miles Obrien was heading up the investigation, and was being assisted by several professors who were all eager for some of the action, which was a welcome distraction from their normal hump and grind of academic administrations.

Dr. Bartholomew Jennings, who taught basic physics, had been the first to offer his assistance, to which Obrien was welcome of. Jennings was considered one of humanities brightest minds, and his knowledge of singularity dynamics was legendary. Obrien and Jennings were standing in the apartment, when a very nervous Bajoran woman came rushing in, who was followed by an embarrassed security guard.

"I'm sorry," Bartholomew Jennings told the woman, "but the dorms are closed until further notice."

But Obrien recognized the woman immediately.

"It's alright Bart," Obrien said to Jennings, "she's Jim Kirk's wife."

Miles Obrien had met Kirk Myran several times in the past year during the course of several events. Finding out just over a year ago that her husband, Jim Kirk, was a living legend, had been a total shock, but in time she had learned to live with it.

"Miles," Myran said, "where are they; where's Jim?"

Obrien held the distraught Myran close for a moment, then let her go.

"I'm not going to lie to you Myran," Obrien said calmly, "we're not really sure where they are. But listen to me," he added, as she became more worried looking, "we have the finest minds working on this. I promise you we will find Jim, and the others."

"How could one of those things appear here twice?" Myran asked.

"We don't know that either. But I promise you that if we find anything out, we will let you know. Now listen," Obrien said, "Keiko and the kids are staying at my place over across the bridge. I want you to stay with them, until we get this all sorted out."

Myran calmed down, and nodded at what Obrien said.

"I'll take her to the transporter hub," the security guard said.

"Thanks," Obrien said to the guard.

"Thank you Miles," Myran said.

The guard escorted Myran out of the dorm, leaving Obrien and Jennings alone again.

"Miles," Jennings said, "We have absolutely no idea what happened here. That woman may have to face the fact that Jim Kirk, or anyone else who was here, could be lost forever."

"That's what I hated about your class," Obrien said to Jennings, "you were always so dry. What that woman needs more than the truth right now is hope."

"Dry?" Jennings asked, "My classes are dry?"

"Extremely," Obrien added with a moan.

At that moment, stepping through the entrance of the dorm was Captain William T Riker.

"Captain Riker," Obrien said with a smile, "it's good to see you sir."

"I just saw Jim's wife outside the building; how is she taking this?" Riker asked his good friend Miles Obrien.

"As well as can be expected," Miles replied.

"Oh yes, William T Riker," Dr. Bart Jennings said, "I often wondered if you were ever going to make it out of my class."

"It's good to see you too, Professor Jennings," Riker said with a smile.

"Took him three attempts," Jennings said to Obrien.

"Two," Riker corrected the older professor.

"Three," Jennings countered.

"So what brings you here sir?" Obrien asked the former XO of the Enterprise-D, on which they had both served years earlier.

"The Titan was tasked with taxiing several delegates to Earth, so I put in for a day of shore leave for the crew once we got here. Then I decided to come once I heard the news about what happened. But while I was passing through Star Fleet command, they showed me something very interesting and told me to pass it on to you; I think you may want to take a look at it as well."

"What is it?" Obrien asked.

Riker took out a data pad, and while he was calling up a command, he looked over at Obrien.

"Geordi was here when it happened?" Riker asked, with worry in this voice.

"Yeah," Obrien said. "I wish he were here helping me out with this, instead of being one of the missing." Obrien added.

"Anyway," Riker said, "take a look at this footage. It was taken up at space dock, and just luckily, someone noticed something interesting."

Obrien looked at the footage. He pointed at the screen.

"Well, I can at least see Ambassador Spock and his friend Elizabeth Pike," Obrien noticed.

The footage repeated, and then Riker pointed at someone else on the footage, a level above where Spock had been. Obrien looked closer upon seeing who it was.

"Nog," Obrien said softly, with disbelief in his voice, "that's Commander Nog. But how can that be; he died on Kirk's Enterprise, inside of the Planet Killer."

"That isn't all of it," Riker said, looking at the pad.

Then the footage changed to other footage taken from security cameras on the academy campus, and again, Nog could be seen walking innocently along the sidewalks.

"He was here, at the academy," Riker explained. "How did he survive the Enterprise's destruction, and why was he here?"

"I don't know sir," Obrien said. "If you suggesting he is connected to the reappearance of the singularity, that would be some kind of stretch."

"I know," Riker said, "I know."

"Then again," Obrien said, "I overheard a few cadets talking about a strange conversation between Geordi and Ambassador Spock about Spock's investigation of a singularity," Obrien paused, "near the coordinates where the Enterprise was destroyed."

"Now that's interesting," Riker said, after a hearing Obrien.

The Delta Flyer-2 arrived in orbit of Bajor. In moments, Admiral Picard beamed down to the planet, and to the home of Benjamin Sisko. He knocked on the door, but it was apparent that no one was home. Picard tapped his communicator.

"Go ahead Admiral," Tom Paris's voice replied.

"We may have come all the way here for nothing," Picard said. "Ben Sisko isn't here, and neither is Jim Kirk, nor are their wives."

"Sir," Paris replied, "I was just speaking with Kira. According to her, they all went to Earth to check in on Ben Sisko's daughter at Star Fleet Academy."

"We'll have to head there ourselves," Picard says.

"Sir," Paris added, "According to her, Kirk's infant son, Mathew, stayed behind with relatives."

Picard thought for a moment.

"Beam me up," Picard said, "And then we'll try to find out the whereabouts of that child," Picard said, "And Tom; make sure to do it discretely. I want a DNA sample of that child, and I want to get it without causing any suspicion."

Seconds later; Picard was gone….

Continued….


	121. Life Giving

**James T Kirk**

**NAISSANCE**

"**Life Giving…"**

The long walk to the nearby foothills had taken nearly five hours. Along the way, the group had come across a stream of water, and had rested there, before heading on toward the hills. The reason they had to move on was to find shelter from the sun. While the temperature was, at best, 26 Celsius, it was still somewhat warm. And as they made their way toward the hills, it was becoming clearer that the sun was not setting anytime soon, and that had caused much speculative conversation between them. Once they had arrived at the foothills, a camp was put together using branches from trees that were found close by.

Nog had not shown any sign of coming around, though he was still alive. Spock had contemplated a mind-meld with the Ferengi, but Kirk talked him out of it, fearing for his Vulcan friend's safety. They had no real way of telling why Nog was in a comatose state, which Kirk worried could have had a negative effect on Spock's mind.

Everyone worked together on setting up the camp, with even Lawrence Thorn assisting in the make shift effort. With most of the camp construction work done, Ben Sisko and Jim Kirk set out to explore the nearby area in hopes of finding food. Two hours later, as Kirk and Sisko hiked their way over the terrain; Sisko could sense that Kirk was worried about Myran, his Bajoran wife.

"You must be worried about Myran," Sisko finally said to his friend, "You have to know that they will take care of her until this all works its self out."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll be just fine, physically," Kirk replied, "I'm just worried that this isn't the kind of married life she had expected. Back on Timus Prime, things were simpler; just the two of us."

"That's right," Sisko said with a smile, "you ran a small antique store, and she was a local elementary school teacher."

"And we fell in love in that small quaint setting," Kirk continued to say. "Ever since that moment when I saved Rebecca from those Klingons, on Bajor, our quaint little life together has become much more complicated."

They walked quietly for a few moments, when Sisko began to speak again.

"Jim," Sisko began to say, "I have seen the way Myran looks at you; that woman loves just as much now as she did back there on Timus. Yes, now, your lives are not as simple as they were a year or so ago, but, through it all your love for each other, and for your son, has never diminished. I think you should give her a little more credit."

Kirk was about to say something, when suddenly, up ahead, they saw an animal; a wild boar.

"Do you see that too?" Sisko asked just to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

"Yes I do," Kirk said. "A boar, here, where ever here is," Kirk said. "Ben, is it possible we are inside some kind of holographic recreation?"

"I doubt it," Sisko said, as he looked at the boar up ahead, as it was sniffing around a cluster of bushes.

"Well," Kirk said with a slight smile, "Spock won't be happy if all we find to eat is the meat of an animal, but," Kirk said, "I could go for a ham sandwich right about now."

"This isn't going to be easy," Sisko said, "catching that thing. My father and I did this once, when I was ten or eleven, and trust me; we're going to get nicked up."

"Well," Kirk said, "it will be good exercise."

Slowly, so as not to scare off the potential food source, the two men spread apart, ready to charge the animal. And then it happened! The animal darted the other direction. Sisko and Kirk took off after it at full speed. Kirk was able to gain on the animal, and just as he thought he had the animal in his sights, Kirk dove at the animal and landed hard on the ground; empty handed.

Sisko looked down at his friend on the ground.

"Jim, are you alright?" Sisko asked.

"That was," Kirk paused, "fun! I'm going to get that thing!"

Kirk jolted after the animal again, and then again. Sisko stood back and watched, letting Kirk have his fun. The boar ran up a ridge, and Kirk followed it up and over. Sisko walked toward the ridge, when Kirk came back over, from the other side, with a broad smile, looking down at Sisko as he made his way up the ridge.

"Did you catch it?" Sisko asked.

"No, not yet," Kirk said, and then he laughed before saying, "but wait until you see what is just over this ridge."

Curious, more than ever, Sisko joined Kirk at the top of the ridge and then he looked down at what Kirk had found. It was a lake. It was at least ten miles to the other side, and at least that wide. And, more importantly, animals of many varieties could be seen at various points around the lake. There were boars, horses, ducks and other animals as well. The lake was very clear, and, as Sisko pointed out to Kirk, there were fish.

"Amazing," Kirk said. "But more amazing is that these are Earth species," Kirk said.

"How did they get here?" Sisko asked.

"Are you sure this isn't one of those holodeck devices we are inside of?" Kirk asked again.

"Anything is possible, but the scale is far too large," Sisko said.

"Those cluster of trees over there would make a great camp," Kirk said, as pointed at them. "We should head back and get the others."

The two men headed back over the ridge, and toward the hills in the near distance that they had left the others at.

Meanwhile, at camp, Spock and Geordi Leforge had taken disassembled one of the communicator badges.

"What are you trying to do?" Rebecca asked, as she watched the two very smart and intense men do whatever it was they were doing.

"The dampening field that is affecting my eyes," Leforge said to her, "is also affecting our communicators. By taking them apart, like this, we are hoping we can eliminate causes and find solutions."

"Wow," Rebecca said.

Spock looked at the young girl, who had only recently started her Star Fleet career at the academy.

"If I may ask, Rebecca, What is it you wish to do in Star Fleet?" Spock asked.

"My father wants me to study engineering," Rebecca said, "like he did. But, I don't know, I'm looking at something in the life science field."

"An excellent choice," Leforge said to her. "I'm pretty sure your father will support whatever choice you make."

"However," Lawrence Thorn, who had been sitting nearby, added, "studying engineering will offer you a more fulfilling future."

Spock looked over at Lawrence Thorn.

"The quantum technology your science department uses to create singularities," Spock began to say, "How exactly does it nullify the negative value of the subspace fraction across the parallel field of Heinlein RTH zones?"

"We have found the means to invert the entropy envelope," Thorn replied, "thereby causing a Z-force buffer to counter any displacement of mass by the neutrons as they are caught up in the envelope."

"I would love to see how you do that," Leforge said.

Rebecca just shook her head as the three men spoke, having no idea what they had just said.

**The Klingon battle ship Emprenda **had moved into a parking orbit over main Star Fleet complex inside of the Naissance Dysonsphere. Just as feared, direct communication with the complex was impossible due to the dampening field that extended some two hundred miles above the surface of the planet. But the optical cameras of the old Klingons ship did reveal one worrisome fact; the complex was battling a file that had engulfed a major area of the complex. Dr. Amanda-Spock, and her husband S'vath, stood together on the bridge. Both S'vath and Amanda were understandingly worried; their young daughter, Lenora, named after the Legendary Leonard McCoy, was somewhere down there, and hopefully safe and away from the fire, but there was no way to tell for sure.

"What do you think happened?" Ensign Kylon asked from the navigation/helm post just forward of Captain Jonathan Canary's command chair.

"It could be anything, but one thing's for sure," Canary said, "it doesn't look good."

Canary looked over at Amanda, who buried her head in her husband's shoulder, not wanting to watch the fire.

"If only we could'a help them," Scotty said, as he stood to the left of the command chair. "That blasted dampening field won't let us get any closer."

Canary was confident that the fire would be brought under control, eventually, but he could tell looking at S'vath that the even he was worried about his child.

"S'vath," Canary finally said, "Would you please follow me?"

Canary headed to the Turbo-lift and S'vath joined him. The turbo-lift's doors closed, and they zipped away.

"You're going down there," Canary said flatly.

"Sir, Captain, while I appreciate the concern, the transporter cannot penetrate the field," S'vath explained. "And this ship is not equipped with shuttles or escape pods."

"Maybe not," Canary told S'vath,"but there is another way to get down there. It will be a one-way trip, and it will be dangerous," Canary said, "but if anyone can get down who can help; it's you. And," Canary said, "Your daughter needs you."

The turbo-lift deposited them in one of the lower levels of the old Klingon ship.

"How exactly am I going to get down there?" S'vath asked.

"Well, when the Klingons were bringing me here," Canary explained, "we drank blood wine, sang Klingon opera, and," Canary added with a pause, "We played a card game not unlike poker. To make a long story short, I won one of the pots, which included," he said as they approached a storage compartment, "these."

Canary opened the storage compartment to reveal three packs of parachuting gear.

"In the past, this ship was on several raiding parties, including during the Dominion War," Canary explained. "When necessary, Klingon shock troops would use these. They are usually powered, but can be used manually. You have parachuted before I assume."

"Yes," S'vath said, "though not manually for over two hundred miles, which this jump will demand."

"It's worth a chance," Canary said.

"It is indeed," S'vath said, as he reached in and grabbed one of the packs and began putting it on. "Thank you sir," S'vath said.

"Family is job number one," Canary said. "Now, when you get down there," Captain Canary explained, "tell Admiral Janeway, or whoever is in command down there, that we are going to try and get help from the outside. Also tell her about the unknown visitors we found at coordinates of the singularity."

S'vath nodded as he completed the task of gearing up for his jump.

"I won't lie to you," Canary said to S'vath, helping him with the final straps, "this may not work. If anything happens to you, I promise you that Amanda will be taken care of, and so will your daughter, God willing she is still alive down there."

"Thank you sir," S'vath said, as he gave Canary the Vulcan hand salute.

Captain Jonathan Canary reciprocated, and then patted S'vath on the shoulder.

"Good luck," Captain Canary said.

And with that, Captain Canary headed back to the bridge while S'vath headed for the shuttle bay of the vessel.

Moments later, Canary arrived on the bridge.

"Where's my husband?" Amanda asked, upon seeing the Captain exit the turbo-lift.

"Sir," Scotty said from the ops post, "someone is opening one of the doors down on the shutt'a bay!"

"I know," Captain Canary replied to Scotty, and then he looked over at Amanda. "Your husband is going to parachute down to the complex."

"You canna' be serious," Scotty said. "Even if he had powered chutes, they'd be useless inside of the dampening field."

"He's doing this for Lenora," Amanda said softly.

"Yes, he is," Canary said.

And with that, they all watched on the screen as it displayed the image of S'vath jumping out of the open bay door. They watched as his image got smaller and smaller, as he maneuvered his body into a diving position.

**Next time…a death in the family!**


	122. Rainman

**STAR TREK**

**NAISSANCE**

**Rainman**

As S'vath sailed down through the sky, just as predicted, the power-drive of the Klingon made parachute cutoff as he entered the dampening field which extended 200 miles from the surface.

S'vath had told Captain Jonathan Canary that he had had past experience, parachuting from orbiting ship; but in fact, that wasn't a complete truth. And since Vulcans hardly were known to tell lies, Canary had gone ahead and let S'vath proceed with the risky endeavor. S'vath had parachuted once, and it had been many years in the past. However, as he rapidly approached the grown below, S'vath managed to steer the parachute and finally swooped down for a landing, aided by a slight breeze that had been blowing, which allowed him to slow the decent even more.

Once he was on the ground, S'vath untangled himself from the parachute's lines and made his way to the complex, which, according to his calculations, he missed by nearly five miles. The smoke from the fire at the complex could easily be seen in distance, as well as the buildings that comprised the complex.

Nearly a half an hour later, S'vath was greeted by several Star Fleet personnel as he neared the complex. The first one to greet him was Lt. Ezri Bashir, wife of Commander Julian Bashir, one of the chief architects of the Naissance Project.

"Commander S'vath," Ezri said, "was that you we saw parachuting down earlier?"

"Yep, that was me alright," S'vath said. "What is your status down here?"

The two made their way toward the main building of the complex.

"The fire has taken out some of the secondary labs," Ezri said. "Julian is heading up the effort to extinguish the fire due to his knowing where the sensitive areas of the compound are."

"What about Admiral Janeway; what is her condition?" S'vath asked.

"She's fine, in fact," Ezri said, "she's taking charge of making sure everyone is accounted for. We only had two casualites when when a converter overloaded."

As they came near the main area, S'vath was relieved to see his daughter Lenora being attended to by one of the child-facility female attendants. He made his way over to the attendant, who upon seeing S'vath; handed him his child. Lenore smiled at seeing the face of her father.

"Thank you for seeing to the safety of my child," S'vath told the attendant, Ensign Wendy Mitchell, a woman of African decent.

"Of all the children," Ensign Mitchell said with a smile, "Lenora was the least apprehensive as to what was happening around her."

"Must be the calming effect of her Vulcan DNA," said Admiral Janeway as she noticed S'vath and came over to him. "Commander," Admiral Janeway said, "it's good to see that the Emprenda is still up there. We assumed that whatever is causing that dampening field might have had some effect on the Emprenda's power."

"Yes," S'vath said, as he shifted Lenora, cradling her with his left shoulder, "The Emprenda herself is unaffected, unless it tries to come closer. But, the transporters are out, and communication signals are degraded by the field as well. Is there any suggestion as to what is powering the field?"

"No, not yet, and" Ezri replied. "We've lost all contact with the sphere's communication array, which is located near the main entrance to the sphere."

S'vath looked to Janeway.

"Captain Canary is planning to head to the main entrance, exit it, and try to get some help, if he can," S'vath said. "As of yet," S'vath said, as he looked up at the sky, "there appears to be no way to get back up to the ship, and there are not enough parachutes for them to leave the ship."

"So that was a one-way trip for you," Janeway said. "What about the singularity? What did you find there?"

"The dampening field was activated before we could get conclusive information," S'vath replied, "but we did ascertain that a small group exited the singularity, and made their way toward an outcropping of hills on a continent pretty far from here. So, at least for now, they seem to pose no threat."

Suddenly walking into the area, which was a grass field near the complex, was Dr. Bashir.

"Julian," Janeway said, "tell me the fire is at least contained."

"It took sometime," Julian Bashir reported, "but thankfully we kept it way from the food replicator cells."

"That is good news," Janeway said with a smile.

"How were you able to use water?" S'vath asked.

"Thankfully when they built this place," Julian Bashir began to say, "they installed that water tower over there," which he pointed at, "which has ducts that lead over to the labs, for this sort of emergency."

"Who came up with that bright idea?" S'vath asked.

"My father, actually," Bashir said with pride in his voice.

Then Janeway became serious.

"Commander S'vath, I need to speak with you alone, for just a moment," Janeway told S'vath.

S'vath followed her away from the others, unsure as to why.

"Commander," Janeway spoke softly, "the USS Hanoi was on approach towards the sphere. We lost contact with the ship moments before it was to have come through the entrance, and into the sphere."

"I understand Admiral," S'vath replied, "perhaps we can…"

Janeway held up a hand, motioning for him to stop.

"S'vath," Janeway added, with softness in her voice, "your mother was one of the passengers. Apparently she was coming here to visit you."

S'vath arched his eyebrow, and nodded to Janeway.

"We did not scan any other vessels," S'vath said back to Janeway. "Perhaps the chamber closed before the USS Hanoi was able to traverse the passageway."

"That is possible," Janeway said, "but until we can contact the outside, which we can't at the moment, we won't know for sure. I just thought you'd want to know."

"Thank you Admiral," S'vath said, with a warm smile. "I assume that none of the computers or systems is operational down here."

"We are completely without power," Janeway said, as they both headed back to the others. "And, moments before we the dampening field became active, we were tracking a rainstorm heading this way."

Janeway pointed in the distance at an appoaching weather system; dark clouds.

"I estimate it will be here with in six hours," S'vath said.

"At best," Julian Bashir said, "it's a category two storm. What's left of the complex should be able to supply shelter for all seventy-three of us."

"I didn't know the artificial weather aspects of the Naissance were operational," S'vath said to Janeway.

"Neither did we," Ezri said, "OPS had only reported the storm just moments before the field was activated."

"Fascinating," S'vath said. "That would imply that the artificial weather control was activated before the dampening field."

"That is interesting," Janeway said softly.

"So what does that mean?" Ezri asked.

"What that means," Janeway replied, "is someone was able to activate the system before the dampen field. That would imply that we are not alone inside of this giant ball in space."

"Then if we're not alone," Ezri said, "then who else could be here?"

Her question went unanswered; for now.

Continued….


	123. You are Here

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

"**You are here…."**

Upon the return of Jim Kirk and Ben Sisko to the make shift camp that had been set up near the foothills, it was decided they would all relocate to a cluster of trees that were near the massive lake that Kirk and Sisko had found. Sisko took the lead, and led the camp on the nearly one hour walk to the lake. Kirk and Leforge held Nog, who was still out cold, between them as they made their way. Once the group had arrived at the shaded tree area, branches and twigs were, and other natural elements, such as rocks and leaves, were used to construct a more sturdy camp. Comfortable cots were made as well, and Nog was set down on one of them.

The Ferengi's condition had not changed, since the moment they had had come through the singularity. Spock had broached the subject of doing a mind-meld with the downed Ferengi, but Kirk, who had assumed an unofficial command of the group, suggested they wait, just to be safe. Leforge also volunteered to return to Lal, who they had left, deactivated, before hiking to the foothills. Again, it was decided it was best to all stick together, for the time being.

Once they had arrived at the cluster of trees, and with the hunger for food settling in, Kirk, Ben Sisko and Leforge, as well as Elizabeth Pike, set about constructing fishing poles. Then men, while not chauvinist, were surprised at Pike's fishing knowledge. She told them that her and her father, the late Christopher Pike, fished all the time on Talos IV.

Lawrence Thorn was tasked with Rebecca Sisko in using water sifts, which Spock had made from branches and leaves, to retrieve water from a nearby stream that fed into the lake, and to bring it back to the camp, so as to be boiled for consumption. As the work continued, there were various conversations between them all; as it became apparent they were going to be spending much more time together than they had originally thought.

Later, Jim Kirk and Spock were sitting together on a small hill that over looked the large lake that their camp was not far from. They also watched as the others helped each other set up the new camp, while also looking at the large variety of animal life that could be seen at various positions around the lake. Kirk pointed to two animals in the distance.

"Yes," Spock said, "I believe they are Bengal tigers. It will be wise to set up a roving watch, preferably from this location, in order to keep a watchful eye on our four-legged neighbors as well as the camp. Of, course, I volunteer for the first duty cycle."

Kirk chuckled.

"When was the last time you stood watch?" Kirk asked. "Was it a hundred or so years ago?"

Spock nodded.

"Captain; you of all people should know that I was actually quite proficient standing watch at the academy," Spock told his friend.

"Yes, I know," Kirk said, with a little annoyance in his voice. "As I recall, you had me written up twice for violating curfew. It's one of the reasons Carol broke up with me."

"Jim," Spock said, "I believe the fact you were also dating Ensign Maryanne Jennings at the time was what led to the unfortunate end of your relationship to Carol Marcus."

"You're probably right," Kirk said.

A few moments went by, and then…

"While on the subject of our academy years," Spock continued to say, "I had a chance, though very briefly, to meet your son; David."

Kirk looked at Spock. He had to keep reminding himself that Spock was much older than he was, and had shared many years of friendship with the other Jim Kirk. He also envied Spock for having known David Marcus as an adult.

"I read that he was killed, by Klingons no less," Kirk said. "I envy you Spock; I only saw him twice, and the last time I saw him, he had just turned two –years old. At the time, Carol reminded me that she wanted me to stay away, out of David's life, so I did."

"And so did the other Jim Kirk, the one I knew," Spock said added. "And although David died not long after their reunion; Dr. McCoy once told me that the two of them had accepted each other as father and son."

Kirk smiled at the mention of McCoy.

"I miss Bones," Kirk said, with a wistful look in his eyes.

"Yes," Spock said, softly, "The good doctor and I had seen less of each other over the years, as his health deteriorated, however, we remained good friends."

Kirk looked at the tigers in the distance, and decided to bring the conversation back to the situation at hand.

"Spock, what do you think this place is? I asked Ben earlier if we were in some sort of holographic setting, and both he, and then later Mr. Leforge, doubted it. What do you think?"

"If it turns out that we are indeed experiencing some sort of holographic representation, then the technology is far beyond Star Fleet's current holographic technology level. However," Spock said, "I agree with Mr. Sisko and Professor Leforge. I believe all of this is real."

Kirk noticed that Sisko and Leforge were walking towards the hill. Moments later the two men arrived and sat down with Kirk and Spock.

"I believe you should hear what Geordi just told me," Ben Sisko said to Kirk and Spock. "He has not told anyone else."

"What is it?" Kirk asked Leforge.

"As you may or may not know, my artificial eyes are enhanced, but at their basic levels, they are organic and are allowing me to see on a very simple and normal level," Geordi said. "However, even the organic aspects of both of my eyes have been enhanced."

"Fascinating," Spock said to Kirk, upon hearing Leforge.

"Now, even though the mechanical function of my eyes is being interrupted by the dampening field, the organic parts of my eyes have noticed something very peculiar about this world," Leforge continued to say.

"And what is that?" Kirk asked.

"There is a slight inclination on the surface of this planet, and," Geordi paused with a smile, "it is equal in every direction. It is far too slight for people with normal vision to detect, but I can see it."

Kirk didn't understand what Leforge was trying to say, but Spock did.

"A Dysonsphere," Spock concluded. "We must all be inside of a Dysonsphere."

"Yes," Leforge said, "that's what I think too."

"I remember vaguely reading about the theory," Sisko said, "and then the Enterprise-D found one, many years ago. What if we're all actually on the inside skin of a Dysonsphere, and, when we look up at that sun, and beyond it, we are actually looking at the other side of the sphere from where we are?"

"The Enterprise," Kirk went on to say, "Picard's Enterprise; it found such a construct?"

"Yes," Leforge said to the others, "we did. Not only did we find a Dysonsphere, we also rescued your good friend Mr. Scott from a ship that had wrecked on the outside surface of the sphere."

Kirk snapped his fingers.

"Wait a moment," Kirk said, "A year or so ago I was at a conference with Admiral Janeway. She and Dr. Julian Bashir were heading up some project…" his left wrist made circular patterns as he tried to recall what it was all about.

"Project Naissance," Leforge added. "Starfleet found another sphere, oh about ten years ago I think. It was much smaller than the one we found, and if I' m correct, Dr. Bashir and Admiral Janeway wanted to use the new sphere to bring endangered animals and plant life there and they called it Project Naissance. Their project got the green light, last I heard. In fact," Geordi added, "Scotty sent me a message that he was taking a voluntary assignment at the project."

"How can be sure we are at that sphere," Sisko said. "That singularity could have brought us to the other sphere that the Enterprise found; or for all we know, we were brought to the other side of the galaxy."

"While that is a distinct possibility," Spock said to Sisko, "the animal life we have encountered all seem to come from Earth."

"That is true," Sisko said. "So, lets us assume we are at Janeway's Dysonsphere."

"Anything is possible," Leforge said, "perhaps that ship I saw was a Federation ship."

"Then why didn't they try to make contact?" Kirk asked.

"Perhaps the dampening field is pre-empted such an attempt," Leforge replied.

"Well, until we know for sure," Kirk told the others, "we have to make sure we can provide food and water to ourselves and the others. If we are inside of the Naissance sphere, and no one has been sent for us, then we have to assume that something else is happening."

The four men stood up and made their way back to camp, to tell the others what they had been discussing, not wanting any secrets to be kept. Everyone had been brought to this place, unexpectedly, and Kirk decided that it was fair that the entire group be kept aware of was happening.

Meanwhile, six or so miles from where the camp's position was near the lake, Lal opened her eyes….

Continued….


	124. The Last Word

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

"**The Final Word…"**

_The USS Hanoi, an Excelsior class starship, was in a bad way. While in final approach of the Naissance Dysonsphere, which was constructed around a small star, the entrance to the massive sphere closed and seconds later; a powerful tractor beam reached out and literally grabbed hold of the starship. The Hanoi didn't nearly have enough power to break free of the tractor beam. The ship's crew tried every strategy they could think of to break free of the tractor beam, but it became apparent that it was impossible. A way had to be found to shut the beam off. The shuttles were suggested, but could not be launched, due to the draining effect the beam had on the ship._

_With options running out, the captain of the Hanoi, a female Benzite named O'coln, decided to separate the saucer section from the main drive. What power that was left was shunted into the saucer section, in hope of providing shielding while trying to escape the clawing tractor beam's merciless grip. _

As the crew struggled through all of this, one of the passengers sat in her quarters, oblivious to everything that was happening; concluding the efforts were useless, she had accepted that death was at hand.

The ship shook violently as T'pring of Vulcan looked at the hologram picture of her son, S'vath. In T'pring's mind, S'vath was really the only proof in the entire universe that she had existed. Their relationship had always been strained, due to her coldness, and the fact he was a Vulcan/human hybrid, just as his father Spock was. It was because of the strained relationship with her son that T'pring had wanted to reshape her home world of Vulcan, to create a new world where a cold logical existence, such as her life had been, would no longer be the goal of Vulcans.

Earlier in her life, T'pring had been engaged to Spock, one of two sons of Sarek. Instead of marrying Spock, she had challenged their arranged pairing, not wanting to be the consort of a legend, which Spock had become. She was successful in doing so, but now, as her life was about to end, she regretted that course of action. And, unfortunately, she had made the situation even worse.

In the past year T'pring had been approached by the other son of Sarek; Sybok. Believed to have perished on a planet near the center of the galaxy, Sybok had actually lived, and had kept his existence secret to all. Sybok returned to Vulcan, and had found his way to T'pring. As it turned out, they shared the same philosophy; to change Vulcan into a world where emotions were a priority over logic, in essence, throwing out the teachings and edicts of Surak, the father of modern Vulcan thought.

To do this, Sybok would need a new generation of followers to spread his word, his alternative to logic. Knowing of the celebrity of Spock, Sybok set his sights on S'vath, Spock's son with T'pring. It was a well known fact on Vulcan that S'vath had chosen to bypass the Vulcan way of life, favoring his human roots. This had, interestingly enough, made S'vath a celebrity on Vulcan as well. And that was proof enough to Sybok that many Vulcan would support such a shift in philosophy; away from logic, toward an emotional approach to life. The Vulcans had once been a very proud and passionate race, just as the Romulans, their blood cousins, were still known to be. With S'vath, and his offspring, under Sybok's influence, such a change seemed more than just a theory, but a practical possibility.

After S'vath's wife Amanda had given birth to a daughter, who was one year old now, T'pring was confident that the two would have yet another child, a son, a predictable human course of action. Sybok, for his part, needed male followers more than he needed females, on the belief that more followers could be created with males than with females. With Sybok's help, T'pring came into possession of illegal chromosome enhancers, which she then secretly applied to food she had prepared for Amanda. T'pring's efforts were rewarded when she later found out that Amanda was indeed pregnant with a second child; a son.

But it was about that time when T'pring had changed her mind, again. Realizing that by using logic to manipulate events earlier in her life, specifically her pairing with Spock, had been a mistake, T'pring came to believe that coercion was not an idea way to change Vulcan; a natural progression was. So, unknown to Sybok, and free from his telepathic hold on her, which he had demonstrated in the past, T'pring decided to find S'vath and tell him the truth; that she, T'pring, had given Amanda the chromosome enhancers and that Sybok had intentions to abduct the child, after it was born, for his unscrupulous intentions, which brought her, eventually, to the USS Hanoi.

The Hanoi began to shake again, and T'pring knew why. The tractor beam now had the saucer section in its grasp, and it was crumbling. She could sense screams of terror, in her mind, as deck by deck was destroyed. Only seconds remained for her. She knew that S'vath was somewhere on the other side of the sphere's outer shell, and as her death approached; she concentrated on his hologram picture one last time. Would he, S'vath, sense her death? There had been stories all throughout Vulcan's past that moments of intensity, such as death, could extend a Vulcan's presence; their Katra. In fact, decades earlier, when a Federation starship comprised of an all Vulcan crew was destroyed, the sudden loss of life had been sensed by Vulcans, even several hundred light years away.

With this as her only hope, T'pring concentrated on S'vath's image, with one thought and one thought alone; they were also the last words she would ever say;

"Beware of Sybok…" T'pring said, as she closed her eyes to die.

The saucer section and main drive of the USS Hanoi were both engulfed in massive explosions; no one survived but; did a thought survive?

**Planet Vulcan…**

The Solek meditation complex was where many Vulcans went to meditate. It was at places like this, which were spread across the planet, where the young were introduced to the art of relaxation of the mind, and body. For T'av, it was a place to find herself again.

Tav's life had taken an unexpected turn when she became the unwitting pawn of alien beings bent on the destroying Talos IV. Under their control, T'av had killed her fellow Star Fleet officer, and friend, Lt. Michael Donovan. Not only had she killed him, but she had also consumed his flesh. She would go on to do more heinous acts before finally being stopped by the Talosian known as The Keeper. Although her mind had finally been freed from the control of the aliens, it was far from healed. Much time would be needed to rid her of the nightmares that haunted her inner thoughts.

Usually Vulcans had great control of their minds, but the alien control she had been under, and the acts of violence she had committed, were more duress than anything imaginable. Spock, who was now a good friend of Tav's, after finding her on Talos IV, had brought her back home to Vulcan to receive the care she needed. She missed Spock, who was away from Vulcan on other matters. But she also realized that she had to find her own way through life. She was a Star Fleet officer herself, and would hopefully one day return to her duties.

As Tav stood at one of the windows that looked out upon the beautiful Vulcan desert scenery, she was unaware that a Vulcan male was watching her from another level above from where she stood. He too had a very powerful mind, as she would soon find out. His name was Sybok…


	125. Behind Closed Doors

Previously…

_The Hanoi began to shake again, and T'pring knew why. The tractor beam now had the saucer section in its grasp, and it was crumbling. She could sense screams of terror, in her mind, as deck by deck was destroyed. Only seconds remained for her. She knew that S'vath was somewhere on the other side of the sphere's outer shell, and as her death approached; she concentrated on his hologram picture one last time. Would he, S'vath, sense her death? There had been stories all throughout Vulcan's past that moments of intensity, such as death, could extend a Vulcan's presence; their Katra. In fact, decades earlier, when a Federation starship comprised of an all Vulcan crew was destroyed, the sudden loss of life had been sensed by Vulcans, even several hundred light years away._

With this as her only hope, T'pring concentrated on S'vath's image, with one thought and one thought alone; they were also the last words she would ever say;

"Beware of Sybok…" T'pring said, as she closed her eyes to die.

The saucer section and main drive of the USS Hanoi were both engulfed in massive explosions; no one survived but; did a thought survive?

Our story continues..Picking up moments before the Hanoi's destruction.

The Eprenda had arrived at the access passageway of the Naissance sphere. The passage way, when opened, was wide enough for five starships to pass through at one time. The passageway connected two openings; one on the inside, and, one on the outside of the sphere. The actual length of the passageway was approximately eight hundred standard miles. The massive doors, for lack of a better term, on either end, were made of several layers of neutronium, and, would be nearly impossible to open by force. The door on the inside of the sphere was closed, and there was no way to tell if the door on the far end of passageway was open or closed.

"We're never going to get out of here," came from Dr. Amanda Grayson, who stood near the turbo-lift doors. "Do you think Star Fleet is aware that we are stuck inside this thing?"

"They will know soon enough," Captain Jonathan Canary said from his command chair. "If the Hanoi is out there, they should be aware by now that we are closed for business in here."

Lt. Dovar Mecet, a Cardassian female, who was the ship's senior communication's officer, spoke suddenly.

"Sir," Mecet said, with a clinical and official tone to her voice, "it is just as I suspected. Even if the Hanoi is either outside the sphere, or trapped inside the passageway, the neutronium surface of the sphere will make it impossible for us to know. I am detecting absolutely no com traffic, with subspace or local."

"Well," Canary said looking up at Amanda, who was pregnant with her second child, "it would appear as if the reunion with your mother-in-law will have to be delayed for now. From what I know about mother-in-laws; that might not be such a bad thing."

Dr. Grayson smiled.

"Captain; I never thought I would ever want to see my mother-in-law again, but I think I would allow this exception, if it meant we could leave this place." Amanda said with a slight laugh.

"Your perception of family is much different than my world's view," Kylon said, as the tip of his multilayered tail rested on his left shoulder, "on my home world it is customary for the male of a pairing to have sexual relations with his soon to be mother-in-law; this is done so that the bridges mother can be sure that he will be a worthy mate for her daughter."

"Yikes laddie," Scotty said from the engineering alcove, "that'a be a weeeee bit more info than we needed to know."

Captain Canary stood up from his command chair and walked back to Scotty's engineering station on the bridge.

"Alright," Canary said to Scotty, "go ahead and pull up a schematic of this area of the sphere."

On the main screen, a tactical display suddenly appeared of the entire sphere. The display zoomed in on the area that Emprenda was in a stationary orbit over. The topography of the sphere tapered off for nearly two hundred miles around the passageway. Located just inside the sphere was a control complex.

"So, we are right above the control complex," Canary stated.

"Affirmative," Kylon, who manned the helm/navigation post, positioned directly in front of the command chair.

"What does that place do?" Amanda asked.

"Not much really," Canary said, as he reached into his pocket, and retrieved a toothpick, which he put between his lips.

"Those things are bad for your teeth," Amanda said.

"Right," Canary said in a dismissive tone, "anyway, all that place really does down there is control the opening and closing of the passageway doors; at least that's what I got out of Admiral Janeway's briefing."

"Aye," Scotty added.

"Well," Amanda said, "for those of us who weren't at that briefing, did they mention if there was a backdoor to this place?"

"Sorry lass; this passageway is the only way in and out of the sphere," Scotty told her. "And because the continental and oceanic tectonic plates are each sitting on top'a 800 miles of solid neutronium; there is no possible way to burrow through to the outside."

"Actually, there is another way in; at least it appears as such," Canary interjected, "The singularity which brought our mysterious guests."

"Great," Amanda said, sarcastically, "can't wait to walk through one of those things."

"Let me guess," Canary said to Lt. Mecet, who sat at her communications post, "there is no way to tell if the Star Fleet team is down there in the control complex because of the dampening field."

Mecet nodded in agreement with Canary's assessment.

"We could parachute someone down there, like we did with Commander S'vath," Kylon said. "I'll volunteer," he added.

Canary thought for a moment.

"It is a good idea Kylon," Canary said, "but we're already down to a crew of fifty-three. I can't afford anymore crew defections," he added with intended humor in his voice.

"And even if they got down there," Scotty added, "what would it amount to unless they had suup'a human strength. Those doors ainna' going open no matter if someone goes down there or not."

Suddenly, and without warning, Amanda keeled over in pain, as she clutched her very pregnant torso. Captain Canary and Lt. Mecet rushed to her aid. Canary propped her up against one of the legs of the railing that rimmed the inner area of the bridge.

"Amanda," Canary said, "are you alright? What happened?"

"Pain," Amanda struggled to say, as she messaged the temples on both sides of her head. "It felt as if someone stuck a dagger into my stomach."

"Do you think you might be going into early labor?" Mecet asked.

"I doubt it," Amanda replied. "But now the pain has spread to my mind."

"The unborn child is partly Vulcan," Canary said to here, "could it be some sort of mind-meld?"

"Maybe," Amanda said, "when I was pregnant with Lenora there were times I felt as if she was inside my mind."

"We need to get her to sickbay," Canary said to Kylon, who was observing what was happening from his post. "Get a medic up here."

Kylon nodded, and did what he ordered. Captain Canary looked down at Amanda, and then he looked over to Scotty, who had a worried look on his face as well.

Elsewhere inside the Naissance sphere….

Jim Kirk, Geordi Leforge, Spock and Rebecca Sisko were nearly six miles from the lake, as they made their way to where the singularity had brought them too. Kirk and Leforge were dragging a make shift gurney behind them, so as to bring Lal back with them. Suddenly Leforge stopped walking, as did the others.

"This is it," Leforge said, as he looked around. "This is where we exited the singularity."

Lal was nowhere to be seen.

"Are you sure?" Kirk asked. "I admit it looks familiar," Kirk added, as he shielded his eyes from the bright sun above and looked about.

"Quite sure," Leforge said.

"Then where is she?" Rebecca asked, "Where is Lal?"

"There are two possibilities," Spock replied. "Either she became re-activated, or…"

"Someone took her," Kirk interjected quickly.

Suddenly, Spock cried out in pain, and fell toward the ground. Kirk, reacting quickly, caught his friend and eased him down. The others raced over and crouched down around the fallen Vulcan.

"Spock," Kirk said to his friend, "are you alright?"

Spock opened his eyes, and it was clear he was in pain.

"It was T'pring," Spock struggled to say; "she just died."

"Who is T'pring?" Rebecca asked.

"She and Spock are the parents of Commander S'vath," Kirk said.

"I didn't think Vulcans had the ability for this kind of telepathy," Geordi said to Kirk. "How could Spock have sensed her dying?"

"From what I know about Mr. Spock," Kirk said, grinning, as he looked down at the much older Vulcan, "he is not your typical Vulcan."

"Since we can't find Lal," Geordi said, "let's get Spock on the cot and take him back to the camp."

"Good idea," Kirk said, as he, alone, lifted Spock and sat him on the cot.

And with that done, they made their way back toward the camp that was some six miles or so away.

"Jim," Rebecca said, as both he and Geordi dragged the cot behind them, "where do you think Lal is?"

Kirk looked about, and then back at Rebecca.

"I don't know," Kirk said, "but my gut tells me that she was not taken away."

"So she might be somewhere, looking for us; lost." Rebecca said in worried tone.

"If Lal is anything like her father Data, then trust me," Geordi said with a smile, "she will be just fine."

As they made their way back to camp, they were unaware that back at camp, the rest of their friends and family members were having a most interesting confrontation; with a Tyrannosaurusrex!

Continued…on Monday!


	126. T'av

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

**T'av**

Previously…

_Admiral Picard sat beside Captain Tom Paris, who expertly piloted the Delta Flyer II through the atmosphere of a long desolated world. Soon, once the ship had cleared the cloud cover, the remnants of a long dead civilization could be seen; collapsed structures, roads, ect._

_"The beings of this world, Triskelion, destroyed themselves after evolving into life forms that no longer needed physical bodies, other than just their brains." Picard explained._

"_Why have we come here?" Paris asked Picard._

_"The Jim Kirk we know now claims to have been the creation of a duplicated transporter beam. One beam ended up here a hundred years ago, and one ended up here, three years ago or so." Picard explained._

_Paris set the Delta Flyer II down near a set of coordinates Picard had given him. It was an open field between two toppled structures of some sort. The doors to the ship opened, and Picard and Paris stepped out._

_The two Star Fleet officers made their way over a small foothill, and near a cropping of dead trees Picard saw their destination; a make shift grave site. They made their way over to a lone tombstone that stuck out of the ground. The writing on the tombstone was faded._

_"Rest in peace my good friends," Picard said, and then he read the names on the tombstone, "Ensign Pavel Chekov, Lt. Commander Nyota Uhura and," Picard paused, as he read the final name, "James R Kirk."…_

our story continues….

Captain Tom Paris smiled as he piloted the Delta Flyer-2 through the open doors of the giant space station that orbited Earth. As the small sized ship approached and passed over a Galaxy-class starship that was heading in the opposite direction, Admiral Picard couldn't help but admire the massive ship, which looked exactly like the Enterprise-D.

"You miss your old ship, the D, don't you," Paris said, as he noticed the look in Picard's eyes.

"Oh yes," Picard replied, "I do. She went before her time. We accomplished so much with her," Picard continued to say. "From our first encounter with Q, to the Borg, the Klingon Civil war, even when we lost her trying to stop Soran; they were, without a doubt, the most interesting years of my life."

As he looked at the starship they were passing over, what really impressed Picard was the addition of a third nacelle; the alternate future he had experienced years earlier, thanks to Q, was starting to show similarities with the actual future he was living.

"I know the feeling," Paris said, as he aimed the ship at a landing platform in the distance, "even though the Voyager was stranded for all those years in the Delta-Quadrant, those were still the most fulfilling years of my career. B'ellana and I would never have been married if that hadn't had happened."

"While I am not one who believes in fate, or destiny," Picard said with a smile, "even I cannot deny the interesting twists and turns that life takes."

"So, what are we doing here, on Earth sir?" Paris asked. "We accomplished our goal; going to Bajor to retrieve a DNA scan of Kirk's child. According to the scan, Mathew is Kirk's biological son, and according to further findings, the child's DNA matches the past scans of the other Jim Kirk; the one who died on Veridian III."

Picard nodded his head in agreement.

"I am now satisfied that Jim Kirk, this new younger version, is indeed a DNA match of the man I met on Veridian III," Picard stated flatly. "However, I can't help but wonder if there is more to the story that even he isn't aware of."

"Sir, those graves we found on Triskellion, I can understand if Kirk buried his fallen friends. But the tomb for himself, with the R instead of a T for his middle name initial?"

"He may have done it, for all we know, to help deal with their loss; perhaps he blamed himself." Picard said. "Next time I see him, I will ask what he knows about that."

"Would be interesting to hear his answer," Paris concluded.

"Now, Tom, as for why we are here," Picard said, "apparently there has been some sort of incident at Star Fleet academy. The com traffic has been flittering with it for the past several days, but there have been few details. But when I read the fact that Kirk and Spock, as well as Benjamin Sisko were both involved, I decided to look into it myself. In fact, it is my intention to head up the on going investigation."

"I think I know why you are showing and even greater interest in this investigation," Paris said with a knowing tone in his voice.

"I didn't know of your Betazoid-like abilities," Picard said, in a wry tone.

"Admiral; Kirk and Spock are legends, but, they also served aboard an Enterprise or two in their day," Paris said. "There seems to be some affinity between all those who have served on a ship named Enterprise that goes beyond just one ship so named; it is almost a generational relationship."

Before Picard could respond, Paris pointed at one of the larger ship, docked at a higher level.

"Admiral, excuse me, but isn't that the Titan?" Paris asked.

"Yes it is," Picard replied. "I believe they recently assigned with escorting delegates to Earth for a conference, but I wonder why she's still here."

"Well, I'm sure with you here," Paris said back to Picard, "we will soon find out. And if I may be honest sir," Paris added, "Captain Riker is also a graduate of the Enterprise family. I wonder if he too has come here due to the protective nature he shares with you and all Enterprise graduates."

"Indeed," Picard said softly.

**Planet Vulcan…**

**The city of Shikahr**

The famous home world of the Vulcans was well known for its hot climate. Visitors from other worlds actually took medicines to help regulate their body heat, while also drinking liquids to stay hydrated. But no one could deny the beautiful harsh desert landscape. Vulcan had once been a world devastated by civil wars, but over the past few centuries, had become one of the leading proponents for galactic peace.

The Skor monument provided many paths and viewing areas for its visitors. There weren't many visitors, as T'av made her way down one of the paths. She had arrived early for her meeting with her new good friend, Tuvok, and decided to use the extra time to clear her mind. Although she was Vulcan and had trained to control her mind, and emotions, as all Vulcan are from the time of their childhood, the control she had once had was eroded during the time when her mind was under the sway of the aliens who were bent on destroying the beings who resided on Talos IV.

T'av had an appointment to keep and she didn't want to be late. Although Spock was off world, T'av honored his wishes and had accepted the guidance from another former member of Star Fleet, and trusted friend of Spock; Tuvok. T'av had already had two sessions with Tuvok which she had found helpful in her quest to find herself again. Today would be their third meeting, and she was confident he would be pleased, as much as a Vulcan could be, with the progress she had made with his training. But, as she looked ahead along the path, she saw that he too had arrived early as well. The approached each other and offered the Vulcan hand salute.

"I came early," Tuvok said.

"As did I," T'av said, "did you do so because you deduced that I would come early as well?"

"A logical presumption," Tuvok said, "however, I came to Skor monument to meditate. Your being here is an added benefit."

"Benefit would imply an emotional gratification," T'av said.

"Perhaps, however, I find nothing illogical about them at all. Ambassador Spock has done much to help me see that truth as well," Tuvok said.

And then T'av opened her eyes. Was her conversation with Tuvok just an illusion, or a dream? She was now sitting on one of the many benches that lined the path, alone, having no memory of ever sitting down. How had this happened?

From a distance, Sybok saw the young Vulcan woman he had been sitting with only moments before, and smiled. Another Vulcan would find committing such an invasion of privacy, via a mind-meld, offensive; but Sybok wasn't an ordinary Vulcan, and he had a vision for a future Vulcan where such sharing would not only be ordinary, it would be celebrated. Sybok saw someone else approaching T'av; it was the real Tuvok, and then headed out of the meditation square in the opposite direction.

**Tomorrow! Its JAMES T KIRK vs Tyrannosaurus-REX!**


	127. Roar

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

**ROAR!**

As Jim Kirk, Geordi Leforge, Rebecca Sisko, and Spock, whom Kirk and Leforge propped up between them, came over the foothill that looked down on upon the camp, as well as the massive lake nearby, their eyes were greeted by a look of sheer terror. A massive animal, a Tyrannosaurus-Rex to be exact, was stomping through the now smashed make shift camp, about a hundred yards away, as if it were a toy set. At first none of the others who had stayed behind at the camp could be seen, but then, Kirk saw Sisko waving to them beyond where the T'rex was by an outcropping of rocks. But before Kirk and the others could do anything, the Rex looked over at where Kirk and his group were standing, and then the large reptile, standing twenty-feet tall, nearly fifty feet in length, began to slowly walk toward Kirk and the others.

"Stay calm, and remain quiet," Kirk told Rebecca, who was fighting back the urge to scream. "It can't see us. Its eyes are attracted by movement."

The monster dinosaur, with its rows of jagged teeth, the "super star" dinosaur which most kids on Earth loved to learn about, took a few more lumbering steps toward the hill; the ground quaking each time one of its massive legs came down. In the distance Kirk could see a very worried Kasidy Sisko standing next to her husband, both afraid for the safety of their child, Rebecca. Kirk vowed that he would let nothing happen to the young girl, even if it mean offering up his own life. But then, unexpectedly, the dinosaur turned back and headed back to the camp, and Kirk could see why. A human body, dismembered in some parts, was on the ground. The Rex went back to eating the corpse.

"Lawrence Thorn," Geordi said softly. "I didn't really care for the man, but it's a terrible way for anyone to go."

Kirk nodded in agreement; it was indeed a terrible way to go. Kirk often had nightmares about his battle with the Gorn he had defeated on some uncharted world, under the watchful eyes of the Metrons. In some of Kirk's more terror like nightmares, the Gorn kills him, and then devours him.

"Alright," Kirk said, pushing the images of his nightmares out of his mind, "while the T'rex is distracted, let's slowly back down the way we came. Then we'll head for those trees in the distance.

From the outcropping of rocks, Kasidy buried her head in her husband's shoulder as Kirk, with Rebecca beside him, disappeared on the other side of the hill.

"Kas don't worry," Ben Sisko said to his wife, who trembled in fear.

"Our baby is gonna die," Kasidy struggled to say through her tears. "They don't have any weapons; no phaser, nothing."

"They have Jim Kirk," Ben said, with awe in his voice. "That alone evens the odds."

Kasidy seemed to calm down at hearing her husband's words.

"The T'rex is going after them," Elizabeth Pike said, who had come to see if Spock was with them, and he was, "we should try to help them."

"Alright," Ben Sisko said suddenly, "Elizabeth, you stay here and watch over Nog. Kasidy and I will follow the dinosaur and see if we can find some way to help Jim and the others."

"Let's go," Kasidy urged, as she tugged at Sisko's sleeve.

"Just be careful," Elizabeth Pike said. "You both saw how fast that thing was when Lawrence tried to distract it."

Sisko nodded then ran off after his wife.

Sisko caught up with his wife.

"Did you notice" Ben began to say, "Lal wasn't with them?"

A look of disdain came over Kasidy's face.

"I really don't care about Lal right now," Kasidy said, with anger in her words, "it's because of her that we're here, right now, trying to save our daughter!"

There was nothing Ben Sisko could say to that…Kasidy was right.

"Look," Ben said, as he saw the T'rex pausing at the top of the hill, "it isn't chasing them."

That hope was about to end.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the hill, with Spock still out cold, Kirk and Geordi could not move as fast as they might have wanted to. In any event, for several minutes they made their way, as fast as they could, toward the trees. But then suddenly, the ground began to quake. Kirk looked back and saw why; the T'rex was now charging down the hill and was coming for them! It roared loudly, causing Kirk to have goose marks all of his body.

"Great," Kirk said softly, "we don't have a choice. We have to hurry!"

"Captain," Geordi said, "we'll never make it," as both hang on to Spock as they ran.

Again the T'rex roared, and was closing on them!

"Geordi, please…," Kirk replied with a smile, "Call me Jim. And, look over there; I think we may have a chance now," Kirk said, pointing ahead of where they were.

A second dinosaur appeared; a triceratops.

"You have to be kidding me," Geordi said, with irritation in his voice. "Can't we catch a break?"

"Actually, I think we just did," Kirk said.

Then the ground really began to quake as the T'rex increased its speed.

"REBECCA! RUN! For the trees," Kirk yelled at Rebecca.

"Towards the other one; are you nuts?" Rebecca yelled back at Kirk.

"Just do it. It's the only chance we have!" Kirk countered with.

She did as Kirk ordered, the ground quaking with each step the Rex took. Rebecca didn't have to look back to know the monster was chasing them, she could feel the quakes getting more violent with each thrust, meaning it was getting closer. Her breath became labored as well, as fear began to take the form of panic. Then, up ahead, the Triceratops began to charge toward them as well; shaking the ground as well.

So, there they were, humans running in fear from one dinosaur that wanted to eat them no doubt, toward another one that probably wanted to eat them too; Kirk could not be sure. It was a gamble as much as ramming the Constellation down the Doomsday Machine's throat, or, constructing a make-shift canon to blast the Gorn.

"Slow down, just a bit!" Kirk called out to Rebecca. "We're going to fast!"

"No way…!" Rebecca called back.

"No," Kirk said, "If you get there to fast the one in front of us will get to you first," Kirk told her. Then he decided to explain it in a different way that a teenage girl would understand. "And then he'll eat you!"

Rebecca slowed down just a bit, and Kirk smiled. It was going to be close. The thrusts from the T'rex were getting closer and closer. Kirk could also hear voices in the distance cheering for them. It was Ben Sisko and his wife who were following, at a safe distance along the rim of the hill.

And then, in perfect timing, the Triceratops rushed passed Rebecca, missing her by ten feet, and then it rushed by Kirk and Geordi, who still had Spock leaning on their shoulders, and then seconds later, both monsters collided, knocking each other back with two loud thuds. Kirk saw Rebecca turning to watch the battle between two animals that hadn't been seen on Earth for millions upon millions of year.

"Keep running and head for the hills over to your right," Kirk said to her, "your father and mother will meet up with us there!"

Even though he told Rebecca not watch the dinosaurs' battle, Kirk could not help but sneak a look for his self. Geordi couldn't fight the urge either, and understood why Kirk was slowing. They stood and watched as the beasts squared off against each other like to prize fighters.

"I use to have a T'rex hologram on my wall when I was a kid," Geordi said with awe in his words. "I never dreamed I would one day be running for my life from one of them.

"When I was at Star Fleet academy, my friend Gary and I found an old plastic model of T'rex at a local store," Kirk said with a smile. "We took four months putting that thing together; a piece here, a piece there."

"What the hell is this place Captain?" Geordi asked, forgetting the Jim request from Kirk. He spoke under his breath to Kirk. "I know that Admiral Janeway and Dr. Bashir didn't bring them here, so how did they get here?"

"I'm willing to bet," Kirk replied, "they got here the same way we got here."

"But why?" Geordi Leforge asked.

Kirk had no answer, and so the two watched the fight. The T 'rex seemed to be winning, but the triceratops was giving a good fight. Suddenly Spock moaned softly.

"What's happening," Spock suddenly said, as he opened his eyes, "have I missed much?"

Kirk and Geordi looked at each other and chuckled. Kirk also looked over to the hill and saw that Rebecca was being hugged by her parents. With the dinosaurs both locked in battle, Kirk, Geordi, and a now able to walk Spock, made their way toward the hill as well. Kirk explained to Spock what had happened.

Once they met up with the Siskos', they all looked back and watched as the T'rex, who had won the battle, took a massive bite out of the dead triceratops' exposed under belly, streams of blood dripping from the chunk of blood in the T'rex's mouth. Just before Kirk joined the others, who were walking down the other side of the hill, he looked at the T'rex, who seemed to be looking back at him as well. Kirk tipped his head at the beast.

"That thing, the one that lost, it saved my life," Kirk heard Rebecca telling her mom and dad. "Did you see all that blood?"

Spock, who had been walking with Geordi, came over to Kirk.

"What happened back there, when we couldn't find Lal" Kirk asked Spock, "you said something about T'pring dying, and then you went down like a sack of rocks."

"Jim," Spock began to say, "You should have left me the moment you came across the dinosaur. You and Professor Leforge could have been killed."

"But we weren't," Kirk said back to his friend. "And I am willing to bet the other Jim Kirk, the one you knew very well, would have done the same thing. Now, please, what were you saying about T'pring?"

"Her mind cried out to me," Spock replied, "as she faced death."

"That seems rather incredible," Kirk came back with. "How can you be sure?"

"I cannot," Spock said. "However; Vulcans have been known to hear the thoughts of those dying, even across vast amounts of space. I would have believed it more had her last thoughts not warned me about Sybok."

"Sybok," Kirk said, "is that person you both knew?"

"Sybok was my half brother," Spock told Kirk, "another son of Sarek."

"I didn't know you had a brother," Kirk said, "was he younger than you?"

Spock shook his head.

"No," Spock said softly, "he was my older brother. And to make a long story short, he was killed on a planet near the center of the galaxy while trying to prove the existence of mythological world. Suffice to say; he's dead. And I cannot not quite reconcile the possibility that T'pring would know, or care, anything about him."

"What if your brother wasn't really dead?" Kirk countered. "I thought you were dead after she made us fight each other, and I read that the other Jim Kirk was thought to be dead after entering something called the Nexus. So how can you be sure he's dead?"

Spock arched an eyebrow.

Moments later, they arrived at the cluster of rocks where Sisko and the others had found shelter. Kirk was about to ask Ben Sisko more about what had happened, when suddenly a worried look came over Sisko's face.

"Elizabeth, and Nog," Ben Sisko said to Kirk, "they're gone."

The next half hour was spent looking for the two missing people, but they were not found.

"Lal was gone as well," Kirk told Sisko, after they had all ended their search.

"Neither do I," Ben Sisko replied.

"We can't stay here," Kasidy said. "It was bad enough there were tigers walking around this area, but now we have dinosaurs to watch out for. I wish we could just leave this place."

"Perhaps," a voice said from behind the group, "I can help with that."

They all turned to face the person who the voice belonged to.

"You….!" Kirk said…

Continued…..


	128. After Thought

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

"**After Thought…"**

**The Star Fleet Complex located inside of the Naissance Dysonsphere….**

S'vath opened his eyes, it was dark wherever he was, and he had the strangest sensation. For the first time in his life he had lost all perception of time. And as he stared up at the faces of those around him, he didn't, at first, hear what they were saying to him. Was he experiencing shock? What had caused the loss of his perception of time? He also had the strangest feeling that he was recovering from a power mind-meld. He tried to recall what his last memories were, but then, suddenly, his hearing turned on, almost as if someone had pushed a button. He looked over at Admiral Janeway, who was smiling at him.

"Admiral," S'vath said, "what has happened? What is our status?"

"You tell us," Dr. Julian Bashir, who stood next to Janeway, replied instead.

S'vath looked over at Bashir, then back at Janeway.

"The doctor is right," Janeway said, "before you worry about us, you worry about yourself."

"Is Lenora alright?" S'vath asked, in a hurry. "I remember holding her, when I suddenly woke up here."

"She's just fine," Janeway said, though her voice denoted there was more to that answer than she wanted to say, at the present. "What else do you remember?"

"Are you in any pain?" Bashir also asked. "Because of this cursed dampening field, my medical Tricorders aren't working. So, the best diagnosis I can provide will have to come from your words. So, again, Commander S'vath, are you in any pain?"

S'vath saw that he was laying on a med-bed, inside of sickbay, which was lit with make shift candles and torches.

"I've lost all sense of time," S'vath, leaning forward on the bed, told the doctor. "For a Vulcan that is a very alien feeling. It also seems as if I were the subject of a mind-meld, and," suddenly S'vath stopped speaking as his memory flashed with a new sensation. He face tensed up as a spear of pain spiked across his mind upon seeing T'pring's image.

Bashir, seeing S'vath's spasm, helped him to lie back down.

"What was that?" Bashir asked.

"It looked like you had some kind of spasm," Janeway added.

Bashir, holding a cup of water, helped S'vath drink some of it.

Suddenly there was a bright flash outside the window, and then a large clap of thunder followed. It was then that S'vath could hear the rain falling outside.

"The storm, how bad is it?" S'vath asked Janeway.

"Not as bad as we feared," Janeway said. "We are trying to collect as much water as we can for drinking and sanitation, but enough about the rain, tell us more about what is happening with you."

"I have the strangest sensation that my mother, T'pring, was in the midst of dying when, somehow, her mind reached out to mine with a warning about Sybok."

"As I told you earlier," Janeway said to S'vath, "your mother was aboard the Hanoi. If something happened to her, to that ship she was on, maybe she was able to send you some sort of telepathic message. I have known Vulcans who have done amazing things like this before," Janeway said, thinking back on all the things she saw Tuvok accomplish.

"Commander S'vath; just who is Sybok?" Ezri asked, coming over to the med-bed S'vath was on, holding a sleeping Lenora in her arms as she spoke.

"I do not know much about him," S'vath said, "However, he was my father's older brother. Apparently his heretical opinions resulted in his exile from Vulcan, and he died many decades ago."

"If he's dead," Bashir said, "then why would your mother's final act be to warn you about him"?

"I do not know," S'vath replied softly. "Hopefully my father, Spock, can answer that question the next time I see him."

"Commander," Janeway said in serious tone "there is something else you should know," and then she nodded at Bashir.

"What is it?" S'vath asked Bashir.

"Lenora was also affected," Bashir said. "When you lost c_onsciousness, so did she. As best as I can tell; she is fine now."_

A look of worry came over S'vath's face, which was a rare thing for others to see a Vulcan exhibit, as he reached out for his child.

Ezri gently handed S'vath his daughter; Lenora.

"She was up and playing with the other children about an hour later," Ezri said with a smile. "I don't think you have anything to worry about."

The others smiled as the little child opened her eyes, and smiled up at her father. All was well…for now.

**The Emprenda**

Amanda opened her eyes, and found herself looking up at the face of the Empenda's main nurse, in fact, the only nurse aboard the old Klingon rust bucket of a ship.

"Stacey," Amanda said, "where am I? How did I get here?"

Ensign Stacey Simmons, a young brunette in her mid twenties, was fresh out of the academy, and had very little field experience. But Amanda had accepted her application to join the Naissance medical staff not due to her exam levels or grades, which were average at best, but due to her strong aptitude scores.

"You collapsed on the bridge a few hours ago," Simmons said, as she studied the med-bed's scans. "They brought you here, and yes," Stacey said, knowing what Amanda was about to ask, "the baby is just fine. Now, while I am no expert on Vulcan physiology, I think your collapse was caused by a mind-meld."

Ensign Stacey Simmons handed Amanda medical Tricorder which displayed the same readings on the med-bed's scanners.

"Look at the higher B-14 levels," Simmons said; "here, and over here," she pointed at the screen of the Tricorder.

"Wow," Amanda said, "it must be from the baby. These levels could only come from a mind-meld.

She was about to say more when the door to sickbay opened and Scotty came in. He smiled at seeing Amanda awake and smiling back at him.

"I came down to see you lass," Scotty said. "Since ya are Mr. Spock's daughter-in-law, I thought I'd make sure ye be cared for with a little extra effort."

"Thank you Scotty," Amanda said. "But please, don't mind me; I'm sure Captain Canary needs you more than I do. Were we able to get the doors of the sphere open?"

Scotty shook his head.

"Not a budge," Scotty said, with disappointment in his voice.

"What are we doing now? Heading back to the complex? Maybe S'vath has found a way to get back up here," Amanda said, with hope in her voice.

"Actually," Scotty replied, "we're heading back to where we saw those people emerging from the singularity. The Captain thinks they may know what is happening."

"How is he going to contact them, since we can't beam down?" Amanda asked.

"He said something about using cups with strings attached to them," Scotty said, with a grin.

::::COMMANDER SCOTT TO THE BRIDGE:::

Scotty cringed at hearing the piercing female Cardassian voice of Lt. Mecet.

"Yikes," Scotty said a chuckle, "I better get back up there before she says anoth'a word."

Amanda reached out and grabbed his hand before Scotty turned to leave.

"Thank you for coming," Amanda said with a smile. "I know Spock is very important to you, he's important to all of us. I will let him know that, next to Nurse Simmons, you were the first person I saw."

Scotty kissed her hand, and then headed out of sickbay.

Moments later, Scotty arrived at the bridge. As he came out of the Turbo-lift, he noticed the bridge crew had their eyes transfixed on the main screen; and why? What appeared to be some sort of monster was seen walking near a giant lake. There were other animals in the distance, but the dinosaur was the only one that could be seen clearly. Scotty recognized the beast as a T-rex; what human wouldn't?

"Why are the lot of ya' watching a movie at a time like this?" Scotty demanded to know.

"It isn't a movie," Captain Canary said from his command chair, "Isn't that thing amazing?"

Scotty looked down at Lt. Mecet. Scotty had never found Cardassian women appealing looking, and Mecet was no exception, with her reptilian-like looking features. She was staring up at him from her communication post, with her cold eyes.

"Well, don't ya be looking at me lass," Scotty said with a forced smile, "I did'na bring you any popcorn."

Continued….

(The cover of this current issue can be seen at my profile..just click on my name and then the link to the PHOTOSHOP picture...)


	129. So, Why them?

**Earth; Star Fleet Academy**

One of the offices inside of the administration building at Star Fleet Academy had been taken over by Admiral Jean-Luc Picard, who was using it to house the investigation into the disappearance of James T Kirk, Ambassador Spock, Benjamin Sisko, Christine Pike, Lal, Rebecca Sisko, Kasidy Sisko, Lawrence Thorn, Geordi Leforge, as well as Commander Nog. Picard was equally interested in the reappearance of Commander Nog, who was thought to have been killed months earlier when the ship he was on, the Enterprise, exploded inside of the planet killer.

Picard sat at the head of the table, as the morning briefing began. He was joined by Captain William T Riker, Captain Tom Paris, Master Chief Miles Obrien, Professor Bartholomew Jennings. Also joining the investigation team was Security Commander Mike Stone, whose jurisdiction included Star Fleet command due to its location in California. Picard was in a quiet discussion with Stone.

"How is your son?" Miles asked Riker, having not seen his friend in sometime.

"I just got done speaking with Deanna not more than five minutes ago; she tells me that Little Tom has been quite the tornado the past week or so." Riker replied.

"I thought Commander Troi was serving with you on the Titan," Paris said.

"She was, but now that I've been assigned to this investigation, and Commander Vale has been given temporary command of the Titan, Deanna and I are staying up at my cottage in Alaska."

Obrien was about to say something, but Picard cleared his throat, the universal signal that the meeting was about to start.

"First off; I want to thank Commander Stone for joining our team. Now, Commander, will you please tell the others why you are here, and what you know about Mr. Lawrence Thorn?"

Stone nodded at Picard and then looked at the others.

"I have been investigating the suicide of Mr. Thorn's brother, Andrew." Stone told the others.

"Suicide," Riker said, in a surprised tone, "I don't think there's been a case of suicide on Earth in years."

"Over a decade in fact," Stone said. "So, when Andrew Thorn threw himself off of a skyscraper not far from here, in downtown San Francisco, my office began an investigation."

"Now, before we continue, I must stress," Picard interjected, "that Lawrence Thorn, as of now, is presumed innocent until he is proven guilty, because as Master Chief Obrien will attest to; this is not Cardassia. What Commander Stone is about to report is still speculative information; however, I believe much weight must be given to it."

"Admiral; if Andrew Thorn's death it was a suicide," Paris chimed in with, "then why is anyone under investigation at all?"

"Because," Commander Stone replied, "I don't think it was a suicide. In fact, I will go further by saying that I believe Lawrence Thorn pushed his brother Andrew off that building, on purpose, and killed him."

Silence over came the room as each man thought about what that meant.

"Murder," Professor Bartholomew Jennings finally said, "you're saying it was an act of murder."

"Yes I am," Stone said.

"While this is all very interesting, and I am sorry for the loss of life," Professor Jennings came back with, "But what does this have to do with the singularity and the disappearance of those people at the dorm?"

"Professor," Picard replied, "while we are indeed here trying to ascertain what happened to them, first, I want to know why everyone was there to begin with. Why was Ambassador Spock and Miss Pike there? As far as we can tell, it had no connection with Jim Kirk being on Earth. Now, we know why Kirk was here; he was traveling with the Siskos', and according to what we were told by Star Fleet Academy officials; they were here making sure Rebecca Sisko was in no further danger, having been there the first time, with Lal, when the other singularity appeared. And, apparently, that worry was warranted."

"And what about Nog," Miles Obrien added, "we thought he died months ago; but it appears he didn't die after all."

"Alright," Jennings said, "I admit there are some inconsistencies. But shouldn't we be trying to find them before we start answering these questions? Maybe they can answer them."

"Normally I would agree with you," Riker said to Professor Jennings, "but couldn't these inconsistencies all be related to the singularity. In fact, as I understand it, the technology to even create one of these singularities is still only experimental."

"And it should be noted," Picard added, "that the research facilities that are leading that research are part of Thorn's science division. And, again I have to ask, why was he there? Of all the people in the universe, why was he there where such a singularity appeared?"

"Sir," Obrien said, looking down at a data-pad he was using to take notes on, "If I may, I think we can make some general assumptions based on what is, at best, circumstantial evidence."

"And what would they be?" Paris asked.

"First," Obrien said, "I am starting to believe that Nog was indeed on the Enterprise when it entered the planet killer, but that he got off of the Enterprise, moments before it exploded, because a singularity appeared on the Enterprise that facilitated his escape. Now, according to the flight records of Ambassador Spock's ship, he and Miss Pike, visited the exact coordinates where the Enterprise exploded."

"So," Riker interjected, "you're saying that Spock already suspected something was going on, and went to investigate that area of space. Why? What was he looking for and why did he suspect Nog was still alive?"

"That I don't know," Obrien said. "But when I spoke with Geordi, before he vanished with the others, he told me that Spock had asked him whether or not TX-z neutrinos were found when the first singularity appeared in the dorm a couple months back."

"What is the significance of TX-z neutrinos?" Stone asked.

"The Thorn singularity," Professor Jennings answered, "creates residual neutrinos of that variety due to the constant stabilizing effect applied across the event horizon. The quantum rhythms of the TX-z are specific only to singularities created in this matter due to the unique properties of the power source being used to create the singularity."

"I thought it was just experimental," Paris countered, "you make is sound like it already is a given fact that it can be done at a controlled level."

"Well, that is why we are here; isn't it?" Jennings shot back.

Before Paris could respond, the viewing screen on the wall behind Admiral Picard chimed. Picard turned around to face the screen just as the image of Admiral Lewis Newman came on the screen. Newman was human, and had known Picard for years.

"Jean-Luc," Admiral Newman said, "we just received most worrisome news," Newman went on to say.

"What is it?" Picard asked.

"Project Naissance," Newman said, "Kate's pet project?"

"Yes Lewis, I am quite familiar with the project; in fact I was just there not long ago at the Naissance sphere. Has something happened?"

Newman nodded his head.

"I don't know how else to say this," Newman said, "but the Naissance sphere…is gone."

A look of disbelief came over Jean-Luc Picard's face.

_continued..next week_


	130. Myran

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

**"Myran"**

**Earth; ****The Golden Gate Bridge; nighttime **

The Golden Gate Bridge had been a rendezvous spot for lovers and would be loves for hundreds of years. It was nearly 1130pm, and there were several visitors to the bridge. Most of them, of course, were couples holding hands, and enjoying one of the few nights when fog didn't obscure the famous bridge.

Jim Kirk's wife, Myran, stood at the midway point if the bridge, and as she looked out at the calm ocean below, she felt as far from love as she could. Her life with Robert Crane had turned out to be facade. Robert Crane, the man who ran the antique store on Timus Prime whom she had fallen in love with, had never really existed.

Robert's real name, as Myran now knew, was James T Kirk, and he wasn't just a simple man who ran an antique store. Jim Kirk was a legend, a living legend. His exploits on behalf of the Federation had made him a hero for so many. And with the knowledge of Kirk's life now known to all, the man whom she fell in love with, Robert Crane, no longer existed; the hero had been reborn.

And, now, once again; Jim Kirk was either off being a hero, or in this case, he was missing, along with many of his friends, who were either Star Fleet officers themselves, or wives and daughters of them. Myran had come to the conclusion that Jim Kirk would always live such a life; the spotlight would always try to find him. Myran understood this reality, but had chosen to stay with Kirk to raise their son, and now, as well, their unborn daughter. But was that choice a mistake? Myran had her own reasons to avoid the spotlight, and felt as if she was ever so close to being caught up in the glare; and she was right.

Myran inhaled a deep breath of the cool air, and let it out. It would soon be time to head back to the home of Mavis Sisko, the aunt of Benjamin Sisko. Ever since Jim Kirk and Ben Sisko, and the others, had vanished from the dorm room at Star Fleet Academy, Myran had been staying with Mavis. As it turned out, Jake and his wife were visiting as well and they all promised to care for her as she was in the late stages of her pregnancy. She was happy to be surrounded by so many people who cared for her, and Jim.

"Deena," said a voice from behind Myran.

Myran started walking away from the voice she had just heard, wanting to believe that the name she had just heard, Deena, had been a trick played on her ears by the slight breeze.

"Deena," repeated a man's voice, "don't go. It's me," the voice said.

The voice was not that of James T Kirk. The voice belonged to a man that Jim Kirk didn't know, or know about, and Myran had tried so hard to bury in her past. But it was his voice; the voice of her first husband, the man who she had always considered her soul male; Talla. He was a man, who was as Bajoran as Myran was, and who she also thought had died many years before. She turned to face the voice of a ghost. But instead of finding a spirit, she found Talla staring back at her.

"Talla?" Myran asked, in a whisper.

Talla, who stood taller than Myran, came over to her. And as he got closer, both of them could no longer contain the happiness at seeing each other, and they ran into each other's arms; their lips finding each other, sharing a kiss those only true lovers could share.

"I never thought I would find you, Deena," Talla said, looking down into her eyes. "And yet here you are."

"How can this be real," Myran said softly. "When you and the others never showed up, I assumed that the explosion had gotten them and you too. It's almost been ten years! Where have you been?"

"We didn't all make it out of there in time," Talla said, sadly, "only I did."

"No," Myran said, "my sister is dead? What about her husband, Omath?"

Talla just stared back at Myran with a blank look on his face.

"But what does it matter Deena?" Talla asked, "We're together now. With your share, and my share, we should be able to disappear and start a new life somewhere; just the two of us."

They kissed each other again, passionately. Myran pushed herself away from Talla.

"Deena; what's wrong?" Talla asked.

"I already did that, I already started over. My name is Myran again." She told him.

"Myran is the name they gave you at the orphanage," Talla reminded her. "Your foster family may have no idea who or what you really are, but I do. You will never be one of them Talla; you're too much like me to ever be normal."

"Talla, I have husband now," Myran said softly, with defiance in her words. "I bare his child, and we already have another. He is a good man and I love him."

"And yet you still kiss me with passion," Talla said. "That man, Kirk, will never mean as much to you as I do."

"You know about my marriage?" Myran asked, with annoyance in her voice.

"It took a while," Talla said, "but eventually I picked up on your trail and followed it to Timus Prime. Once there, I was able to piece the rest of it together and followed you here."

"Then you know I can't go with you Talla," Myran said. "That woman you knew, Deena, has been buried in my past and now that I have a husband, and children with him," she looked down at her very pregnant midsection, "I can't just leave this new life. This is the kind of life you and I could never have. I no longer want to be on the run, looking behind my back wondering if my past is catching up to me."

Talla nodded his head.

"Alright, Myran, or whatever you call yourself now," Talla finally said, "I will leave you to this normal life you want to live; but I want your share."

"I don't have it anymore," Myran said. "I spent it all getting a new identity, setting up my life on Timus."

Talla thought for a moment.

"Well then, I am quite sure that James T Kirk, hero of the Federation, has the resources to pay me your share. If you don't, Deena," Talla said with sarcasm in his voice, "I will inform the authorities where they can find you, and when they do; this life of yours is going to come shattering down all around you. You will not only lose Kirk," he put his hand on her pregnant stomach, "but you will lose your children too."

And then, without warning, Talla grabbed Myran and they kissed again; with the same passion as before. And then Talla let her go, turned, and walked away. But as he walked away, he spoke to her again.

"You will be hearing from me very soon," Talla said.

Myran just watched him walk away, unaware that not too far from where the scene had played out, two other people were watching. They were unable to hear the dialog between Myran and Talla, but they saw the passionate kisses.

"I can't believe it." Korena said to her husband, as they watched Myran begin to walk home.

"We didn't hear what they were saying," Jake Sisko said. "So, don't draw any conclusions from it."

"Jake," Korena came back with, "you saw how they were kissing. It is clear they have a past, and I think we should tell Jim what we saw; if they ever find him and your mom and dad."

Jake took Korena's hand into his, and they began the long walk back to Mavis' house too.

* * *

**NAISSANCE DYSONSPHERE…**

Jim Kirk and the others arrived at the cluster of rocks where Sisko and the others had found shelter during the T-rex's attack. Kirk was about to ask Ben Sisko more about what had happened, when suddenly a worried look came over Sisko's face.

"Elizabeth, and Nog," Ben Sisko said to Kirk, "they're gone."

The next half hour was spent looking for the two missing people, but they were not found.

"Lal was gone as well," Kirk told Sisko, after they had all ended their search.

"There has to be more than random chance at play here," Spock said to Kirk and Sisko.

"We can't stay here," Kasidy said. "It was bad enough there were tigers walking around this lake, but now we have dinosaurs to watch out for. I wish we could just leave this place."

"Perhaps, my good friend Captain Kirk," a voice said from behind the group, "I can help with that."

They all turned to face the person who the voice belonged to.

"You….!" Kirk said…"Trelane!"

Continued….


	131. Duets

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

**Duets**

**Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere….**

Even though Jim Kirk, as well as the rest of the group, had survived the rampaging attack of the Tyrannosaurus-Rex; there was no real guarantee they would do so the next time they encountered the prehistoric beast.

"We can't stay here," Kasidy said. "It was bad enough there were tigers walking around this lake, but now we have dinosaurs to watch out for. I wish we could just leave this place."

"Perhaps, my good friend Captain Kirk," a voice said from behind the group, "I can help with that."

They all turned to face the person who the voice belonged to.

"You….!" Kirk said…"Trelane!"

Trelane, who was wearing a gown inspired by Liberace no less, and sat behind an antique harpsichord, smiled and waved at Kirk and the others. The moment Trelane saw Spock was there as well, he frowned and stopped playing.

"Gee Kirk," Trelane, "here I was, happily playing a waltz for you and the others, and then I see that one," Trelane said, pointing at Spock, "and the thrill is gone."

"Do you know this man?" Ben Sisko asked Kirk. But before Kirk could respond, Rebecca did instead.

"You know who he is, father," Rebecca said to Ben, "don't you remember the books you read to me based on Jim's old adventures. This is," Rebecca searched her memory, "Trelane," she added with a smile.

The smile returned to Trelane's face, and he stood from the piano and came over to the group, toward Rebecca, but Ben Sisko stepped between the impish man and his daughter.

"I would move if I were you," Trelane said with anger in his voice.

Kirk came over to defuse the situation, and he was joined by Spock.

"Alright Trelane," Kirk said, in a wry tone, "what I want is some answers and I want them now."

Trelane looked at Kirk, with a look of irritation on his face.

"I would watch that tone of voice; you do remember where it got you last time we met, good fellow," Trelane said.

Rebecca stepped past her father, and held out her hand to Trelane. Trelane to her young hand and kissed it like a gentleman.

"At least one of you understand the custom of etiquette," Trelane said as he smiled back at Rebecca. "My fair lady, did I just hear you say that someone wrote a story about my first encounter with the good captain?"

"Yes," Rebecca said, "it was one of my favorites, though; I thought it was going to turn out that Apollo was your brother."

"Apollo," Trelane said, "who is that?"

"Not me." Geordi said to Rebecca, "My mother read me those books too, when I was a kid. After we encountered Q, I began to wonder if Trelane was one of them; so are you?"

Trelane was about to respond when…

"Okay," Kirk said, cutting in on the conversation. He could see that Trelane was impressed about being famous and wanted to talk more with Rebecca and Geordi, but Kirk knew he could use that adulation to his advantage. "No more talks about the past until you tell us what is happening now," Kirk said directly to Trelane.

"Oh please, can't we talk some more?" Trelane pleaded with Kirk. "You can't possibly know how it makes me feel to know that I am remembered so fondly."

"As I said," Kirk said, in a fatherly tone, "after you tell us more about how you got here, how we got here, and what else is going on, then we will talk about the past; deal?"

A look of disappointment came over Trelane's face. It was the same look on a child's face when a parent had taken away candy from the child.

"Oh alright Captain," Trelane said, "I'll tell you what is happening, but I will tell you, Kirk…" And then Trelane snapped his fingers, and he and Kirk vanished. They instantly appeared inside of the gaudy dining room that Trelane had taken Kirk the first time they had met over a hundred years earlier… "alone."

**Earth…**

A swirling mass of energy sprang to life, causing gusts of wind to blow. Tendrils of energy spun in a clockwise rotation, and then, just as soon as it appeared, it was gone. The entire event had lasted for just mere seconds, and had been observed from above the science lab, safely, by Admiral Jean-Luc Picard, Captain Thomas Riker, Captain Tom Paris, Master-chief Miles Obrien, Earth Security Commander Mike Stone and the head scientist at Thorn Industries; the very attractive Dr. Tamera Ramirez. The lab was on the deepest level, nearly fifteen stories beneath the ground, at the large complex on the outskirts of San Francisco.

"And that," Dr. Ramirez, "is the extent of our ability."

"Was it long enough to create a stable event horizon?" Obrien asked.

"No," Ramirez replied. "At our current power levels, we can only create the quantum field dynamics needed to create the tunneling aperture; we just can't power it through to the other side. To do that will take much more power than we can generate."

"So what you're saying," Riker said, "is that there is no way, presently, to create a stable singularity."

"That is exactly what I am saying," Ramirez replied. "I would guess that we're a hundred years or so from that kind of technology."

"And yet," Picard finally said, "someone else has found the power needed to create a stable singularity; and, theoretically, they have done it no less than three times." Picard shifted his gaze over to Commander Stone. "Let us just assume for now that Lawrence Thorn killed his younger brother; what would the motive have been?"

"And why would he have been interested in Rebecca Sisko or Lal?" Riker added.

Commander Stone looked at his notes, then back at Picard.

"I can't find a direct connection as to why he killed his brother," Stone replied, "however, on the day his brother died, and nearly exactly as the same time, Rebecca Sisko and Lal were on a tour of San Francisco. I know this because I took the liberty to check their itineraries."

"That would make sense," Obrien said to Picard. "All first year cadets must inform the administration office when they leave the campus. After the second year, that requirement is no longer applied to them, as we all know." Obrien added, knowing that he, Picard, Riker and Paris were graduates of the Academy, and that the rule had always been applied.

"Oh I remember that rule," Riker said with a devious smile. "I was put on report five times for not telling them where I was going."

"Six times for me," Paris added with devious smile as well.

"The things we do for love," Riker added with a chuckle.

"But they did report," Commander Stone said, wanting to get back on subject. "Both Rebecca and Lal took a tour of the city, and as I said before, Andrew Stone fell to his death, by either falling, or being pushed, at the exact same time."

There was silence for a moment.

"Surely, if they had seen anything happen, like a man falling off of a building, they would have reported it to the officials," Obrien said to Stone.

"I agree," Commander Stone said. "But, for whatever reason, Lawrence Thorn came to that dorm room, and then, vanished with the others when the singularity appeared."

"Vanished into a singularity that even his own lab can't create," Paris added.

"How much power are we talking about;" Riker asked Dr. Ramirez, "to create a stable singularity?"

Ramirez shook her head, as she thought about the question.

"Let me put it this way," Ramirez replied, "when I powered up the event for you to see a moment ago, it took a special power request to Earth central from Admiral Picard. Then, Central had to shunt power from all over the world, nearly 45% of all the energy generated at one time on Earth, to power up the grid. I would imagine, to power up a singularity, for a duration long enough to create a stable event horizon, it would take nearly five to ten thousand times more power. So, as you can see, the hundred years I estimate we can produce that kind of power would be pushing our limits I believe."

"Incredible," Obrien said. "You're talking about a Godly amount of power."

And then it hit Picard, the moment Obrien had said the word Godly.

"Q," Picard said finally. "He's the only one, or another one like him, that could conjure up that amount of power on a moment's notice."

"Admiral," Riker said, with a caution in his voice, "Kirk and I were under the impression that Q sacrificed his life during that incident with Vaal and the wormhole aliens inside the Bajoran wormhole. At least that's how Amana-Q put it." (READERS WILL RECALL THOSE EVENTS FROM EARLIER ISSUES).

"Will, you heard Dr. Ramirez," Picard said to Riker, "the power needed is far beyond anything we could create. If it wasn't Q, then maybe it was another Q."

"It sounds like something they could do," Paris said, "but why? And what does any of this have to do with Rebecca and Lal?"

There was no answer to that question yet.

**Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere…**

The Emprenda was still in high orbit above the area of the 14th continent where a massive lake was located. They could still barely make out the shape of a T-rex walking near the lake, but they could also see a gathering of what appeared to be a small group of people. Captain Canary was down in the shuttle-bay putting on one of the two remaining parachutes.

"Ya can't do this," Scotty pleaded with Canary. "Ya captain of this vessel," Scotty added.

"I know that," Captain Canary said, "but there's no way to tell who those people are down there. We can't just sit around up here and do nothing anymore. And," Canary added, putting his right hand on Scotty's shoulder, "I can't think of anyone more qualified to command this ship than you."

"Would ya just stop it already? Ya just buttering me so I'll stop badgering ya," Scotty came back with, his words laced with his Scottish accent.

"Is it working?" Canary asked as he slid the helmet down on his face.

Scotty reach out a helped Canary get the helmet strapped on correctly, and then he gave the younger man a brief embrace.

"What did you do that for?" Canary asked, as Scotty stepped back.

"Ya just take care of ya self, and stay away from that beastie down there."

And with that, Scotty stepped back and watched as the bay doors opened enough for Canary to fit through. Canary waved back at Scotty, who was safe inside of the secure observation room, and then he was gone.

Continued….


	132. Strategy and Lust

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**Strategy and Lust**

**Earth; Star Fleet Academy**

Admiral Jean-Luc Picard entered the conference room at the academy that he had been using as a base of operations during the investigation of the disappearance of Jim Kirk and the others. Seated at the table were Captain Riker, Commander Stone and Master Chief Obrien, as well as three people who had loved ones or friends missing. Picard sat down, prepared to give an update on the investigation.

"Admiral," Jake Sisko said, from where he sat at the table, "Can you tell us if we're any closer to knowing what happened to them and where they might be?"

"Will we ever see them again?" Myran added as she sat next to Jake.

"Myran," Picard said with a genuine smile, "your husband has a knack of finding his way out of the most incredible circumstances. If I know Jim Kirk, he is fast at work trying to get his self, and the others, back home." Then he shifted his gaze to Jake. "And your father as well has proven this uncanny ability as well. When you add Ambassador Spock and Geordi Leforge to the mix; I am quite confident we will see our friends again."

"What about this Lawrence Thorn person?" Jake asked. "Why was he even there?"

"I think I should answer that," Security Commander Stone replied. Picard nodded, and Stone went on. "Lawrence Thorn is a person of interest in concerns of his brother's death."

Mavis Sisko, Ben Sisko's older sister, spoke up from that point.

"I remember reading about him," Mavis said, "I read that he had fallen off of a skyscraper; God bless soul," Mavis said with sorrow in her voice, "that is no way for person to go."

"We are investigating the possibility that there is more to the story than either his falling off, or, apparent suicide," Stone added.

"Are you saying he killed himself?" Mavis asked with a tone of disbelief.

"As Commander Stone said," Picard interjected, "that is only a theory and has not yet been proven. Now, on another matter, I wanted to tell you personally," Picard said to Mavis, Jake and Myran, "I will soon be leaving Earth on another urgent matter. But I want you to know that Captain Riker," Picard said, as he looked over at Riker who sat next to him, "is going to continue the investigation and we will not stop until your family members are returned."

"Where are you going?" Jake asked.

"It is security matter, but I can assure you," Picard said, "I will return as soon as I can. Now," Picard said as he stood up, "I must take my leave from you."

"We'll reconvene this meeting in five minutes," Riker told the others.

As Picard and Riker strolled out of the room, Master Chief Obrien came over and sat with Mavis, Jake and Myran.

"Does the Admiral know more than what he is saying?" Jake asked Obrien.

"No, that about sums up where we are," Obrien replied.

"Well," Mavis said to Obrien, "I know you are all trying your hardest to find my brother Ben and the others. Just know that God will see us through this time. Let us pray…" she told them as she bowed her head in silence.

It was apparent that Mavis Sisko was a deep believer in God. And, not wanting to offend her, the others, including Myran, who was Bajoran, bowed their heads as the older woman recanted an old biblical verse.

"Amen," she finally said for them all.

Outside the room, Picard and Riker made their way to Academy's Transporter room.

"Is there any new information about the disappearance of the Naissance sphere?" Riker asked.

"No," Picard replied. "The Hanoi may have been destroyed by the sphere's defense measures before it disappeared. How those systems became activated is the main question."

"Didn't they explore that sphere before they let Admiral Janeway's project go through?" Riker asked.

"Oh yes," Picard said, as they entered the Transporter room. "They explored that sphere for nearly five years and found no sign of animal life, and that the main defensive systems were offline."

With one nod from Riker, the Transporter tech who was on duty left the room, leaving Picard and Riker alone.

"Well," Riker said, "looks like they were wrong. What about the Hanoi?"

"Destroyed; all hands were lost, including I might add," Picard told Riker, "Ambassador Spock's former fiancé and mother of his son Commander S'vath; T'pring."

"What was she doing on the Hanoi?" Riker asked. "From what I know of their family dynamic, at least according to what Commander S'vath told me, he and his mother were not particularly close and neither were she and Spock."

"Who can say," Picard replied. "I must be going, but please send me updates when you can; and good luck."

Riker nodded and then floated his hands above the Transporter's controls, and in seconds, Picard was gone. Riker turned to leave the room, when the door swooshed opened. Standing in the doorway was a very irritated looking Ferengi; Quark!

**Planet Vulcan…**

T'av opened her eyes as Tuvok removed his left hand ended the mind-meld they had shared. They were both casually dressed and sat in Tuvok's abode. Behind them, in the small kitchen area, Tuvok's wife T'pel had made some tea and brought it over to where they sat.

"T'av; your mind seems to be more fluid today," Tuvok told the much younger T'av. "It seems you have been doing many of the relaxation techniques I have taught you recently."

"Yes I have, Teacher," T'av said, in a respectful tone, knowing her place in Tuvok's home. "You have helped me so much and I am grateful to Spock for introducing me to you."

"Spock is a legend to our people," Tuvok said back to T'av, "I am grateful for knowing him as well."

"T'av," T'pel spoke softly, as she handed them their tea, and sat down across from them, "I have noticed that your mastery of Vulcan philosophy, in terms of how we train our minds, is not as advanced as one would assume for someone of your age. I do now mean that observation to be taken as a criticism, for it is not."

T'av sipped on her tea, and as she did, she became subtly sexually aroused as both Tuvok and T'pel looked at her. Knowing that they were looking at her was arousing her beyond anything she had ever felt before. As T'av went on and explained how her parents were liberal in their views of Vulcan logic, T'av fought back her desires. As she spoke to them, her mind was cluttered with very sensual images. She was able to converse with them, while also imagining being sexually intimate with both of them. The waves of desire that swept through her body were almost too raw to contain; but she did.

An hour later, with her meeting with Tuvok over, T'av made her way back to her small abode, which was actually one of Spock's properties. Once inside her room, she got on the bed and removed her clothes and dove back into her sensual daydreams of Tuvok and T'pel. As she enjoyed herself in her privacy, she was unaware that it was not as private as she believed. Sybok stood in the doorway of her room and watched T'av's hands and fingers as they caressed her body intimately.

Sybok was content more than ever that his plan was working. The hardest part would be going undetected by Tuvok, who was a very skilled Vulcan. Sybok concluded as he watched T'av's body spasm in reverie, that Tuvok would have to be taken care of; permanently!

Continued…


	133. No Better God

**James T Kirk**

**N A I S S A N C E**

**No Better God**

_"Okay," Kirk said, cutting in on the conversation. He could see that Trelane was impressed about being famous and that he wanted to talk more with Rebecca and Geordi, but Kirk knew he could use the adulation to his advantage. "No more talks about the past until you tell us what is happening now," Kirk said directly to Trelane._

_"Oh please, can't we talk some more?" Trelane pleaded with Kirk. "You can't possibly know how it makes me feel to know that I am remembered so fondly."_

_"As I said," Kirk said, in a fatherly tone, "after you tell us more about how you got here, how we got here, and what else is going on, then we will talk about the past; deal?"_

_A look of disappointment came over Trelane's face. It was the same look on a child's face when a parent had taken away candy from the child._

_"Oh alright Captain," Trelane said, "I'll tell you what is happening, but I will tell you, Kirk…" And then Trelane snapped his fingers, and he and Kirk vanished. They instantly appeared inside of the gaudy dining room that Trelane had taken Kirk the first time they had met over a hundred years earlier… "alone."_

"As you can see Captain," Trelane said with a warm smile, "I haven't changed my room all that much. And, after studying your history I decided to retain my wardrobe because quite frankly; the fashion sense of your kind has become bereft of any class."

"Trelane," Kirk said, calmly, "enough with the history lesson. What is going on? Why did you bring us here?"

"I didn't bring you here," Trelane said innocently, "the little elf looking person with the ears did."

"Nog," Kirk said, "his name is Nog. And as for how he got us here, Spock has told me that such technologies, stable singularities, are at least a century or two away from a practical sense."

"Oh alright," Trelane said, as he went over to his harpsichord and sat down and began playing. "I will tell you everything if you promise me I can talk to the two young ladies again."

Kirk came over, grabbed a nearby stool, and sat next to Trelane, "I promise."

"After our last encounter, my parents were not too happy with what I had done; they are always so stern," Trelane said with irritation in his voice. "I was sent to school to learn how to control my temper."

"They have a school for beings like you?" Kirk asked. "Are you part of the Continuum, or whatever that group is called? Or what about the Organians are you related to them?"

Trelane began playing a strange tune that Kirk did not recognize, but any fan of Warner Brother's cartoons would have.

"The Qs are fools," Trelane said. "I remember reading once that it was believed that I was a child of one of them," he giggled, "such narrow mindedness and unoriginal writings that my parents actually contemplated destroying your Earth as retribution."

"Alright, never mind about that," Kirk said, "what about the here and now?"

"I was getting to that," Trelane said, "after I attended school for nearly one of your centuries, my parents thought my education had become well rounded. They then decided that my education would only be complete if I were to become a God; masters over the fates of lower beings," then he looked directly at Kirk, "lower beings like you."

"I'll try not to be offended," Kirk said in a wry tone.

"They told me to select a world, any world and bring samples of that world to the place you call Naissance," Trelane said.

"Your kind built that Dysonsphere?" Kirk asked.

"Are you serious?" Trelane asked back. "But it had been abandoned and provided a controlled environment, the kind of environment a God needed. So, to make a long story short, I chose your world and decided to bring, of all people, you here. Imagine my surprise when, I went to find you, you were gone. I tried to find out where you had gone, but I didn't know you were in a place somewhere outside of time."

"The other Kirk; you're talking about the other Kirk and his time in the Nexus," Kirk said. "But that was a while ago," Kirk said, "from what I know, he came out of the Nexus and died not long after that."

"Yes he did, and it all happened too soon for me to interfere with, so, he died," Trelane said, "torn apart like a rag doll, hardly the way I thought he, or you, would have met his end."

"So what did you do?" Kirk asked.

Trelane stood up from the harpsichord and walked over to what appeared to be a small bar area, and retrieved a bottle of wine.

"Please do have a glass," Trelane said as he poured two of them. "It's Saxum, vintage 1972; from one of your world's finest vineyards."

Kirk took the glass from Trelane, sipping on it as he did, hoping that by inducing him to drink more it would lower Trelane's concentration enough for Kirk to get the upper hand.

"Well, if you wanted me so badly," Kirk said, as he watched Trelane drink from his own glass, "why didn't you pluck me from out of time? I hear that is a common thing for beings like you to do."

"It's funny you should say that," Trelane said, with a coy look in his eyes.

A serious look came over Kirk's face, as the former Starship captain began to grasp what Trelane had just said.

"You're why I am here in this century?" Kirk asked softly. "You brought us here?"

"Yes," Trelane replied, "and I am genuinely sorry for what happened to your fellow travelers through time; Uhura and that new fellow, Chekov. The Qs have no problem snatching people from other times, or even other universes, and are quite adept at it. We, including my parents and me, are not as skilled at it."

Trelane could see that disappointment in Kirk's eyes.

"They were more than members of my crew;" Kirk finally said, "they were my friends."

"And as I just said; I am very sorry. But think of it another way," Trelane said, smiling again, "if I hadn't given that transporter beam an extra boost, then you would never have arrived here in this time, and you would have never met that lovely lady of yours and had a child with her, with another one on the way. So, yes, what I did caused the lives of two of your friends to be lost, but I'm also responsible for the lives of your two young children; a fair trade if I do say so myself."

Kirk felt anger inside, and it was building up. But, he had to keep his calm, for the sake of Spock, Sisko and the others.

"So you brought me forward to this time," Kirk said, "that was over a year ago."

"Yes," Trelane said. "The problem is that my parents still don't trust me that much," Trelane said, as he sipped his wine again. "Once you were here, I had to let you pitter-patter about with your new life so as not to arouse their suspicions. And then that whole fiasco with the Meh'tahq, your son from an alternate timeline occurred, which drew in the Q and the Celestial Prophets. Well, as it turned out, my parents zeroed in on the cause; you. By bringing you forward into time, I added a random element to the flow of space-time. That entire incident would not have happened if you hadn't been in this time."

"Another person, Gary-7, told me that as well; that my being here had disrupted time so much that not even he, or the Q, could see the future as clearly as before," Kirk said, as he recalled the conversation he had with Gary-7 on Deep Space Nine many months earlier.

"Well, my parents agreed with that view as well," Trelane said. "They eventually decided that the situation had to be fixed, but outright killing you was not an option since it was I, they realized, who brought you here to begin with. So it was decided that you would be allowed to live, but somewhere in a place where your presence would no longer be a random force of nature."

"And the convenience of the Naissance sphere was too easy to pass up," Kirk added.

"Yes," Trelane said. "So, I began to formulate an idea, and then, about that same time, I learned that humans were delving into singularity technology, so, I decided to piggy-back on that idea as a means to round you and your friends up without attracting suspicion."

"I assume that is how the animals got here too; including that dinosaur," Kirk added.

"Oh I love that beast, and before you get angry about the death of Lawrence Thorn, I would like to say that that man was a vile example of humanity, though I will explain that part later. So, as I was saying," Trelane continued to say, "having lost track of you for a while, I looked back in on your life and saw the tail end of that dreadful ordeal with those beings that lived inside of the hideous monster (the Doomsday Machine). I had to test my ability to create a singularity anywhere I wanted, and decided to practice on that that Nog fellow, and saved him in the process. I also created another one on Earth, to see how far I could project a singularity of that variety, and accidentally drew in the female android. Luckily by changing my outward appearance to this (Trelane morphed into an exact duplicate of the President of the Federation) I was able to get them both to follow my Presidential orders."

Trelane morphed back into himself.

"So, we are all here because of your need to be a God, and specifically, you're greater need to be my God?" Kirk asked.

"Yes, you could say that. But I knew you wouldn't be happy without your friends, and no God wants to be hated, so I brought some of your friends too," Trelane added with a smile. "You can thank me now."

"What about my wife?" Kirk asked, with no thanks in his voice. "Or my son, or my child to be? They're not here."

"It's that random nature of yours' Kirk," Trelane said. "She was supposed to be in that room with you and the others when I sent the singularity, but you let her out of your sight. By the time you were here it was too late."

"What do you mean too late?" Kirk asked. "Look Trelane; I want you to send everyone else back. If I agree to stay here, by myself, I want you to send them all back."

"I can't do that Captain; I really wish I could, but I can't," Trelane said, as a look of worry came over his face.

"Why can't you?" Kirk demanded.

"I believe I have fallen for a trap," Trelane said. "Someone has closed the access way of the sphere, and moved us out of our time and place. If I can't have access to the outside of the sphere, then my powers are greatly diminished and will only work here; on the inside of the sphere. And because of that, I no longer have the power to create a singularity."

"If we can't get out, then where is this place?" Kirk asked. "This is the same place you took us last time, and that was hundreds of light years from here."

"We're actually in a cabin on one of the other continents," Trelane said. "And before you get too cocky, I would remind you there are fourteen-thousand continents inside of this sphere, so get any idea of finding this place out of your little head; you never will. So, I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but we are still inside of the sphere.""

"In other words," Kirk added softly, "we're all stuck inside of this place with no way out."

"Exactly," Trelane said with a frown, but then a smile came to his face. "However, think of it another way Captain; you are all stuck in here with me as your God; consider yourselves lucky."

A look of annoyance came over Kirk's face, and he downed the entire glass of wine in one gulp. Then he poured another glass and did so again.

Continued….


	134. My Sweet Lord

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**My Sweet Lord**

**Earth**

Austria; the city of Eisenstadt; The private home of Lawrence Thorn 

Three Transporter signals solidified inside of the private residence of Lawrence Thorn. Captain Riker, Security Commander Stone and Master-Chief Obrien looked about the home as they materialized.

"I'd say it's been sometime since anyone has been here," Stone said.

"Well, at least we have a warrant to be here ourselves; no questions asked." Riker said, holding a special data pad with the legal documentation on it.

"You really think Thorn's advisor, Dr. Ramirez, was telling us the truth?" Obrien asked Riker. "Do you think Thorn built another singularity creating device in this place?"

"She seemed to suspect as much," Stone said to Obrien.

"And if the one he had here at his home is indeed powered by Red Matter," Riker said to Obrien, "then it should be easy to find."

"I thought the use of such devices, and the Red Matter element, were illegal," Stone said to Riker.

"They are," Riker replied. "But something tells me that if what you suspect is true, that Lawrence Thorn killed his own brother, then I wouldn't put it past him to do something like this."

Obrien was busy scanning the area with a special Tricorder that was specifically programmed to scan for Red Matter.

"Anything yet," Riker asked Obrien.

"Not yet sir," Obrien said to Riker, "I was thinking; obtaining such a device, and the Red Matter, is not only illegal, but would not be easy to do. Most governments have signed treaties banning them."

"Some haven't signed that treaty," Riker reminded Obrien, "the Breen and the Sihg being among them. Thorn has enough wealth and power to be able to obtain them, so, laws would be useless for someone like him."

"But Red Matter," Obrien said, "wouldn't that imply his use for such a device wasn't for moving linearly through space, but actually outside time?"

"Which is one of the main reasons this technology is outlawed," Riker said.

Suddenly Obrien's Tricorder began beeping rapidly.

"Bingo," Captain Riker said with a devious smile.

**INSIDE THE NAISSANCE SPHERE**

Spock, Geordi Leforge and Benjamin Sisko all watched as the unknown parachutist landed in the distance.

"The parachute design was definitely Klingon," Sisko told the other two.

"It would make sense," Leforge said. "I remember Admiral Picard telling me that the Klingons were going to supply a ship or two for the Naissance Sphere. That person could be from one of those ships."

"However," Spock interjected, "we cannot be certain we are inside of that particular Dysonsphere. I suggest caution."

"What about Jim," Sisko said to Spock, "do you think this Trelane person would hurt him?"

"He has been gone for over an hour now," Leforge added.

Spock shook his head.

"I doubt it," Spock finally said. "While Trelane's behavior the last time we encountered him was chaotic, his relationship with the Captain was one more of tormenter than of someone who would actually cause him harm; others yes, the Captainl; no."

"Kind of like Admiral Picard's relationship with Q," Leforge said to Sisko.

"Well," Leforge said, looking off into the distance where the parachute had landed, "our unknown visitor should be on their way by now. If it's a Klingon, we better take up a defensive position with the others."

"That won't be necessary," a voice said from behind them.

Spock, Sisko and Leforge all turned around to find Jim Kirk standing there.

"Jim," Spock said, "did Trelane harm you?"

"Him," Kirk said with a slight chuckle, "are you kidding?"

"So what did he tell you?" Leforge asked. "Did he bring us here?"

"He told me a lot," Kirk said, in a somber tone. "For one, we are indeed inside of Admiral Janeway's sphere. The ship you saw," Kirk said to Leforge, "is a Klingon vessel under the command of a Star Fleet Captain named Jonathan Canary."

"Canary," Sisko said, "I've heard of him."

"As have I," Leforge said, "If I recall correctly, he was on Earth when the Breen attacked during the War, and was eventually captured by them and escaped somehow," Leforge said. _(THESE EVENTS CAN BE FOLLOWED IN THE ROUND ROBIN STORY ABOUT THE BREEN ATTACK ON EARTH)_

"Well, let's go get the others," Kirk said. "Trelane isn't going to let us go for reasons I will explain, but, he is going to give us a lift."

"A lift," Spock said with an arched eyebrow, "what exactly does that mean?"

"He's going to move us," Kirk answered.

"One might has said so in the first place," Spock said.

As they made their way back to the camp, Jim Kirk explained how and why they had all been brought to the Naissance Dysonsphere. How Trelane had been allowed by his parents to use the sphere as his own practice grounds for being a God. But, as Kirk deduced, his parents were really using the sphere to contain their unpredictable son. Just as a Genie could be trapped in a bottle, without powers, Trelane was trapped inside of the sphere, and unless the impish being could gain access to the outside universe, they, including Trelane, would all be trapped inside the sphere; forever.

"So then it was Trelane who was powering the singularities," Leforge said, after digesting what Kirk had said.

"Yep," Kirk replied. "He used the singularities to bring us all here, as well as the various animal life forms we have found here."

"Then why can't he use his powers to conjure up another one to get out of here," Sisko asked.

"Once the sphere was close," Kirk explained, "his power was diminished. His parents knew this, and that's why they put him here. We're his play things."

Kirk and the others arrived at the camp where not only did they find Rebecca, Elizabeth and Kasidy, they also found Nog and Lal there as well. Both Nog and Lal were ashamed that they had fallen for Trelane's deception, and had forcibly brought the others through the singularity to the Naissance sphere. Kirk explained that Trelane was going to move them very soon to the Star Fleet complex several continents away, once he had built up enough energy to do so.

"I should resign my commission immediately," Nog finally said, as they all sat around the camp, waiting for Trelane to arrive.

"Nog," Sisko said, as he sat next to the visible embarrassed Ferengi Star Fleet officer, "it was an honest mistake. Was it a whopper of a mistake," Sisko smiled, "I can't argue with that. However, I am sure even Jim Kirk would admit to making them from time to time, I know I have at least."

"Ben's right," Kirk said, as he came over and sat next to Nog as well. "You have to learn from them, and just go on from there."

"I want to talk to this Trelane," Kasidy finally said in a demanding way. "I want to give him a piece of my mind."

As Spock watched the others talk, he kept a watchful eye on Lal. While she too was ashamed for have falling for Trelane's ruse, there were still two questions that had not been resolved. What had happened the first time she went through? The second time, which had brought her here with Spock and the others, had only happened recently, while her first time through had happened months prior. Also, Spock wondered, how was it her power source was able to operate inside the dampening field? Spock was about to ask Lal these questions when…

"Umm," a voice said from behind the group, "hello?"

They all turned to see Captain Jonathan Canary.

"It's about time," Leforge said, "we were wondering when you'd get here; Captain Canary."

"You saw me coming down?" Canary asked. He recognized the faces of some of the group. "Ambassador Spock, Captain Sisko," he stated, "and Jim Kirk; how did you all get here?"

Introductions were made as Kirk, with help from Sisko and the others, explained to Canary how they had all gotten to the Naissance sphere, via the singularity. Canary updated them on what he knew, including the massive fire at the Star Fleet complex, and the closing of the Naissance entrance. Trelane suddenly appeared.

"I see you're all together at last," Trelane said with a smile. "I shall now take you to the others."

"No," Kasidy Sisko said, in a defiant tone, "you will not just move us here and there like we are your pets. I want you to get us out of this place and I want you to do it now."

"I like this one," Trelane said to Kirk, "she is feisty." Then he looked at Kasidy. "Trust me, my lady, if I could get us out of here I would. Perhaps, after my parents are confident I will make an above average God, their standards are dreadfully high, then perhaps they will let us out of this place. But until they do that, I assure you, I am as much as a prisoner inside this giant ball as you are. Oh, one more thing," Trelane said. He snapped his finger and then Lal's camera appeared in his hand.

"That's Lal's camera," Rebecca said, "where did you get that?"

"Mr. Thorn had it last," Lal replied to Rebecca.

"What did he want with it so badly?" Kasidy asked.

"According to Trelane," Kirk said, "Lawrence…"

Trelane cut in before Kirk could continue.

"Oh dear Captain," Trelane said to Kirk, "do let me tell them this tale, I rarely have an audience to entertain."

"By all means," Kirk said.

They all listened to Trelane, as he explained Thorn's story in a very exiting way. Trelane told it like a harrowing story, with all kinds of hand movements and emotions.

Trelane explained how Lawrence Thorn had killed his own brother, Andrew, because Andrew would never have agreed to what his older brother Lawrence wanted to do. As it turned out, Lawrence Thorn had acquired an illegal device, powered by Red Matter that could generate singularities. Thorn had hoped to use the singularities to travel into the future so as to obtain tech for his company, and for his secret benefactors who had provided him the device; the Breen. And, as it turned out, when he had pushed his brother off of a skyscraper in San Francisco, Lal's camera was trained on them at the exact moment and had taken a snapshot of the falling body of Andrew, and Trelane atop the rooftop of the building.

As Trelane told his stories, Jonathan Canary stood next to Kirk.

"Why don't we jump him, the two of us," Canary said, in a hushed tone.

"We can't," Kirk told Canary, with a whisper of his own. "Although his powers are not at full strength, he could still sense our plan, and he warned me he would kill us all, starting with the women, if we made such a move."

"Then what are we going to do?" Sisko asked, having heard the two conversing.

"Bide our time," Kirk replied. "We may actually need him to eventually get out of this place, so we have to let him play the role of our God; for now at least. When the time comes to make a move on him, then we must plan it carefully because we will only get one chance."

Across the way from Kirk, Spock stood next to Elizabeth Pike, as they both listened to Trelane's story. Elizabeth smiled as Nog asked yet another useless question, which Trelane was all too happy to answer.

"I regret involving you in this predicament we find ourselves in," Spock told her.

"You have no reason to regret anything," Elizabeth said back to him. "Just being off of Talos IV, after living all of my life there, is the greatest gift I could ever have had."

She reached over in a subtle move and took his hand into hers'. There was warmth between the two of them, and she hoped, more was to come. From across the way, Kirk noticed the two of them holding hands as well.

-  
**Not too long after...and Several continents away,** Admiral Janeway was with Commander S'vath, surveying the final damage caused by the fire at the complex. They were walking around the perimeter of the complex, near the make shift planting area that had been built up. As was standard with most Star Fleet base camps, emergency food supplies also came with emergency plant seeds of a wide variety. And since the land near the complex was fertile, the grass surrounding the complex being proof of that, the seeds had been planted. There would be enough emergency rations to last for the short term, but eventually they would run out, thus another food source had to be implemented.

"I am very impressed," Janeway said to S'vath, "with your coordination efforts. Both you and Dr. Bashir have showed me the kind of officers you are, and I promise you, if we ever get out of here, I will see to it that both of you are rewarded."

"Admiral," S'vath said, "I must stress that everyone has gone beyond their duties in support of this effort."

"That is true," Janeway replied with a smile, "but the two of you have provide the much needed leadership to…"

Janeway stopped talking and pointed in the distance; something was coming their way, and it looked like a giant bubble, nearly the size of a small ship.

"Commander S'vath," Janeway quickly said, "do you see that object coming toward us?"

"Affirmative Admiral," S'vath said, "its movements do not seem natural despite its simplistic outward appearance."

Several others, who saw the bubble as well, stepped away from the area that the bubble seemed to be heading for. Everyone watched as the bubble touched down on the ground and then, for lack of a better word, popped. In the bubble's place were now several people. And even though she was a good distance away from the new comers, Janeway recognized one immediately; James T Kirk!

-continued


	135. Payment in Full

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**Payment in Full**

**Flashback begins, episode #72;**Deanna Troi was being held captive by members of the Orion Syndicate, and they were forcing Riker to obtain the Karom'thaiav medallion….until…this happened…You can go back and read chapter #72, or, here is the passage that is being flashbacked upon

**Rigel-7**

William Riker reappeared on Rigel-7. He knew it was Rigel-7 because he recognized the city lights he had seen several times in the past. Amanda-Q appeared as well.

"Why have you brought me here?" Riker asked.

"Deanna is in that building," Amanda-Q replied. "That is where she is being held until Bak'nor brings them the Karom'thaiav Medallion."

"Which we don't have," Riker said. "Look Amanda; I'm no idiot," Riker said, "that building you pointed at is well known as an Orion Syndicate strong hold. If I even step a foot in there, I'm dead. You're going to have to do better than this Amanda, if we're going to save my wife."

"Listen to me William," Amanda-Q said after a moment, "Q started this and now I have to end this. I have been authorized to see to the safety of your wife and your unborn child, with all the power at my disposal, however, there will have to be a price. I hate to put it that way, but that is how this must play out."

"What do you mean?" Riker shot back with. "This entire medallion search and ancient prophecy mumbo jumbo has nothing to do with me, accept for the fact my wife has been drawn into it."

"I know, which is why it is very difficult for me to insist that you take up our bargain," Amanda-Q said. "To be honest, its times like these when I wish making puppies appear out thin air was the limit of my powers."

"Alright," Riker said, softly, "what is this bargain?"

"In the near future," Amanda-Q explained, "after all this we are doing now has played out, I am going to come to you and ask for you to do something and you are going to say yes."

"Anything; what does that mean?" Riker came back with. "And I will be the judge as to if I do it or not."

"The Q will accept that answer; for now," Amanda-Q said. "Now," she continued to say, "Let's go save Deanna…"

**Flashback ends…**

Last issue….

**_Earth_**

_**Austria; the city of Eisenstaedt; The private home of Lawrence Thorn**_

_Obrien was busy scanning the area with a special Tricorder that was specifically programmed to scan for Red Matter._

_"Anything yet," Riker asked Obrien._

_"Not yet sir," Obrien said to Riker, "I was thinking; obtaining such a device, and the Red Matter, is not only illegal, but would not be easy to do. Most governments have signed treaties banning them."_

_"Some haven't signed that treaty," Riker reminded Obrien, "the Breen and the Sihg being among them. Thorn has enough wealth and power to be able to obtain them, so, laws would be useless for someone like him."_

_"But Red Matter," Obrien said, "Wouldn't that imply his use for such a device wasn't for moving linearly through space, but actually outside time?"_

_"Which is one of the main reasons this technology is outlawed," Riker said._

_Suddenly Obrien's Tricorder began beeping rapidly._

_"Bingo," Captain Riker said with a devious smile._

**_Our story continues…_**

"The Tricorder is picking up traces or Red Matter somewhere," Obrien said, as he pointed at the wall, "beyond this wall."

"No doubt there is a hidden room behind this wall," Commander Stone said. "We need to find the switch to get in there."

"Why not phaser through the wall," Obrien said.

"That would be too risky," Captain Riker came back with. "For all we know, Lawrence Thorn may have some security measure in place should anyone find that room."

"So what do we do?" Obrien asked.

Suddenly, and without warning, gas vapor began to pour out, in the form of a thin mist, from the air ducts in the main room in which Riker and the others were standing.

"Well," Riker said, "there is the security measure right now I would say."

"We better get out of here," Stone declared excitedly.

Riker tapped on his intercom badge, but it was too late. First it was Commander Stone who succumbed to the vapors, and fell to the ground, and then, a second later, Obrien fell to the ground. Riker could only wait, helplessly, for his time to come; but it never did. Seconds later the gas had dissipated, and while Stone and Obrien had been knocked out by the gas, Riker was still standing; unharmed. He had a look of befuddlement on his face, when suddenly there was a flash of like and Amanda-Q stood before him.

"Hello William," Amanda-Q said, with a pleasant smile.

"I don't have time for you right now," Riker said, as he bent down to feel the pulse of Obrien. "I need to get them out of here."

"There will be no need for that," Amanda-Q said, "they will be just fine as soon as you and I are done with what we have to do. And don't worry," she added, "They will never know the difference."

"Alright," Riker said, "I'll take your word for it; for the time being. I assume you have come to collect on the debt I owe you for saving Deanna all those months ago."

"I wish you didn't put it like that," Amanda-Q said, with a look of hurt in her expression. "If it had been Q, he would have probably let her die, and then forced you to help him anyway. At least I got us a deal that would save her life, and the life of your child I might add, in the process. By the way, how is Little Tom doing?"

Riker shook his head.

"Look Amanda," Riker said, "I will keep up with my part of the bargain, whatever that ends up being, just so long as we understand that I still think it's a bum rap that I was even forced to enter that agreement. So, enough with the niceties and let's just get on with it."

Amanda-Q smiled, and nodded her head in agreement.

"As it turns out William," Amanda-Q said, "your part of the bargain will actually be simple, just being here has been more than enough. Your actions here in this place, with the help of your friends," she looked over at Obrien and Stone on the ground, "has given the Continuum cover for what is about to happen."

"And what is about to happen?" Riker asked.

"Well," Amanda-Q said with a slight chuckle," at first; a reunion of a sort."

Amanda-Q snapped her fingers and then suddenly appearing before Riker was someone he knew quite well.

"Data," Riker said, as he saw his old friend suddenly appear. "Is that really you?"

"Is that a rhetorical question Commander Riker?" Data asked, though upon seeing the pips on Riker's collar, he amended his question; "Correct that; Captain?"

"With all due respect Amanda," Riker said to Data, before he looked over at Amanda-Q, "Data was destroyed years ago while attempting to save the life of Admiral Picard." (NEMESIS)

"Captain Riker," Data said, "the event you are referring to, according to my internal chronometer, happened 68 seconds ago."

"Not exactly," Amanda-Q said to Data, "Data; I have brought you forward to his point of time, and when you are done with the task I have for you, then I must return you back to that moment in the past."

"To be destroyed?" Riker asked.

"I'm sorry," Amanda-Q, "I know it may seem cruel; but it is the only way. I will explain everything in a moment," she told the two of them.

Amanda-Q snapped her fingers and then a hidden panel opened up on the wall, a doorway in fact, giving them access to the secret laboratory hidden in the secret room behind the wall. As they made their way down a small staircase, Riker gave Data a quick review of Federation history since the Android had met his demise. Finally they reached the control room.

"What are we doing here Amanda?" Riker finally asked Amanda-Q.

"Just as you surmised," Amanda-Q said to Riker, "Lawrence Thorn was indeed using the Red Matter, and this device which he got from the Breen, to create a singularity. He wasn't going to use it to travel horizontally through time; he was going to use it to travel through time, in hopes of finding new technology that would keep his selfish interest satisfied."

"Alright," Riker said, "an interesting idea, but nothing new. We've encountered others like Lawrence Thorn before, and while what he attempted to do was indeed a criminal act, I still don't understand why it involves the Q, or, having to pull Data out of time." Riker stated.

Amanda-Q chuckled.

"There is nothing funny about this matter," Riker told her in a stern voice.

"I know," Amanda-Q said, "but I don't get to interact with humans all too much, so, excuse me if I find this all so," she thought for a moment, "amusing. Anyway," she said, motioning to the controls, "I need the two of you to activate this device and create a singularity."

Data took a step toward the controls, but Riker put his hand on his should to stop him.

"Wait a second Data," Riker told Data, "what exactly is going on here?" Riker asked Amanda-Q. "If creating such a wormhole was illegal for Thorn to do, then it's equally against the law for either Data or I to do it too. Not only that," Riker added, "why do you need Data at all? I could have activated the device."

Amanda-Q snapped her fingers, and soon the device was activated.

"I really don't need him for this part of the plan, turning on the device" Amanda-Q said, "the very fact the two of you were here when it was activated is all the cover I needed. I need Data for a more precise reason."

The control room encircled a large observation area, which was set below the control room, viewable through many observation windows on the higher. Swirling bands of energy and light suddenly appeared, and then, a singularity coalesced around a defined event horizon. And then, there were flashes that emanated from the center of the singularity.

"This better not destroy Earth," Riker said, as the noise of the disturbance, which was filtered through observation frequencies, became louder and louder. And then Riker saw something, and pointed at the center of the singularity.

"Someone's coming through it," Riker said.

And sure enough, someone stepped out of the singularity, someone that Riker, and more importantly, Data recognized instantly; they both said her name in unison; " Lal!"

Continued…


	136. The Power Play

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**The Power Play**

Previously…(issue #98. You can either go back and read that installment, or read the passage I am flashing back to right now…)

_Rebecca Sisko was about to closr her eyes for a nap when suddenly there was bright flash in her room, right before her bed. The flash was gone in an instant, but then there was another one. And then the bright flash, which was now a swirling mass of energy, solidified. It was as if a door had opened in her room; a door of swirling light. A very loud wind sound swooshed about as well. Rebecca had no idea what it was, and in fright, stood up on the small sofa she was on._

_The room to her door opened and Lal stepped in, and the android was taken aback at what she saw._

_"Lal," Rebecca yelled! "Stay back, it's some kind of," Rebecca thought for a moment, "hell, I don't know what it is; but it isn't good!"_

_The swirling sound got louder and louder._

_"Rebecca Sisko; run," Lal yelled. "Get away from it!"_

_Other cadets, who heard the loud swirling wind sound, ran to the door, and they were all in shock at what they saw._

_And then, as Rebecca looked at the light, she saw something come out of the light; an arm. The hand on the arm was reaching out for her. Rebecca pushed her back against the way, trying to get away, but there was nowhere to go._

_Without a moment's hesitation, Lal ran into the room, and at full speed, she jumped on the bed, and grabbed Rebecca, and pushed her out of the way. The hand lunged, and grabbed Lal by the back of the shoulder, and then the hand, the swirling wind, and Lal, instantly vanished!_

_**Earth**_

_**Austria; the city of Eisenstaedt; the private home of Lawrence Thorn**_

_The control room encircled a large observation area, which was set below the control room, viewable through many observation windows on the higher. Swirling bands of energy and light suddenly appeared, and then, a singularity coalesced around a defined event horizon. And then, there were flashes that emanated from the center of the singularity._

_"This better not destroy Earth," Riker said, as the noise of the disturbance, which was filtered through observation frequencies, became louder and louder. And then Riker saw something, and pointed at the center of the singularity._

_Amanda-Q, who stood next to the disturbance, reached into the event horizon._

_"She's pulling someone's coming through it," Riker said to Data._

_And sure enough, someone stepped out of the singularity, someone that Riker, and more importantly, Data recognized instantly; they both said her name in unison; " Lal!"_

**_Our story continues…_**

Data, seeing his offspring for the first time in many years, had an almost human reaction; he gasped.

Riker knew exactly what was going on.

"So," Riker said to Amanda-Q, "when Lal went through that first disturbance, months ago, we actually created it here. It wasn't sent there for Rebecca, which was always a possibility, it was sent there for Lal; by us. It tunneled back through time so that you could bring Lal forward to this point in time."

"Captain Riker," Lal said to Riker, from where she stood down in the main lab next to Amanda-Q, "is that really my father?"

"It is me Lal," Data said, "I am here. However, if I am following the conversation carefully, we have both been brought here from different points of time."

"Very astute," Amanda-Q said to Data.

"Why?" Riker asked, in an almost demanding tone.

Amanda-Q thought for a moment, obviously selecting her words carefully.

"William; the Continuum is in the position to remove an unstable force from the universe," Amanda-Q finally said. "The only way we could accomplish this, without attracting attention, was in this manner. I cannot tell you anymore without jeopardizing an outcome that even the Continuum cannot predict."

"If I may," Data said, interjecting before Riker could ask another question, "is the fact that my daughter and I are artificial life forms the reason you have chosen us for this task?"

Amanda-Q smiled at Data.

"Yes," Amanda-Q said. "And I'm sure you understand why I must send you back to the point in time when you are destroyed, when we are done here. But before we get started with the second phase of what has to done, go ahead and spend some time with your daughter."

Data walked out of the control room, with Riker, and into the main lab area where Lal was standing with Amanda-Q. Letting Data and Lal have their privacy, Riker and Amanda-Q walked over to the other side of the room.

"Look," Riker said to Amanda-Q, "I can already see what you're going to do. You're not only sending Data back to where you plucked him from, when this is done, you're also sending Lal back to the point of time you plucked her from. Now, according to Rebecca Sisko, Lal was only gone for mere seconds."

"What will seem like seconds she was gone will actually be as long as it takes Data to do what he was brought here to do."

"What do you hope to accomplish by doing all this? And why didn't you just snap your fingers, and make her appear in this time like you did for Data?"

His tone was still filled with a slight tinge of anger.

"I like when you get angry," Amanda-Q said, looking up at Riker. "It makes your eyes squint, and makes you very adorable."

She saw a slight look of anger come over Riker's face too.

"Alright," Amanda-Q said, "I'll explain. I couldn't use my powers to bring her here because there are, well, forces in the universe that could detect her traveling in such a matter, and that would be a problem. Now, being plucked from time, via a singularity, leaves no un-natural trace, thus, plausible deniability is maintained."

"You said a moment ago that you were going to remove an unstable force from the universe; what did you mean by that?" Riker asked.

"He has a right to know," Amanda-Q said to an unseen force above her.

"Who are you talking to?" Riker asked, seeing nothing above them.

"Why they are doesn't matter," Amanda-Q replied. "But, William, I can tell you this; your friends, Captain Kirk and the others, are in the Naissance Dysonsphere, thanks to this unstable force we are trying to rid the universe of."

"What?" Riker asked, surprised by the statement. "What are you talking about?"

She pointed at the illegal device that Lawrence Thorn had obtained from the Breen, which ran on Red-Matter. "The unstable force has been masking his plans, via this device, as well, to populate the Naissance with various life forms from Earth, so as to entertain himself, and, in-directly, Kirk. Once Kirk arrived in this time, a year or so ago, the Q suspected that this unstable force would eventually come for Kirk, and did. Eventually, Kirk and the others were brought to the Naissance by the use of this technology," she pointed at the singularity device, The Q knew all along that Kirk was going to be brought to the Naissance, we even knew who he was going to be with, and we needed to make sure that when Kirk was brought there, inside the Naissance, that a weapon was smuggled into the sphere as well. As I'm sure you know; the Naissance is no longer in its original position. Trelane, the name of this unstable force, has moved it outside of our ability to sense."

"A weapon," Riker repeated in a force tone, "how are you going to smuggle a weapon into a place you can no longer sense?" And then Riker looked over at Lal and Data and figured it out on his own, "you mean Lal. She's there now, in the Naissance with Kirk. You're going to send this Lal back through this singularity, back to the point of time she came from; at the Academy months ago."

"Yes," Amanda-Q said softly.

"No," Riker said flatly. "What if this weapon of yours not only kills this unstable force, but also kills Kirk and the others, as well as the Star Fleet complex that is located there as well?"

"I give you my word," Amanda-Q said, "no one else will be killed."

Riker looked over at Data, who was conversing with his daughter.

"Will Lal be destroyed?" Riker asked, softly.

"Because the Naissance sphere is in a place outside of our ability to sense," Amanda-Q said, "I cannot see her future."

"How do I know, by letting you do this, I am doing the right thing?" Riker asked.

"His own parents are pleading with the Q to do this," Amanda-Q said, with sadness in her voice. "Trelane is much like me, at the start, when I didn't control my powers. But at least he had parents. But, for whatever reason, his parents never taught him the restraint and responsibility that comes with such power. He has become so powerful that they cannot control his impulses any longer; so they have turned to us."

"And destroying him is the only way?" Riker asked.

"Yes," Amanda-Q said.

As Riker and Amanda-Q looked over at Data and Lal, they were unaware that they too were being watched. Because, as it turned out, Amanda-Q wasn't the only God like creature in that room; and this God like creature also had a score to settle with; James R Kirk.

Continued…


	137. Lallessness

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**Lal-lessness**

_**Previously…**___

Admiral Janeway was with Commander S'vath, surveying the final damage caused by the fire at the complex. They were walking around the perimeter of the complex, near the make shift garden area that had been built up. As was standard with most Star Fleet base camps, emergency food supplies also came with emergency plant seeds of a wide variety. And since the land near the complex was fertile, the grass surrounding the complex being proof of that, the seeds had been planted. There would be enough emergency rations to last for the short term, but eventually they would run out, thus another food source had to be implemented.

Janeway stopped talking and pointed in the distance; something was coming their way, and it looked like a giant bubble, nearly the size of a small ship.

"Commander S'vath," Janeway quickly said, "do you see that object coming toward us?"

"Affirmative Admiral," S'vath said, "its movements do not seem natural despite its simplistic outward appearance."

Several others, who saw the bubble as well, stepped away from the area that the bubble seemed to be heading for. Everyone watched as the bubble touched down on the ground and then, for lack of a better word, popped. In the bubble's place were now several people. And even though she was a good distance away from the new comers, Janeway recognized one immediately; James T Kirk!

_**Our story continues….**_

Admiral Janeway stood with James T Kirk, Captain Jonathan Canary, and Benjamin Sisko as the rest of the new arrivals at the Star Fleet complex were greeted by the Star Fleet crew that was happy to see newcomers to their make shift camp.

"So let me get this straight," Janeway said to Kirk, "you were the ones that Captain Canary saw appear from the singularity," Janeway said to Kirk.

"Exactly," Kirk said, "and Kate, we're all trapped inside the Naissance because of an impish being I encountered over a century ago named Trelane."

"It seems as if the universe is overpopulated by impish beings," Sisko added.

"Lucky for us," Canary added with sarcasm.

"I can't argue with you on that," Janeway said with a smile to Canary. "Jim," she said to Kirk, "why is the Trelane person doing this?"

"Think of Trelane as a child," Spock said, as he walked over and stood next to Kirk, "A child with amazing abilities, which could make his actions quite dangerous dangerous."

"When we encountered him the first time," Kirk explained, "he was eventually taken away by beings that appeared to be his parents. In his final moments with us, he pleaded with them as a child would do before being punished."

"And you saw this guys here, in the Naissance?" Canary asked before Janeway could get the chance.

"Yes," Kirk said, "He explained that his parents wanted him to practice his powers, in the role of a God, and they let him select anyone he had ever met to be the benefactor of his training,"

"Meaning you," Janeway said,

"And since he didn't want me to be alone," Kirk added, "he brought me and those I was with here to this place. And to make us feel like we were on Earth, he populated the continent we arrived on with various animals, including, a Tyrannosaurus-Rex."

"Which was pretty cool looking," Canary said to Janeway.

"And deadly," Sisko added, "it killed Lawrence Thorn."

Spock was listening to Kirk and the others and then he saw S'vath. Spock excused himself and walked over to S'vath who was helping a small group of Star Fleet personnel construct a large temporary tent that could house a large group. S'vath had an old style hammer in his hand, with a box of nails in his pocket. Due to the fact there was no power, hammers and nails had to be used for the time being.

"Father," S'vath said to Spock. "I saw you with the Admiral, so I didn't want to interrupt."

"Where are Amanda and Lenora?" Spock asked.

"Your granddaughter is with the other children, who are being tended to by the child facility staff not far from here," S'vath replied, "and Amanda is still aboard the Emprenda, and, at present, there is no way to contact her."

"I see," Spock said. "S'vath, I must speak with you, in private," Spock said.

"Sure," S'vath said, as he handed his hammer and nails to a young male ensign.

Spock and S'vath walked over to a nearby tree, alone. Kirk watched the two make their way toward the tree, father and son, and had a pretty good idea what they were going to talk about.

"Is there a problem, father?" S'vath asked.

"Have you sensed an empathic thought from your mother recently?" Spock asked.

"Yes," S'vath said excitedly, "and, from what Captain Jonathan Canary told me, Amanda was overwhelmed at the same instant, almost as if the unborn child inside of her had sensed the message as well. As far as the Captain knew, Amanda was unharmed."

"What about Lenora?" Spock asked.

"It affected her too," S'vath replied. "From what I can tell, there was no lasting injury or pain. Father, how could my mother have done that?"

Spock didn't answer S'vath directly, instead asking another question.

"I assume you sensed that T'pring was in danger, and more specifically, facing death. She also sent us a warning."

"About your brother; Sybok," S'vath added.

Spock thought for a moment.

"Father," S'vath said finally, "I thought your brother died, decades and decades ago. Why would my mother be warning us about him?"

"If Sybok somehow survived his encounter with the being on that distant world at the center of the galaxy," Spock answered, "then he is even more powerful than I imagined."

"Father," S'vath said, in a softer tone, "if he comes after my wife, or my children, I will kill him."

"You are not speaking with the voice of a Vulcan," Spock said, with an arch of an eyebrow.

"No, I am not," S'vath said, with a devious smile. "I'm speaking as a human; and I promise you that I would act with all the anger and emotion that such a person could display, if Sybok makes the mistake and threatens my family."

"If Sybok makes such a move against OUR family," Spock responded, with a soft yet forceful tone of his own, "I will stand with you, my son, with as much emotion as well. Sometimes having human heritage can have its rewards."

Spock knew that such a display of unity with his son in such an emotional manner was not logical, but for some reason he could not understand; it felt natural.

-

Several hours later the massive temporary shelter was completed. And because of the arrival of Benjamin Sisko, and his learned skills of an architect, adjustments had been made during the construction of the shelter to allow for better air flow. All of the food rations were put in a protective area of what was left of the burnt out Star Fleet complex.

Later, Spock walked with Kirk.

"I saw you having an intense conversation with your son earlier," Kirk said to Spock. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Not as of yet," Spock said back to Kirk, "as it turns out, it would appear as if T'pring's last thoughts were not only received by me, but by the rest of my family inside Naissance as well."

"Including your granddaughter?" Kirk asked back.

Spock nodded in agreement.

"T'pring's family line was dominated by Vulcans who studied the applications of Vulcan telepathy, so it is possible her abilities were beyond those of normal Vulcans." Spock said. "When the USS Hanoi faced destruction, which seems to be a very probable event, she was able to share with us her final thoughts," Spock said.

Kirk was about to say something when Spock cut him off.

"Jim," Spock said quickly, "before we continue talking about the situation with the T'pring, I must first direct your attention to another matter."

"Sure, what is it?" Kirk asked.

"According to Captain Jonathan Canary," Spock went on to say, "the dampening field extends some two hundred miles above the surface of the planet."

"I meant to ask Trelane about that," Kirk replied. "But, as I recall, when we encountered him last time, a field like that extended around the area he had brought us down to."

"Yes, it would be logical to assume that he has employed the same sort ability as before," Spock said, "however, if that were indeed the case, why doesn't the field affect Lal?" Spock asked, as he motioned, subtly, to the android who was sitting with the Siskos as they were eating some food at a nearby table.

Kirk looked over at Lal as well, then back to Spock.

"Maybe her power source is being shielded," Kirk suggested.

"I have brought this matter up, discretely, with Professor Leforge, and he assures me that Lal has no such shielding," Spock replied.

"Does he have a theory as to why?" Kirk asked his Vulcan friend.

"I admit that the following theory the professor and I have come up with is flawed, however, it is the best," Spock paused, "guess that we can come up with for now."

"A guess," Kirk repeated with a smile, "I just never assumed you would ever be taking guesses."

"Another one of Dr. McCoy's suggestions," Spock answered.

"Well, what is this theory that you and Leforge have come up with?" Kirk asked.

"Again, I must stress that much of it is circumstantial, at best," Spock repeated.

"Alright," Kirk said, "I'll take that into account."

"As you will recall, months ago, Lal disappeared into a singularity that appeared in her quarters at Star Fleet academy, According to Rebecca Sisko, and other witnesses of that event, Lal was only gone for a matter of seconds."

"Go on," Kirk said.

"The next day, Lal submitted herself to a full diagnostic scan," Spock went on to say, "That was conducted by Professor Leforge and Master-Chief Obrien."

"Obrien is a good man," Kirk interjected, reflecting on the Project Diamond caper that he and Obrien were involved with.

"Yes he is, and coupled with Commander Leforge, they implemented a complete scan of Lal," Spock said.

"What did they find?" Kirk asked.

"Nothing," Spock replied. "Lal was built with, more or less, the same schematics of her creator; Commander Data.

"Meaning…" Kirk urged Spock on.

"Her internal power source should be affected by the field as well," Spock concluded.

"Sorry to keep playing the devil's advocate here," Kirk came back with, "maybe the field doesn't apply to her kind of power source."

"I had the same thought as well," Spock said to back to Kirk, "but according to Professor Leforge, the enhanced features of his surgically implanted eyes use the same kind of internal power source as well. The only reason he is able to see is because the eyes, when powered down, used optic nerves the same way our eyes do."

"So," Kirk said, after thinking it through for a moment, "if his enhanced eyes are not working, then Lal should not be working either."

"Correct Captain," Spock said. "Another aspect Leforge and I have discussed is the power consumption required to create a singularity. Unfortunately Mr. Thorne was killed before we could question him, but I would have like to have heard how he was able to power a singularity such as his."

"Do you have a theory as to how he did it?" Kirk asked, as he looked over at Lal.

"He could have used illegal technologies to accomplish the power consumption requirements, but the only power source Leforge and I could come up with was Red Matter."

"Red matter," Kirk whispered to himself, "what is that?"

"A very unstable energy source that could solve many power equations," Spock answered, "but the resulting singularity would more likely create event horizons that would tunnel through time, meaning, they wouldn't be useful for transporting people and objects in a swift manner."

"Then how did we get here?" Kirk asked. "Then again, for all we know, we may have tunneled to a different point of time as well."

"I highly doubt that Jim," Spock said. "When S'vath and I sensed T'pring's death, it seemed to have happen in normal time; our time. I believe when Trelane used the singularity to bring us here, he used his own power to create it, thus, it transported us horizontally across the space time continuum."

"Alright, lets us say you're right," Kirk said, "and we were brought here directly, and not to another time. If that's true then where did Lal go that first time?"

"Where indeed," Spock repeated as the two men looked over at Lal.

"I assume that you and Leforge have made the next leap in that train of thought," Kirk added.

"Yes we have," Spock replied. "If she was taken to some other point of time, was her android construct altered in such a manner that it would not be affected by the dampening field we find ourselves in as we speak."

"Which means," Kirk added, "if she was altered, she was altered by someone who knew of future events that we are living through right now."

"Fascinating," Spock said, as he arched an eyebrow.

-continued…


	138. Mavis

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**Mavis**

**Earth; The home of Mavis Sisko; older sister of Benjamin Sisko **

A nice round turkey, cooked to a tempting golden juicy brown, was set on a table, with all the fixings around it. There were mash potatoes, carrots, biscuits, and even some homemade macaroni and cheese. When dinner was served at the home of Mavis Sisko, it was always served in a big way, no matter who the guests were.

Mavis Sisko was the oldest of the Sisko children, and being the oldest, she had sacrificed many of her own dreams in order to help her father raise Benjamin Sisko, who was actually her younger half-brother; although, the tidbit of information that their father, Joseph, had an affair was a closely guarded family secret. When Benjamin Sisko was born, he was brought into the Sisko home and loved by his step-mother, Mavis's mother, as though he was her own. Mavis, who knew the secret, had never told anyone, including Benjamin, honoring her parent's wish to keep it a secret.

Myran Kirk, the wife of James T Kirk, took her seat across from Mavis, as Korena and Jake Sisko sat across from each other on the leg of the table.

"Mavis, I've put on at least five pounds since I started living with you and your family," Myran said to Mavis.

"Well honey," Mavis said, with a slight southern draw to her accent, "it was a much needed five pounds. Oh, and do hush about this being my family," Mavis added with a smile, "Jim Kirk and my brother have become good friends in the past year, so, I consider Jim a member of this family as I do you and your children. By the way, when is that son of yours supposed to be arriving on Earth?"

"I think the transport he is on arrives tomorrow," Jake answered for Myran, as Myran was busy taking a bite from a biscuit. "He has to be over a year old now."

"You must really miss him, "avis said, "When was the last time you saw Mathew?"

"He's fourteen months," Myran said to Jake, "and I haven't seen him since Jim and I, and your brother and his wife," Myran said to Mavis, "headed here a month or so ago." Her voice trailed off."

"So how did your meeting go at Starfleet earlier" Korena asked Jake and Myran. "As to where they think Jim Kirk and your dad are?"

Jake was buttering a biscuit, and then answered his wife's question.

"All they're telling us is that the singularity was not a natural occurring event," Jake replied. "And as to where they are; they haven't said anything to us yet."

Dinner proceeded and soon Korena and Myran were doing the dishes. Mavis had never liked using modern technology to do the dishes, and with Earth's water concern long since solved, she preferred using good own dish soap and towels, and was glad to see that her simply way of doing dishes had taken hold. Though, to be honest, she wished Jake was helping them. But unless those two women stood learned to stand their ground, their husbands would always have the upper hand.

Jake Sisko headed upstairs, and while the women were doing the dishes, he accessed the computer on his desk. Unknown to his wife, and especially Myran, Jake had begun an investigation. Cashing in a favor with a friend of his, Jake had managed to get the security scans on the night he had seen Myran speaking with the man who had approached her on the Golden Gate bridge.

Earlier, before dinner, he had transmitted the image to a database to see if the man's identity could be found. As Jake logged onto the data base, he wondered if any matches were found.

"What are you doing?" Mavis asked her nephew. "What are you looking at?"

Jake hadn't seen her walk in to the room, and knew that he had been caught.

"Who is that man she's talking to?" Mavis asked quietly, as she stared closer at the image on the screen of Myran and a stranger talking together.

"Auntie," Jake said in his own hushed tone, "you have to keep this to yourself. Myran and Korena don't know I'm doing this."

"And just what are you doing?" Mavis asked, as she folded her arms across her chest.

A soft beep from the computer confirmed that a match had been found. A new image appeared on the screen, the image of a male Bajoran, and below the picture was the man's name; Talla.

"Last night Korena and I went for walk on the bridge," Jake answered. "We saw Myran in a conversation with this Bajoran, but we couldn't hear what they were saying."

"Maybe they were talking to each other because they are both Bajoran, and said hello to each other," Mavis interjected. "I hardly call that a crime Jake."

"Auntie," Jake continued, "even though I couldn't hear what they were saying, I could tell it was a bit more deeper than a polite conversation, and then this happened," Jake said, as the footage showed Myran and Talla kissing; deeply.

"Oh no," Mavis gasped, and shook her head in disappointment.

"It's not what you think," a voice said from behind Jake and Mavis.

They both turned around and saw Myran standing in the doorway with Korena next to her. Myran turned around, and ran down the hallway and down the stairway and then out the front door. Korena stared at Jake and Mavis with a look of contempt in her eyes.

**Austria; the city of Eisenstaedt; the private home of Lawrence Thorn**

Previously...

_Captain William T Riker and Amanda-Q watched as Lal and Data conversed. Riker looked over at Amanda-Q. _

_"How do I know, by letting you use her as some kind of weapon against Trelane, that I am doing the right thing?" Riker asked. _

_"His own parents are pleading with the Q to do this," Amanda-Q said, with sadness in her voice. "Trelane is much like I was, at the start, when I didn't control my powers. _

_For whatever reason, his parents never taught him the restraint and responsibility that comes with such power. He has become so powerful that they cannot control his impulses any longer; so they have turned to us." _

_"And destroying him is the only way?" Riker asked. _

_"Yes," Amanda-Q said. _

_As Riker and Amanda-Q looked over at Data and Lal, they were unaware that they too were being watched. Because, as it turned out, Amanda-Q wasn't the only God like creature in that room; and this God like creature also had a score to settle with; James R Kirk._

An hour later, Data was finishing up a special upgrade on his daughter. Lal was stretched out across an examination table inside the secret lab, as Riker and Amanda-Q observed his actions.

"Explain to me again what exactly Data is putting inside of her?" Riker asked.

Riker was referring to a black object, circular in shape, and roughly the size of a man's hand. The surface of the object was solid, but it wasn't. Riker watch as Data lifted the object from a container it had been kept inside of. And as Data's fingers touched the object, small patterns rippled out from his fingers like pebbles being dropped in a calm lake.

"Don't worry William," Amanda-Q said, "Just as I assured Data, this thing won't kill Trelane. It is impossible to kill an omnipotent being as powerful as the Q, or, Trelane," Amanda-Q said. "The only way we can silence his power is to implant his essence into an object like the one Data is holding," Amanda-Q explained.

"What about Q?" Riker asked, referring to the Q that had taunted Picard for so many years. "Is his essence in one of these objects?"

Amanda-Q smiled at William Riker.

"I'm afraid I've already told you too much," Amanda-Q replied. "Suffice to say, Trelane will not be destroyed in a permanent manner."

"Alright," Riker said, realizing that the fate of Q would go unresolved, "what is going to happen next, after Data is finished with putting that thing inside of her?"

"Lal will go back through the singularity, and emerge back in the past in her dorm room at the Academy, but with the object inside of her." Amanda-Q answered.

"Whatever happens, I know one thing already," Riker said next. "Geordi and Obrien will conduct a diagnostic on Lal, w hen she returns to that point in time, and they won't find anything; I know, because I read that report. So, whatever happens next is happening right now inside the Naissance. Isn't it?"

"Not exactly," Amanda-Q said. "Due to aspects of the universe that would take too long to explain, and the unique properties of the object Data is putting inside of Lal, nothing will happen until she goes back through the singularity, and, sees Trelane. The moment she sees Trelane, her programming will activate, and the object Data is putting inside of her, will know what to do next."

"And that can only happen once she goes through? Why? She's going to go back to a point nearly a month or so ago," Riker said.

"Precisely," Amanda-Q said. "But the object inside of her will only activate the moment her program positively identifies Trelane. Now, we know, we meaning the Q, that Trelane is being allowed to set up his own private universe so as to practice the role of being a God, and, he's being allowed by his parents to build that universe of his around James T Kirk as a distraction so that we can do our part. Only now, right in this moment of time we are in, has Trelane managed to begin this wish of his, of being a God."

"And because the paradoxes of time," Riker deduced, "all of this won't happen until Lal sees Trelane, and that thing inside of her comes to life as well."

Amanda-Q nodded.

As Riker continued talking, Amanda-Q was doing her hardest to make it seem as if she was paying attention to him. But she was concentrating on another matter; only moments earlier had she become aware of a strange sensation that she and Riker were being observed by another gifted being such as herself. It wasn't another Q, that she was sure of, nor was it Trelane. She decided at that moment not to reveal any more of the plan, which involved none other than Benjamin Sisko; the Emissary of the Prophets that resided in the Celestial Temple. Data finally looked up at Riker and Amanda-Q in the observation area above the lab.

"It is complete," Data said.

Lal stood up from the examination table.

"Then it is time," Amanda-Q said.

Data looked to his daughter and, in a moment of inspiration, he hugged her.

"Why did you do that; hug me?" Lal asked.

"It is a normal action, hugging," Data said. "It denotes a special bond between those involved with the embrace. Perhaps I am feeling sorrow because I realize I will never see you again."

Lal smiled as her father, one last time, and then she hugged him back.

"Thank you for my life," Lal said back to him.

"Lal, activate subprogram 12554 OMEGA 8856476 JASPER 54," Data suddenly said.

Lal's eyes closed for a just a moment, and then she turned around and walked back through the singularity.

And then, with a wave of Amanda-Q's arm, Data was gone, sent was back though time to the moment he sacrificed his life for a then Captain Picard. _And in that last moment of __life__, Data smiled at having the knowledge that Lal would exist again._

"So what happens now?" Riker asked Amanda-Q, who were alone in the lab's observation area.

Amanda-Q now sensed that the strange presence was gone, no doubt having entered the singularity, unseen, with Lal. Amanda-Q also knew that whoever the stranger was, they had now set into motion a series of events that were now weaving themselves into the paradoxical whirlwinds of time. She had no idea who the stranger was, but she sensed one thing from this unknown person; a hatred of the man named James Kirk.

Continued…


	139. Thy Kingdom Come

**James T Kirk; Naissance**

**Thy Kingdom Come**

_**Previously…**_

**Inside the Naissance sphere**, at the Starfleet complex; Kirk and Spock were discussing the matter of Lal not being affected by the dampening field, as well as the theory as to how they were brought to the Naissance in the first place….

Kirk and Spock were standing on a small hill that over looked the complex below.

"Red matter you say?" Kirk said to Spock, "what is that?"

"Red Matter is a very unstable energy source that could solve many power equations," Spock answered, "but the resulting singularity would more likely create event horizons that would tunnel through time, meaning, they wouldn't be useful for transporting people and objects in a swift manner, but to different points in time."

"Then how did we get here?" Kirk asked. "Then again, for all we know, we may have tunneled to a different point of time as well."

"I highly doubt that Jim," Spock said. "When S'vath and I sensed T'pring's death, it seemed to have happen in normal time; our time. I believe when Trelane used the singularity to bring us here, he used his own power to create it, and not Red Matter, thus, it transported us horizontally across the space time continuum."

"Alright, lets us say you're correct," Kirk said, "and we were brought here directly, and not to another time. If that's true then where did Lal go that first time when one of those things appeared in her dorm room?"

"Where indeed," Spock repeated as the two men looked over at Lal.

"I assume that you and Leforge have made the next leap in that train of thought," Kirk added. ..

_**(SKIP TO)**_

_**Earth**_

_**Austria; the city of Eisenstaedt; Inside the private home of Lawrence Thorn there is a secret lab where Riker/Amanda-Q watch Data perform a strange upgrade on his daughter Lal.**_

"How do I know, by letting you do this, letting you use Lal to destroy this entity known as Trelane, that I am doing the right thing?" Riker asked.

"His own parents are pleading with the Q to do this," Amanda-Q said, with sadness in her voice. "Trelane is much like me, at the start, when I didn't control my powers. But at least he had parents. But, for whatever reason, his parents never taught him the restraint and responsibility that comes with such power. He has become so powerful that they cannot control his impulses any longer; so they have turned to us."

"Explain to me again what exactly Data is putting inside of Lal?" Riker asked.

Riker was referring to a black object, circular in shape, and roughly the size of a man's hand. The surface of the object was solid, but it wasn't. Riker watch as Data lifted the object from a container it had been kept inside of. And as Data's fingers touched the object, small patterns rippled out from his fingers like pebbles being dropped in a calm lake.

"Don't worry William," Amanda-Q said, "Just as I assured Data, this object won't kill Trelane. It is impossible to kill an omnipotent being as powerful as the Q, or, Trelane," Amanda-Q said. "The only way we can silence his power is to implant his essence into an object like the one Data is holding," Amanda-Q explained.

"Whatever happens, I know one thing already," Riker said next. "Geordi and Obrien will conduct a diagnostic on Lal, w hen she returns to that point in time, and they won't find anything; I know, because I read that report. So, whatever happens next is happening right now inside the Naissance. Isn't it?"

"Not exactly," Amanda-Q said. "Due to aspects of the universe that would take too long to explain, and the unique properties of the object Data is putting inside of Lal, nothing will happen until she goes back through the singularity, and, sees Trelane. The moment she sees Trelane, her programming will activate, and the object Data is putting inside of her, will know what to do next."

"And that can only happen once she goes through? Why? She's going to go back to a point nearly a month or so ago," Riker said.

"Precisely," Amanda-Q said. "But the object inside of her will only activate the moment her program positively identifies Trelane. Now, we know, we meaning the Q, that Trelane is being allowed to set up his own private universe so as to practice the role of being a God, and, he's being allowed by his parents to build that universe of his around James T Kirk. Only now, right in this moment of time we are in, has Trelane managed to begin this wish of his, of being a God."

"And because the paradoxes of time," Riker deduced, "all of this won't happen until Lal sees Trelane, and that thing inside of her comes to life as well."

Amanda-Q nodded, and then.

"Lal, activate subprogram 12554 OMEGA 8856476 JASPER 54," Data suddenly said.

Lal's eyes closed for a just a moment, and then she turned around and walked back through the singularity.

And then, with a wave of Amanda-Q's arm, Data was gone, sent was back though time to the moment he sacrificed his life for a then Captain Picard. _And in that last moment of __life__, Data smiled at having the knowledge that Lal would exist again._

"So what happens now?" Riker asked Amanda-Q, both were alone in the lab's observation area.

Amanda-Q now sensed that the strange presence was gone, no doubt having entered the singularity, unseen, with Lal. Amanda-Q also knew that whoever the stranger was, they had now set into motion a series of events that were now weaving themselves into the paradoxical whirlwinds of time. She had no idea who the stranger was, but she sensed one thing from this unknown person; a hatred of the man named James Kirk.

**Our story continues…**

**(SKIP BACK TO KIRK/SPOCK inside the Naissance)**

…"Yes; Professor Leforge and I have a theory," Spock replied. "If she was taken to some other point of time, then it is possible that her android construct was then altered in such a manner that it would not be affected by the dampening field we find ourselves in as we speak."

"Which means," Kirk added, "if she was altered, in such a way that Obrien and Leforge couldn't detect it a month ago, then she was altered by someone who knew of future events that we are living through right now."

"Fascinating," Spock said, as he arched an eyebrow.

Kirk noticed that, several yards away, Geordi Leforge had fallen to his knees, obviously in some kind of pain.

"Come on Spock," Kirk said to his Vulcan friend.

The two rushed over to where Kasidy Sisko and Elizabeth Pike were comforting Geordi, who was now flat on his back, his head on Kasidy's lap. Geordi opened his eyes and saw all the people looking down at him.

"Take it easy," Elizabeth said as she offered Leforge some water.

"Wow," Leforge said, "is this what a guy has to do to get attention around here?" Geordi said, as a smile came over his face. He saw Kirk and Spock come through the crowd.

"Are you okay?" Kirk asked.

"I'm fine," Geordi said, "but more importantly; my ocular enhancements have reactivated."

"Which could possibly mean that the dampening field is down," Ben Sisko said, as he stood next to his daughter Rebecca.

"That would be great," Rebecca added.

Admiral Janeway and S'vath joined the small throng of people that had gathered around Geordi.

"Did you hear that Kate?" Kirk asked Janeway.

"There's one way to find out," Janeway said with a smile as she tapped her com badge.

The badge made its customary chirping sound. Lt. Ezri Dax, who by habit always had her Tricorder with her, opened up the device to find it working.

"It's working," Ezri said with an excited smile.

"Jim," Janeway said to Kirk, "what do you think is happening? Is this Trelane person setting you free?"

"I wish it were that simple," came from a voice from behind Kirk.

They all looked over and saw Trelane, and as usual, he was wearing a military outfit from the 17th century.

"Trelane," Kirk said, as he walked over to the powerful entity, "what's happening?"

Meanwhile, standing near the main complex, Lal had been helping some of the Starfleet crew, including Ensign Kari-Ann Giles _(readers will remember her as being the mother of the baby that Admiral Picard had to deliver in issue #103)_ build up portable med-kits from a small supply of medical supplies. She noticed the group of people in the distance, and had heard some kind of commotion, but then she saw Kirk talking with someone who was wearing a strange outfit from Earth's ancient past. And then, a program inside her matrix, one she didn't know was there, suddenly became activated; 12554 OMEGA 8856476 JASPER 54.

Lal stood up, and dropped the pouch she had been placing supplies into.

"Lal," Giles said, from where she was sitting on the ground, "are you okay?"

The android didn't answer, and instead, began to walk toward where Kirk was standing with the new comer. Ensign Giles, who had her baby next to her, picked up her child and stood up, with the intent of asking Lal where she was going, but then she felt a strong hand on her shoulder.

"You have a beautiful baby, so do yourself a favor; and just sit back down" Gary Mitchell said to Giles, "I don't know what will happen to either of you if you interfere with the act of a God."

Meanwhile, Kirk looked at Trelane, and noticed that the entity's usual exuberance was gone.

"I am dreadfully sorry Captain Kirk," Trelane said, "I hate to say it, but my powers are all gone and now I am as one of you; a mere mortal."

"Then we can leave this place?" Admiral Janeway asked Trelane.

"Not exactly," Trelane said. "My parents have not only locked me in here, without access to the outside universe, but they have also moved us to a point in the universe where, should you attempt to leave, if you could leave, you would surely be destroyed as well, my fair lady."

"Why did you bring us here?" Kasidy demanded of Trelane.

"It is all so complicated," Trelane said. "However, I do assure you, I did not wish you any harm anyone. I just wanted to show my parents that I could be a merciful God. Instead, I believe I have fallen into their trap."

Kirk shook his head, trying to understand what was happening.

"Trelane," Kirk said, "What do you mean by that?"

"I now believe that it was parent's intent to," Trelane gave the impression that he was embarrassed, "to lock me away inside of this sphere all along, a dungeon no less, with you and your friends as my companions. I haven't actually been a stalwart of good behavior in the past, so, I believe they are…"

"Grounding you," Sisko said, with a knowing look at his child, Rebecca. "Parents do that at times."

"Boy to they ever," Rebecca added with remorse.

As Trelane was talking to the others, Kirk noticed that, several yards away, Lal was walking towards them. And then Kirk noticed someone else walking behind her; a person whom Kirk had not seen in five years or so and at a point of time over a century ago. Kirk nudged Spock, who then followed Kirk's gaze.

"Spock, is that Gary? Tell me I'm dreaming," Kirk said to Spock, softly.

"Unfortunately Jim," Spock replied, as he noticed the glow emanating from Gary Mitchell's eyes, "we're not."

"I suspect this won't be a happy reunion," Kirk added, in a wry tone.

"Your grasp of logic," Spock came back with, "is quite astounding."

-continued…


	140. The Si'hg

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**The Si'hg**

The Starship Enterprise, under the command of Captain Martin Madden, was accompanied by seven other starships as the small fleet approached the area of space where the Naissance Dysonsphere had last been seen. On the bridge of the Enterprise was its former commander, Admiral Jean-Luc Picard.

"Where do you think it is, Admiral?" Captain Madden asked his former CO.

"More importantly, I would think," Picard replied, "what power in the universe could move or destroy a construct as large as a Dysonsphere?"

The Enterprise's science and first officer, an Andorian male named Cy'let Thalin, stood up from the science alcove and came to the Captain's command chair. One modification that Madden had requested was the removal of the chairs that had been placed next to the command chair. It was a throw back to another era in Starfleet bridges, but Admiral Picard allowed it, understanding the need for Captain Madden to find his own path as a starship captain.

"Captain," Commander Thalin said in his usual by the book manner, "as per your instructions, all seven ships have completed their scans of the general area and no other ships have been detected. We are detecting a debris field just ahead that appears to be that of the Hanoi."

Madden nodded to Thalin, then he looked back to Admiral Picard.

"Sir," Madden said, "I'm going to instruct the other ships to fan out ahead, or at least a couple of hours or so, to see if they can find anything else."

Admiral Picard nodded in agreement.

"Make it so," Picard finally so.

"Commander Thalin" came from Lt. Harris Winters, who manned the helm, "the deflectors have snapped on."

Thalin looked over to the tactical officer, a dark skinned human/Cardassian male, who was about as friendly as a Horta getting root-canal, but was very efficient at his duties.

"Lt Commander Dranon, I thought you reported no contacts," Thalin said quickly.

"Yes sir," Dranon came back with, in a very icy tone, "the ship has just now come into range. And according to the readings we're now getting," Dranon went on to say, "the configuration is Si'hg."

Captain Madden shot a worried look to Admiral Picard.

"Sir," Madden said, "As I am sure you know, we have standing orders from Starfleet to avoid contact with the Si'hg at all cost."

"I am aware of those orders Captain Madden," Picard came back with, "I helped write them. However, this area of space that we are in is no-where near the disputed area of space between the Federation and the Si'hg."

"Admiral," Captain Madden pressed back, "the last time I even came close to one of their ships, I got an earful," Madden paused, "from you."

Picard knew the younger officer was right. The Si'hg were even more mysterious than the Breen, so much in fact, the two sides had never made visual or audio contact, meaning that no one in the Federation, or ally, had ever seen what a Si'hg looked like; even remotely. The only messages exchanged were through the universal language of mathematics.

"Perhaps," Lt. Commander Dranon said, "the Si'hg destroyed the Naissance and the Hanoi."

"Lt. Commander," Picard said at hearing the suggestion, "if the Si'hg had the power to destroy an object as large as a Dysonsphere, they wouldn't be disputing space territory with us, the Romulans, the Breen and the Tholians; they'd be taking it."

"Understood sir," Lt. Commander Dranon said; his Cardassian features taking on a more irritated look, "the Si'hg ship has changed course and is heading directly toward the Enterprise. They should intercept our position in two minutes."

"What do you think Commander Thalin?" Captain Madden asked his Andorian first officer. "Your people have had more contact with them, albeit all of it through mathematical equations."

"I suggest caution," Commander Thalin said; his Andorian antenna twitching in a fluid motion above his head.

"As usual," Lt. Commander Dranon said, in a frank tone. It was clear that the human/Cardassian hybrid wanted to take a more direct course of action.

Picard was surprised to see such an open conversation between the Captain, his first officer, and third in command. But apparently Captain Madden preferred this sort of direct communication, and Picard respected Madden's style and said nothing about it.

Captain Madden thought about the situation, internally thankful that Admiral Picard was letting him take the lead, even though Picard was technically in charge of not only the Enterprise, but the seven other ships that were waiting for direction.

"Tell the other ships to fan out in a standard pattern," Madden said to Dranon, "we will stay here and try to convey our reason for being here to the Si'hg."

Lt. Commander Dranon allowed a smile to creep across his face, and then sent the orders to the other ships.

Captain Madden looked over to Admiral Picard, who then gave him a slight nod of agreement.

Picard knew that the small fleet had to find answers. One ship, the Hanoi, had already been destroyed, and now the entire Naissance field, an object as large as a small solar system, had vanished. Picard hoped that Riker's investigation in the disappearance of James T Kirk, Benjamin Sisko and Ambassador Spock, as well as the others with them, was faring better. In fact, Picard hoped to see Spock again due to the fact that he, Picard, was soon to take on position of Earth's ambassador to Vulcan. Spock's debriefings had proved invaluable, and the two had become good friends.

"Sir," Lt. Commander Dranon said, "the other ships are fanning out in a standard pattern."

"What about our Si'hg friends?" Captain Madden asked.

"They will reach our position in twenty seconds," Dranon answered.

The bridge crew all looked at the screen as the strange looking ship came closer. Would they be the first to actually lay eyes on a Si'hg? Time would tell…

Continued….


	141. Sins of the Mother

**James T Kirk: Naissance**

**Sins of the Mother**

It was very foggy outside, as Myran found herself walking alone toward the Golden Gate Bridge, which wasn't far from the home of Mavis Sisko. Was she trying to run from her criminal past, her criminal hidden past, or was she trying to run back? Did she miss the thrill of those long ago days? There were dozens of other places for someone to walk alone, in San Francisco, while collecting their thoughts, and yet, Myran chose the bridge; knowing full well that Talla could be there, believing she would return to that past; and to him.

Myran had once loved Talla, even though their relationship had been born out of his exploitation of her on the streets of Rigel-7. He was one of the last remnants from her former past and well hidden criminal life. For as it turned out, Myran's real name was Deena, _and just like her sister, Tyla, the two girls grew up on the mean streets of Rigel-7. They had migrated to Rigel-7, from Bajor, with their mother, a prostitute and con artist herself, who dabbled in many time small time crimes that kept food on her children's table. It was a paltry living, but such was the life. Deena and Tyla, unfortunately, would also turn to a life of subsistence on the streets. Their mother had borrowed and conned her way to a point that the only way she could repay the syndicate was to sell her daughters to the criminals who owned her soul._

_Unfortunately for the two girls, laws such as child prostitution existed on Rigel-7, but with the planet being one cesspool of corruption, the laws were easily dodged by the syndicate. The Orion Syndicate pretty much owned all of the politicians and most of the law enforcement officials. So, at young ages, Deena and Tyla were exploited by the men and women who paid for their services, and the men and women who owned them as well. Deena and Tyla were no different than any number of young souls that lived such a life; they existed in a dark world that far from the protection of normalcy._

_Eventually, when Deena (Myran) and Tyla (Cynia) were arrested for sex solicitation by a law enforcement officer actually doing their duty, the two girls were put into the foster care and orphanage system. It was there that they met Talla and Omath, two young Bajoran adolescent boys who had lived mirrored lives of Deena and Tyla, and who wanted to become crime lords themselves. The two young men worked their charms on Deena and Tyla and promised them riches if they all worked together, and found an area on the mean streets to corner as their own. The girls would sale their sexual services, while the two young men hustled illegal items such as drugs and small time arms and weapons. At first it worked, but as usual, desire for even more success brought higher demands._

_It was a fateful night when one of Deena's paying clients offered more than just the $$$ from a couple hours of paid sex. His name was Ashala, and he was a wealthy visitor who was visiting from Bajor, of all places. But he wasn't just a Bajoran male; he was a Vedik. After a night of passion with Deena, Ashala was so enamored with Deena, he asked her to come back with him to Bajor and to marry him. Talla, the ring leader of their small group, saw this as their golden ticket, and told Deena to accept the marriage proposal, and then, once she had settled into her new life on Bajor, he, Omath and Tyla would come to Bajor to finish the scam._

_Everything went according to plan. Deena married Ashala, and began her new life as a married woman, but with one problem, Deena (Myran) was actually falling in love with the man she was destined to con._

Deena collected her thoughts, as she made it to the bridge. She was about to start up the walkway that led up and over the bridge, when suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. She whirled around with anger, readying to yell at Talla, had it been him, but instead she found Mavis Sisko standing there.

"I'm sorry, I almost struck you," Myran said, with embarrassment in her voice.

"Honey," Mavis said, in an almost motherly tone, "why are you out here at this time of night."

Myran was about to respond when Mavis cut her off.

"Hush for a moment, child," Mavis said. "I have told my nephew to stop poking around into your past, and trust me, he will listen. Honey, I of all people know, there are parts of our lives that are best left in the past. Now," Mavis said, as she held Myran's hand, "you come back with me now. And stop stressing, it's the last thing that little child inside of your tummy needs right now."

Myran smiled at Mavis.

"Thank you," Myran said.

They had walked quietly for about five minutes when Mavis looked over at Myran.

"Now," Mavis said, in a whisper, "just between you and me, on a scale from one to a hundred, how bad is this secret of yours?"

They took a few more steps until Myran replied.

"Off the charts," Myran said, in a soft voice.

"I know the feeling," Mavis said, with an understanding tone, and then she hugged Myran who walked beside her. "I will always be here, if you need me." Mavis added.

The two women made their way down the deserted streets.

And, as it turned out, Myran was right. Talla had indeed been waiting by the bridge, and he watched as Mavis had interfered and had escorted Myran (Deena) away from the bridge, and away from him. And then another person walked out of the fog; Ashala, the Vedek whom Myran had married in the past. Part of Ashala's face was scarred, an injury inflicted upon him long ago; by Myran (Deena).

"I've done my part," Talla said. "And trust me," Talla added, "She doesn't know you're still alive."

Ashala smiled.

"Now isn't that a shame," Ashala said, with a sinister tone to his voice.

Continued….


	142. The Kingdom Come II

**James R Kirk: Naissance**

**Thy Kingdom Come II**

**Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere…**

The Star Fleet complex, located near the entrance of Naissance, but still a continent or two away from the actual entrance, was alive with hope ever since Kirk and the others who had traveled to the Naissance via a wormhole created by Trelane arrived at the comples. But now it was Trelane, claiming to now be powerless, who had come to apologize for bringing them to the Naissance and that he had fallen for a trap set by his own parents; to trap him inside of the Naissance for all eternity, with not only Captain Kirk, who was his most sought after play thing, but with many of his friends; as well as the science staff that manned Naissance, among them, Admiral Janeway.

And yet, as Trelane professed his apology, he, and the others, were unaware that inside of Lal, the daughter of the late Commander Data, was an object the female android had been secretly programmed to use in order to capture Trelane; forever. The object had been inside of her construct ever since she had returned the first time she had gone through a singularity which had appeared inside her room back on Earth at Star Fleet Academy. The object, made up of a strange element that only super beings such as a Q, or beings like them, could obtain, would house the essence of Trelane for eternity.

But when Lal came through that wormhole, months ago, with the object inside of her, the essence of another God like being followed her through, and was tracked in a paradoxical seem in the space time continuum that would only release him the moment real time had been intersected; which it now had been… and that being was Gary Mitchell….

The small group of people who had gathered around Trelane, who assured them all he was now no different than they were, were unaware of the threat approaching them. But as Benjamin Sisko shifted his attention over to Kirk and Spock, he noticed that the two legends were slowly distancing themselves from the others. And then Sisko followed Kirk's train of sight, and saw Lal walking toward where Sisko was standing, near to Trelane, but another person, clad in an old style Starfleet uniform, was making his way toward Kirk. Both Lal and Mitchell were about twenty yards away.

"Gary Mitchell," the whisper came from Admiral Janeway, who had also kept an eye on Kirk and Spock. "This may not turn out good for all of us."

A look of recognition came over Sisko.

"Kirk's friend from the academy," Sisko said to Janeway, "Jim once told me about him. He told me how Mitchell and another crew member, a woman, became endowed with telekinetic powers. They were both destroyed on a planet just outside the galactic rim."

"There's more," Janeway said, "A special ops team was sent to that world, years later, and no remains were ever found. That part of the record is on a need to know basis only." Janeway showed Sisko a phaser she had in her hand. Sisko nodded.

Suddenly Gary Mitchell began to speak; his voice was unnaturally amplified so that all could hear his voice; which also had a slight echo.

"Are you surprised to see me, my good, no strike that, my former best friend Jim Kirk?" Mitchell asked with a sarcastic tone to his voice.

Meanwhile, Janeway turned to Trelane.

"Look," Janeway said to Trelane, "If you have any ability to stop what is happening, do so now."

"As I told you madam," Trelane said, with failure on his face, "I no longer have any powers. I'm as helpless as you are."

"We have to be able to do something," Rebecca said to her father. "Jim and Spock will be killed."

Another person, in the small crowd, was well aware that Kirk's life was in danger, and so was the person's life who she was in love with; Spock. Elizabeth Pike did have a hidden ability, taught to her by the now extinct Talosians. And now, she concentrated on the dampening field that while pretty much dismantled by Trelane, still affected certain aspects of the complex and surrounding area.

Geordi Leforge, who had been standing near Elizabeth Pike, could see her close her eyes and concentrating. Geordi had seen enough in his long career to know that something was different about her, and that in some way, she was trying to help.

Meanwhile…

"Gary," Kirk finally said, as he distanced himself from Spock as well, "this is between you and me; so let these people go."

Gary Mitchell laughed hysterically, and then composed himself.

"Always concerned with others Jim," Gary said with a grin, "I always liked that about you. Yet, you tried to kill me when all I was guilty of doing was evolving into a being like that one," Gary said, pointing at Trelane.

"My good sir," Trelane said to Gary Mitchell, "I must insist that you stop this. I brought these people here, and I want to make things right by letting them go."

"You're a food," Mitchell said to Trelane. "Your parents have not only trapped you inside of this place, with help from the Q I might add, but they have moved this entire little solar system outside of time and space. We're all trapped, you buffoon."

"Gary; if we're all trapped here; well then help get us out!" Kirk said, hoping to play on his old friend's humanity.

"No, I don't think so," Gary Mitchell finally said. "I'm going to kill you, Jim, and then I'm going to kill Spock. What happens to the others will depend on whether or not they bow to my will and worship me like the being I deserved to be worshiped as; a God!"

Lal had made her way over to Sisko and Janeway. There was a vacant expression on the androids face; more than usual.

"Lal," Rebecca Sisko said to Lal, as she came over to stand with her father, "you don't look good. Are you alright?"

The female android closed her eyes.

"An odd program inside my core matrix has been activated," Lal said.

Geordi came over, taking his eyes off of Elizabeth Pike for the mean time.

"Does the program have a designation?" Leforge asked.

Meanwhile, streams of energy began to gather around Gary Mitchell's hands, and gained brightness with each moment, as though surging for some unknown reason.

"Gary," Kirk said to his once best friend, "you killed Kelso," Kirk explained, trying to bring sense to Mitchell's ramblings, "and he was a good friend to you. You would have killed us all had I not acted; you even said so yourself, on the Enterprise; don't you remember?"

_(events that happened in TOS episode WHERE NO MAN HAS GONE BEFORE)_

"Oh come on Jim, we both know it goes deeper than that," Gary countered with, "you twisted Elizabeth's mind against me."

"No," Kirk said, "I played on Dr. Dehner's humanity, and she saw you for what were becoming; what you are now."

"And just what am I?" Gary asked. "No; don't answer that Jim. I mean, how could you know what it is like; being a God? Let me show you how a God really works," he continued to say, with sarcasm aimed at Trelane.

Mitchell snapped his hands and Ensign Giles appeared in front of him, holding her baby. Mitchell took the baby from its mother, Giles crying, reaching out her arms to take the baby back.

"What are you doing?" Kirk asked, worried for the safety of the baby.

The baby began to cry at being scared at the sight of Gary looking down at it.

"Let my baby go, please," Giles said, pleading for the life of her child, her words barely discernable through her trembling tears…

And then she watched in horror as her child was engulfed in flames…

Instantly Janeway drew her phaser and fired it at Mitchell!

**Meanwhile, on the other side of the complex,** the main power supply couplings were being repaired. They had been partly damaged during the fire that had destroyed most of the complex days earlier. The dampening field hadn't been totally rendered inoperable by Trelane, for whatever reason. Communications were still not available, and the transporters were still out. By fixing the generators it was hoped these issues would be resolved, and leading the team to fix those generators was Captain Jonathan Canary. He was directing the repair teams when, at that moment, Canary noticed several of his fellow star fleet crew coming towards him, including Commander Julian Bashir and his wife Lt. Commander Ezri Dax.

"What's wrong?" Canary asked, sensing there was something wrong.

"Two higher forms of life," Bashir began to explain, "are in some sort of duel of fates on the other side. Unless we act fast, I believe the situation will get worse."

"Julian, you always were one for understatements," Ezri said, "how about this Captain Canary; we're all going to die unless we do something..now"

Suddenly Canary's communicator chirped; it was the Emprenda, and then the excited voice of Scotty could be heard.

**Continued…and next time! The thrilling conclusion of JAMES T KIRK: NAISSANCE...**


	143. Thy Kingdome Come III

**James R Kirk: Naissance**

**Thy Kingdom Come III**

**Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere…**

Previously…

_"And just what am I?" Gary asked. "No; don't answer that Jim. I mean, how could you know what it is like; being a God? Let me show you how a God really works," he continued to say, with sarcasm aimed at Trelane._

Mitchell snapped his hands and Ensign Giles appeared in front of him, holding her baby. Mitchell took the baby from its mother, Giles crying, reaches out her arms to take the baby back.

"What are you doing?" Kirk asked, worried for the safety of the baby.

The baby began to cry at being scared at the sight of Gary looking down at it.

"Let my baby go, please," Giles said, pleading for the life of her child, her words barely discernable through her trembling tears…

And then she watched in horror as her child was engulfed in flames…

Instantly Janeway drew her phaser and fired it at Mitchell! 

Our story continues…

The beam of energy streaked from the phaser, directly at Mitchell. But acting as if he had a sixth sense, Mitchell raised his hand and, using his own power, he deflected the phaser beam, and it struck part of the gathered crowd, nearly twenty or so, including Geordi Leforge, and Elizabeth Pike were standing, instantly vaporizing all of them.

"My God, what have I done," Janeway said, as the horror of what she had attempted to do play out. "I want no one else fire; that's an order!" Janeway ordered, nearly in hears, as her trembling dropped the phaser, realizing that the phasers were useless against the mad man, and her attempt at a quick solution had killed many of her friends.

"That is wise," Gary said to her and all them all, his voice eerily louder.

Others lowered their now drawn weapons.

Mitchell stepped back, his eyes glowing with energy.

"I will kill all of you, if and when I decide to!" Mitchell shouted, obviously in a deranged state of mind.

"Gary!" Kirk shouted back, "Stop this! This isn't the man I knew at the academy all those years ago, he would never do this!"

"No, Jim, I'm not that man anymore," Gary Mitchell came back with, a slight tone of remorse in his voice. "You saw to that!"

As Kirk and Gary bantered back and forth about betrayal, the crowd that had gathered slowly back off, at the behest of Admiral Janeway's hand motions. And as they did, Lal made her way toward Trelane, driven on by her programming. Benjamin Sisko noticed Lal's gaze, as it was transfixed on Trelane. And as she got closer to Trelane, Sisko began have a strange feeling come over him, and he recognized it immediately; the Celestial Temple was making contact with him.

Meanwhile, Kirk had been able to slightly approach Mitchell, and in so doing, Kirk had distanced themselves from the crowd, towards a growth of trees in the near distance.

"Your issue is with me," Kirk repeated to his former best friend, "don't kill these innocent people!"

"I will kill who I want! Don't you see Jim; I can because I am no longer one of you," Gary said with a sinister look on his face.

"Gary," Kirk said, with a softer voice, trying to play on Mitchell's show of remorse from a moment ago, "what happened on Delta Vega, between you and me, happened over a century ago. If you want to blame someone; then blame me!"

"Oh I do," Gary said, his voice somewhat softer, and without rage. "You tried to kill me Jim. Who was it who set you up with Carol; it was me. "

"You told me that you would have killed me, if our roles had been reversed and I had grown maniacal. Gary, your powers were becoming too great, and they were having an effect on your mind. I had the safety of the crew to worry about," Kirk explained.

Mitchell nodded in agreement.

"I know," Mitchell said finally, as he backed up towards one of the many trees in the field that surrounded the Star Fleet complex on Naissance. His eyes were not glowing as much as he leaned back against it. "You went on with your life, Jim, while mine ended."

"You're here now, Gary," Kirk told his old friend. "Come back with me, to Star Fleet. Perhaps they have some way to make you human again. No one will blame you for what you've done; but it needs to stop and needs to stop now."

And then, suddenly, Gary Mitchell's eyes began to glow brightly again; his sixth sense awakening. He stopped leaning up against the tree.

"What is it Gary?" Kirk asked.

AT THAT EXACT INSTANT…30 yards away.

[BEN SISKO WAS IN DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE LIFEFORMS THAT RESIDED INSIDE OF THE BAJORAN WORMHOLE. AND NOW HE KNEW WHAT TO DO…]

Ben Sisko made his way over to Lal, looking down at his hands as he walked slowly toward her. His hands had a strange glow coming from them, and he knew what to do. He replayed in his mind what the image of Kira told him to do only moments ago, during his contact with the Prophets.

_"The object inside of Lal can only be held by non-corporeal beings," the Kira entity explained, from outside space and time, "It was placed inside of Lal by Data, who had been given unique abilities by Amanda-Q so that he could touch it, and build the cloaked housing compartment around it, so as to hide it inside of his daughter, to wait for this given place in time. Emissary, you were once a non-corporeal being, and will always be the Emissary; you have that ability as well."_

"Lal is trying to kill Trelane," Sisko explained to the Kira entity, "but, as far as I can tell, his powers are gone. The threat is coming from Gary Mitchell."

"Yes, we know," Kira said with a smile.

"Then what must I do?" Sisko asked, as he could hear the sound of his heartbeat in the background of the all white setting he was now standing in."

"The will of the Prophets will guide you," Kira said…

…and then, instantly, he was back in the Naissance, standing near the Star Fleet Complex, and just feet behind Lal as she made her way toward Trelane, who was obviously weakened, even showing signs of gray hair. In an instant, Sisko reached out to touch Lal, but his hand passed through the surface of her android body, at the center of her back, and then he felt a strange object that was surging with power. He withdrew his hand from Lal, and was now holding a strange object which looked like, if anything, a liquid ball of crystal clear glass. Then, on impulse, Sisko whirled around to face where Kirk and Mitchell were standing, nearly a hundred feet away. And then everything went crazy!

In the corner of Sisko's eyes he could see transporter signals appearing among the gathered Star Fleet crew. He watched as Janeway's body was surrounded by a transporter beam, as well as everyone else's, including Spock.

But then something quite unexpectedly happened; someone grabbed the round, liquid object, from his hands; it was Trelane. And for a moment they both existed outside of space and time.

_"Let me do this," Trelane said to Sisko._

"I have to do this," Sisko replied, "It is the will of the Prophets."

"My good sir, trust me, the Prophets cannot see what is happening here, between you and I, because they cannot witness events that are set into motion by other non-corporeal beings, no such being can. Now, please listen," Trelane said, with a smile, as held the crystal in his hands, "this object was meant for me, I know that now. I know that my unstable personality has brought me to this moment, so why not kill two birds with one stone? Since I am the one who brought you all here, then please let my last act be that of a heroic nature. And be sure to tell Captain Kirk that I thank him for being, in some way, the kind of Father to me I never had, but wish I had; a hero. Had I not met him, I don't think I would be doing what I'm about to do."

"What will happen to you," Sisko asked, "to the both of you," he added as he thought of Gary Mitchell. "You said your parents did all of this so that they could destroy you; aren't you letting that happen by doing this?"

"Yes," Trelane said, "but just as your Prophets could not see my actions right now, nor could my parents see the events that Mr. Mitchell put into motion. And, I believe, by doing this, offering my life so as to save yours, Kirk's, and your friends, I think I have proven once and for all that I could have been a great God; one that not only had great power but showed compassion as well. And as for this Mr. Mitchell of yours, and me, we will not be killed; we will be phased into another state of being. Well," Trelane said after a moment, "I hope you endeavors in life bring you great reward. In fact, did you know that your son…" Trelane let his voice trail off, "never mind. There's no time for that now."

"Wait a moment," Sisko said, "what about my son? What were you trying to say?"

Sisko reached out to touch Trelane, but then there was a bright flash, and Sisko returned to reality, and back to the area outside of the compound.

The unmistakable sensation of being transported came over Sisko's body and he was gone, in fact, everyone had been teleported away, even Jim Kirk; but not Gary Mitchell. And then Gary Mitchell and Trelane looked up in the sky and saw, diving down from the sky toward them, five ships, all of them Klingon, and they were firing their weapons. Gary Mitchell was powerful, but not too powerful yet, and before the first Klingon disrupter blast struck where the two men were standing, Trelane began to run toward Mitchell, and he was holding the crystal. He threw the object with all his remaining might just as the disrupter blasts struck all around the immediate area, causing massive explosions.

The entities that made Gary Mitchell and Trelane who and what they were were both absorbed inside the strange crystal, which was impervious to the destructive elements of the Klingon's weapons. And when at last, several minutes later after the explosions were done, and the Star Fleet complex had been destroyed by the residual destructive blasts of the several dozen or so torpedoes, the crystal fell to the ground several hundred yards away; undamaged, rolling on the ground. The crystal finally came to a stop, next to the feet of an individual who reached down and picked up the crystal. It was Q; yes THAT Q.

"Well," Q said to the sky, as if talking to someone, who he was of course, "I hope this little mission you sent me on has earned me parole."

And then there was a flash and he Q was gone; for now.

Jim Kirk was aboard the Emprenda and was standing with Admiral Kate Janeway, Ambassador Spock, Captain Jonathan Canary, Benjamin Sisko, Montgomery Scott and General M'iaQua of the Klingon Empire.

"So let me get this straight," Janeway said to M'iaQua, "your ships never left Naissance after delivering Captain Canary. So that means you've been trapped in here, the entire time, with us."

"Correct," M'iaQua replied, with his deep voice. "Chancellor Martok ordered us to survey the inside of this massive construct, under cloak of course, for Klingon security reasons. Once the entrance was closed, and the dampening field was activated, I decided to remain cloaked. When we detected the surge of energy near your complex, I decided to made contact with Captain Scott on the Emprenda, and then we decided to launch an attack worthy of song!"

"And it was glorious," Scotty added with a laugh.

"It sure was," Kirk said to his old friend. "You saved our lives; all of our lives," Kirk added. Then he looked to Sisko. "And Trelane sacrificed his life; what an amazing end to all of this, wouldn't you say?" Kirk said, with his final words aimed at Spock.

"Amazing would not be the word I would use to describe the outcome," Spock said, "however, it was most," he paused, "fascinating."

"I must return to my ship,and return to the empire." M'iaQua said. The Klingon beamed away.

"What about us?" Geordi Leforge asked, as he stood next to Elizabeth Pike. "I thought for sure that we were dead."

"You were," Admiral Janeway said, "I'm sure of it. But the fact you appeared here on the ship when we did makes me think that Q, or someone like him, saved your lives."

"Yes," Geordi said with a smile, "it sounds like something Q would do."

"I thought Q was dead," Rebecca said.

Suddenly there was a flash and Q, wearing an Admiral's uniform, stood next to Janeway.

"I knew it," Janeway said, with an annoyed look on her face.

"Well," Q said, as he looked at the others, "don't all applaud at one time knowing that I am now among the living."

"I assume," Janeway said to him, "your being here has something to do with what went on down there."

"Yes," Q said. "The crystal containing the essence of Trelane and Gary Mitchell had to be collected. I also wanted to let you know that I have returned your little pocket solar system to its original position. I will also have you know that Jean-Luc is on his way inside."

"What will happen to Trelane and Gary?" Kirk asked.

"They will exist inside the crystal for an eternity," Q explained, "Unless, of course, they earn parole as I have."

"Just by curiosity," Captain Jonathan Canary interjected, "who sits on this parole board you keep mentioning that keeps letting these losers out?"

Q was about to answer before he totally understand the implied putdown. Q was about to reply, but shook it off.

"Well, I must be going Kate," Q said to Janeway. "Tell Jean-Luc I said hello, and hope to see him next time I'm in this area of the universe. I'm sure he'll be upset I didn't get a chance to pop in on him."

And with that said, there was a flash of light and Q was gone.

Admiral Picard's fleet of ships passed by the exiting Klingon ships and then entered the Naissance and rendezvoused with the Emprenda.

-

The next day, inside the Naissance, Jim Kirk and Spock walked nearby the construction site where the new Star Fleet complex was being built. Joining them were Benjamin Sisko and Admiral Jean-Luc Picard. Spock was speaking to Picard.

"It is satisfying to know that Admiral Janeway and Commander Bashir will not be giving up the Naissance project," Spock said. "I know that you had your doubts, Admiral Picard, however, I still believe it is a wise endeavor."

"I still have those doubts," Picard said back to Picard, "however, if Admiral Janeway believes in it then I will support her best I can. They may have to contend with the Si'gh in the near term, but Star Fleet will keep an eye out for any trouble from them. You also be happy to know that Mr. Thorn's hidden singularity lab back on Earth has been dismantled by Captain Riker, and all related projects, in terms of creating singularities, has been ordered halted.""

"Jean-Luc," Kirk said, "from what I know now of Captain Jonathan Canary, I really believe he will and his crew will be a valuable asset to Kate and Naissance mission of finding endangered species and bringing them here."

"Yes," Picard agreed, "from the lengthy reports you provide, I am sure Captain Canary he and the Emprenda will serve her cause quite well."

"Jim," Sisko said, "what are you going to do now? I have no doubt that Myran wants to return to a more simple existence, heck, even Kasidy is demanding that the two of us runaway and hide."

"Well," Kirk said to Sisko, "after I get back to Earth and reunite with her, I'm going propose that she and I return to Timus Prime and to the simple lives we had there."

"Jim, I need not remind you," Spock said, "that commanding a Starship is your first best destiny. I had to remind the other Jim Kirk that I knew the same thing; and it is the truth."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"But that Jim Kirk didn't have a wife and child, with another child on the way, as I do," Kirk replied to Spock. "And in the past year or so, with the abduction of Rebecca, the Project Diamond caper, the business with Vaal, the Talosian affair and this whole incident with Trelane and Gary; I think we're due a rest for a little while."

Spock nodded in silent agreement, and then turned his attention back to Picard.

"If all goes as expected, Admiral Picard," Spock said, 'in my capacity as Vulcan's Ambassador, I should be able to sign off on your final orders so that you can assume your new role as Earth's Ambassador to Vulcan."

"Thank you," Picard said, "it will be an honor."

"And what about you, Ben," Kirk said. What are your plans?"

Sisko, rubbed his goatee for a moment, and then replied.

"Kasidy has shown an interest in moving to," Sisko paused, "Timus Prime so as to continue her friendship with Myran."

"That would be great," Kirk said. "But I warn you; it is a quiet world; no excitement, well, unless you like to Golf."

"Oh," Sisko said, with a competitive sound in his voice, "my handicap is a five; what's yours?"

"I'm a six," Kirk replied, though it was a lie, he was more like a 3. But since he knew betting would be involved, he kept that information to himself.

"Kasidy is growing weary of my semi-active status with Star Fleet, and, my unique roll with the Bajoran. I think I can honor her wish, for a while, and go to another world to escape both fronts."

"What about you Spock," Kirk said, after a moment, "have you any idea what T'pring's lest telepathic message was all about?"

"My son S'vath, Elizabeth Pike, and I are going to return to Vulcan and look into this matter while S'vath's wife Amanda continues with her duties here at Naissance. We hope to find out more answers when we get back to Vulcan."

"Just remember," Kirk said to Spock, "if you need my help, with anything, I'm on my way."

"Me too," Sisko added.

And with that, the four Star Fleet legends continued their walk around the construction area of the new command complex inside the Naissance, content, that for now, all was right….

Coming soon…

Jim Kirk and his wife Myran return to the planet they call home; Timus Prime. But with Myran's past catching up to her, Jim Kirk may find that a peaceful life for the two of them is as elusive as can be.

Spock and his son S'vath investigate the strange warning the T'pring gave them moments before her death; a warning about Sybok, Spock's long thought dead half brother…

Coming soon; James T Kirk; Simplicity


	144. Return to Timus Prime

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Return to Timus**

**Timus Prime…**

Jim Kirk, dressed in old style Blue Jeans, of the 501 variety, with a plaid shirt and his dusty old cowboy hat, opened the door to his antique store for the first time in over a year. He listened as the door creaked open and then reached over to the right and flipped up the light switch on the wall. Instantly his eyes were greeted to his large collection of antiques, from all over the known galaxy, as well as the dust and cobwebs that had accumulated over months and months he had been away.

He took of his hat and placed it on one of the hooks on the hat stand that was located just inside the entrance. As the fresh air from outside invaded the store, Kirk took a deep breath through his nose and closed his eyes as the smell of old books, guns and other knick-knacks flooded his senses. He opened his eyes and walked over to the simple cash/credit register that was located at the lone checkout stand, and then he walked around the counter, just as he had done for nearly two years after arriving at Timus Prime.

Above the counter was a sign would now be removied; it read Robert Crane's Antiques and General Store. Robert Crane had been Kirk's alias ever since he had arrived in the 24th century. It was just by chance, while visiting Bajor, and Myran's family there, Kirk witnessed the attack upon Benjamin Sisko, and his family, when Kirk's alias was discovered. What followed next were several adventures that had put Kirk's life, as well as the lives of his wife and children, at risk.

Now, with the incident inside the Naissance Dysonsphere a couple weeks behind him, Kirk was ready to return to the simple life that he and Myran had shared on Timus Prime. With an 18 month old son, and another child on the way, very soon in fact, Kirk decided that it was about time he gave his wife what he had promised when they married; love and happiness.

It was at that moment when a large Klingon stepped through the doorway. The Klingons of the 24th century were different than the ones he had encountered in the 23rd century. Due to some sort of DNA tampering, or something like that, the modern 24th century Klingons had distinctive foreheads with ridges. In fact, in some cases, the ridges among family members were sometimes very similar, or so that was what Kirk had read once.

"Can I help you?" Kirk asked his visitor.

"You can," the Klingon replied with a deep rough voice. "My name is M'uak, you do not know me; yet."

Kirk wasn't at all thrilled with the situation. Had the Klingon come to kill him; Kirk did not know.

"Are you looking for a particular antique item? If you are, I'm going to have to ask you to come back in a couple days. I closed this shop about a year ago, and I've just started the process of opening it back up."

M'uak looked at the wall behind Kirk, where a Bat'leth was mounted.

"The weapon of a warrior," M'uak said, "can I ask how it came to be yours?"

Kirk reached up and took the Bat'leth down.

"An old," Kirk smiled at the thought of his next words, "combatant of mine. His name was Kang. I bought it from a Klingon trader of goods a year or so ago, but I'm sorry; it isn't for sale."

Kirk, his apprehension fading, handed the weapon to M'uak.

"Kang the magnificent is a legend among my people," M'uak said with pride in his voice, as he inspected the Bat'leth. "He died as a warrior when he was killed after hunting down the white albino that had killed his first born son. You," M'uak said, as he handed the Bat'leth back to Kirk, "are as much as a legend to my people as Kang; James Tiberius Kirk."

"I wish it were that simple," Kirk said, as he put the bladed weapon back up on the wall. "I'm afraid the Jim Kirk you are speaking of died several years ago on Veridian III."

"You and he are of the same mold," M'uak countered, "you share the same qajunpaQ."

"Courage," Kirk said, translating the word.

"You know the Klingon language?" M'uak asked at being surprised by Kirk's translation.

"Oh," Kirk said with a smile, "I wouldn't go that far. But, I have picked up a few words here and there."

M'uak and Kirk shared a silent eye-to-eye stare.

"So what is it I can do for you?" Kirk finally asked.

"Like you," M'uak said, "I came to this world, Timus Prime, to find a new life."

"Now that is interesting," Kirk said a tone of doubt in his words. "Timus Prime is about the most uneventful world in the known galaxy. In fact, ships are not allowed on the surface. To even live on this world one must sign an agreement to abide by the rules of surface travel; horseback or other like animals. This is the last place I would think a Klingon warrior would want to settle down at."

M'uak began to laugh, and very loudly.

"Hearing that come from you, Kirk, one of your world's greatest warriors, is very ironic indeed," M'uak said with a deep chuckle. "

Kirk began to laugh too, which started M'uak laughing again. Moments later the two settled down, and then M'uak reached into a large pouch that he wore around his broad shoulders, and pulled out a container of Blood-wine. Kirk reached under the counter and found two old dusty mugs, and blew in them to get the dust out. M'uak came over and poured wine into the cups.

"So why are you here?" Kirk asked, "I have to admit, I thought you were going to kill me."

M'uak was easily as tall as Ruk; the android that Kirk had encountered so many decades ago.

"Perhaps, in another time," M'uak said, "I would have killed you, or, you would have killed me."

Kirk drank the wine, and looked off in the distance as he thought back on his old life in the 23rd century, and his encounters with Kor, Kang, Koloth and other Klingons.

"Yes," Kirk said, as he swallowed some wine, "it was a different time. In fact," Kirk said to M'uak, "our people are allies now."

"Indeed they are," M'uak said with a nod. "My people have fought many wars since those times. And after I lost my own son to one of those wars, I decided that I did not want that kind of life, and moved here nearly three months ago."

Kirk picked up the blood wine, and poured himself some more.

"I thought Klingons strived to die in combat; don't you feel the call of the warrior?" Kirk asked.

"No more than you," M'uak said. "In fact, that is why I am here."

Kirk gave him a look of puzzlement.

"I am the new," M'uak searched for the right word, "mayor of this town."

"When my wife and I left, about a year ago, Mayor Hicks was still in office. In fact," Kirk explained to M'uak, "he was the one who sold me this store front before he took office."

"He was an honorable person," M'uak said, with genuine respect. "Unfortunately he passed away after a long bout with an illness. After a short while we held a special election, and I was voted into office."

Kirk smiled, and shook his head.

"Excuse me for smiling," Kirk said, "but a Klingon practicing democracy is the last thing I ever thought I would see."

"Yes," M'uak said with a nod of his head, "I can see the humor. Kirk," M'uak went on to say, "Our current constable is resigning as of two days from now. Apparently he wife has grown tired of the easy existence here, and wants to move on. I'd like you to replace him."

"Me?" Kirk asked innocently.

"Kirk you and I are both are here on Timus for the same reasons," M'uak said, as he put a strong hand on Kirk's shoulder, "My wife and I, and our two younger sons, are here because the call of a warrior just isn't enough for a growing number of Klingons, I being one of them. It is only racial bigotry that perpetuates the notion that all Klingons must be fanatically driven for battle. Oh, it once was, for me; but no longer. And having someone like Jim Kirk, standing side by side with me, helping to protect this world we now call home, would be a powerful, meaningful, message to send out to those who wish to come here to find such a life."

Kirk thought for about M'uak's offer.

"I'll tell you what," Kirk finally said, "I will discuss this with my wife. She didn't know who I was until after my identity was revealed last year, and I told her, when we decided to come back, that I would settle down and become the man she fell I love with. I will never go back to using the name Robert Crane, but, I will try my hardest to live a peaceful normal life with her."

"I'm sure you know, from your living here before, that there is little crime on Timus," M'uak told Kirk. "It's the kind of crime one would expect to see in a small town, or village setting. This settlement, or town as some call it, is still the only one on Timus; but it's growing. Well," M'uak said, "I hope your wife lets you do this. If not, there will be no dishonor at all, and I hope we can still become good friends. I understand her concerns, and wish you both the best, no matter which way you decide."

Kirk watched as M'uak turned and left the store and shut the door. Kirk had read many books about the old west, which was what Timus reminded him of in many ways. As a child he would actually dress up as a Sherriff, and kept law and order in the make believe worlds in his mind. It was definitely something he would think about doing for real; on Timus Prime.

Continued…


	145. Summit Grove

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Summit Grove**

Jim Kirk was atop a powerful looking horse, affectionately named Bones, as it made its way toward the place that Jim Kirk called home. He and Myran had purchased the house not long after they had married a couple years or so back. It wasn't large, but it wasn't small. It sat on three acres of land, as most homes did on Timus. Myran had requested a small garden where she could grow their vegetables and fruits, and thankfully, while they were away for over a year, their neighbors had maintained the garden. Kirk climbed down off of the horse, and lazily tied its reigns around one of the wooden planks that made up a fence that rimmed the garden.

"Honey," Kirk said, as he saw his wife sitting on one of the rocking chairs on the porch, "Just as you requested, I brought home some pickles and chocolate syrup."

Due to her pregnancy, Myran had developed some strange eating habits, and had yet let go of most of them. He reached into his riding pouch and brought out a small sack of food he had gotten at the fresh food market in town.

The nearby town, where the stores were, including his antiques store, as well as the local school, was still the only town on Timus and was called Summit Grove. At best the population of Summit Grove was four-thousand.

Kirk opened the jar of pickles and took one out and handed it to her.

"What did you do today?" Kirk asked his wife.

"Principle N'mal came by," Myran said with a smile as she took the pickle, as well as the chocolate. She dipped the pickle into the syrup took a bite. "He said they'd love to have me back when ever I want to."

"That's great news," Kirk said.

"Jim; I think the baby's real close," Myran said, as she felt her well pregnant stomach. "And we have yet to decide on her name."

They had know the of the child's sex for nearly a month, after so many friends had demanded to know so they could seen the appropriate gifts.

Kirk sat down in the other rocking chair, and reached into the jar for another pickle and bit into it.

"I gave Mathew his name," Kirk said, as he saw his young son sleeping in his crib nearby, "so, I want you to name our daughter. What about naming her after your mother," Kirk suggested; again.

"Bajoran's don't normally name their children in such a way," Myran told him; again.

"You keep telling me that," Kirk said, "and I keep telling you that there's nothing wrong with bucking tradition."

She smiled at her husband. As she watched Jim as he looked at little Mathew sleeping in his crib, she wanted to tell him about her past; the past that had recently found her on Earth. But as her minds came up with the words, her heart stopped her; and she knew why. Would Kirk turn away from her, after finding about her sordid past? She didn't want to take the risk, and decided not to tell him; for now.

"Oh, by the way," Kirk said, as he looked over at his wife, "I had a most interesting visitor at the store; the new mayor. Did you know that he's a Klingon?"

"We have a Klingon mayor?" Myran asked with a slight chuckle.

"Yes, and get this," Kirk told her, "the local constable is retiring and the mayor wants me to take his place. I told him I would discuss it with you first. Honey, make no mistake about it, I'll say no in a heartbeat. We came back here to settle down."

Myran smiled, and realized that if her husband took the job, then he would be too busy to dig into her past. She didn't like keeping this kind of secret from him, but then again, he wasn't truthful about his own interesting past as a Star Fleet legend.

"I think it's a wonderful idea," she told him with a smile. "Just promise me you will be home at a respectable hour."

"Don't worry," Kirk told her, with a reassuring tone in his voice. "I will have deputies working for me and I'll put them on the night shift."

"Well," she said, "if this is something you really want to do, then its fine with me. Oh, and I have some news for you too," Myran said. "You got message delivered earlier in the day. Apparently Sulu is moving to here Timus."

"That old codger is moving here?" Kirk asked with a laugh. "When is he expected to arrive?"

"Sometime next week," Myran said. "Apparently he purchased three acres of land not far from here, up past the second ridge."

"Huh," Kirk said, "tomorrow I think I'll take Bones on a ride up that way and check out the place."

"I would come too honey, but I think Paya (her horse) wouldn't care for the extra weight I'm carrying."

"I could hitch the wagon up," Kirk suggested.

Myran shook her head.

"No," Myran said with a smile, "that is okay. You go and have some fun tomorrow, just please get back by the early afternoon. I have some carrots I want you to plant for the garden.

"Did I ever tell you about the time when Sulu beamed down to…" Kirk continued to speak.

Myran listened as her husband told her another story about an old adventure that he and Sulu had shared somewhere back in the long ago past. She was happy that the message from his old friend had made Kirk happy and nostalgic. What she didn't tell Kirk was that he had received another message as well and it was marked urgent, and it was from; Jake Sisko.

_Next time…Spock and S'vath investigate the mystery of T'pring's warning before her death; Sybok…_

_Coming soon…Not only does Sulu arrive on Timus, but so does Ben Sisko and his family…Myran's criminal past is closing in on her…and what is Odo up to?_


	146. Minds of Matter

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Minds of Matter**

**Planet Vulcan…**

**(and don't forget to check out my profile for some great cover-art for recent issues)**

The small vessel dove out of the sky and then came to a landing atop an out cropping of dwellings near the capital of Vulcan. Spock and his son S'vath had returned to Vulcan to settle T'pring's estate. She was the last of her family line, thus there was no one to put her affairs in order after her death. Being that S'vath was T'pring's only child, it fell onto him to close out her estate. Not knowing much about the estate laws on Vulcan, S'vath had asked his father for assistance. The large doors to T'pring's abode swung open, and Spock and S'vath entered T'pring's home.

"I vaguely have memories of this place," S'vath said to his father, Spock. "Mother was always sending me to some sort of Vulcan meditation school, or other discipline study."

"The logical path for a Vulcan," Spock told his son. "My father encouraged me to attend those very same schools in my youth."

"I could never fit in," S'vath said. "Mainly because I found most of the Vulcan studies somewhat," S'vath searched for the words, "unnatural."

"S'vath," Spock said, after they both made their way into the home, and looked about the various rooms, which were studded with various Vulcan décor, "I accept your disdain for the Vulcan culture, however, perhaps we should avoid the usual debates that seem to come from such discussions."

"Oh come on father," S'vath said, as they reached what appeared to be the main area where guests would gather for meals, or conversation while enjoying the large fountain that was situated in the middle of the main area, "I do not like dislike Vulcan culture, I just do not accept is as my own. And as for our debating often; I only met Leonard McCoy on two occasions before his death, yet he told me how you and grandfather debated each other, until the illness he was stricken with took his mind from him."

"Our debates were of a political nature," Spock countered, though he knew that was not the absolute truth.

"I have one word for you," S'vath said, with a grin, "bullshit."

"Hello Spock," a voice said from behind Spock and S'vath.

Spock and S'vath turned around to see Tuvok.

"Tuvok," Spock said, "it is a pleasure to see you again. I trust you have been in good health since my last visit."

"Indeed," Tuvok said, "Logic would suggest that this is your son; S'vath. It is an honor too meet you S'vath, son of Spock."

Tuvok offered S'vath the customary Vulcan hand salute, and S'vath replied by giving Tuvok the "two thumbs" up hand gesture.

"Please do not be offended," Spock said, as he watched his son give Tuvok the two thumbs up sign. "My son has not quite followed the Vulcan way."

"My father will apologize for my greeting," S'vath said, "but I will not. Unlike him, I consider my self a child of the stars, and lean toward the customs of Earth."

"I assure you that I am not offended," Tuvok stated, in a matter of fact tone. "I have served with many distinguished humans in the past, and I assure you, I am well aware of their mannerisms."

"Good," S'vath said.

"What matter brings you here," Spock asked Tuvok.

"I heard of your arrival, and decided to offer you my assistance," Tuvok said. "One of my own uncles passed on recently, and I thought I you might be accepting of assistance."

"I grieve for your loss," Spock said, "However; S'vath and I have the task well in hand."

Tuvok nodded, and then rendered the Vulcan hand salute once more.

"Then I will take my leave of you," Tuvok said, as he turned and left.

S'vath saw a strange look on his father's face; one of curiosity.

"Father, are you puzzled by your friend's visit?" S'vath asked.

Spock looked over at his son.

"Tuvok possesses one of the most discipline minds I have ever known," Spock told his son, "His visit was most unnecessary."

"Perhaps he just wanted to say hello," S'vath countered.

"Vulcans do not just simply say hello," Spock said, with a dismissive tone in his voice.

S'vath went into the area where the food replicator was located. Pushed some buttons on the device as he continued to talk with his father.

"Father," S'vath said, after Tuvok had left, "you have managed to keep specifics of your brother shrouded in mystery. Each time I ask you about him, ever since we left Naissance, you resort to subterfuge. Just what happened between the two of you?"

Spock walked over to the large viewing window that displayed a wide vista upon the rocky desert that seemed to stretch out for infinity.

"Very well," Spock said.

"In the past, when I have tried to research Sybok, the texts here, on Vulcan, just mention his name and his father, your father, Sarek. There is no mention of his life and what he had accomplished."

"Sybok was one of the most gifted Vulcans of his time," Spock explained. "Your grandfather Sarek hoped that one day Sybok would have ascended with his disciplines and taken a seat with the council."

"So what happened?" S'vath asked, as he took two bowls of fruit from the replicator.  
"There is little if any about his life, I know; I have looked."

Spock came over and took a bowl of fruit that S'vath had offered.

"Sybok became convinced that only through emotions could a Vulcan achieve enlightenment. He denounced the theories of Surak, and then tried to spread his philosophy; and for that he was exiled."

"My uncle was a," S'vath bit into a fruit that was much like an apple from Earth, "heretic?"

"That is a harsh word to describe your uncle's beliefs, though the tone of the word nearly fits." Spock said. "Many years later, and while under the influence of an alien entity in deep space, Sybok became convinced that the fabled world of Sha Ka Ree actually existed at the center of the galaxy."

"I can see why you have been a bit sketchy on the details," S'vath said. "I think I would have gotten along with your brother quite well if all that he did was debate dogma."

"S'vath, the difference between you and my brother is quite simple; where you have investigated different philosophies over the years, of which I have never tried to interfere with, he had intentions to forcibly spread his beliefs, in matters such as in Sha ka Ree, upon the population of Vulcan," Spock explained.

"So what happened to him?" S'vath asked.

"He commandeered the Enterprise," Spock went on to explain, "And took us to the center of the galaxy to seek out the world of Sha Ka Ree. We found a world, in the center of the Great Barrier, however, it was not Sha Ka Ree, and the entity that existed there was not a deity at all. Ultimately, Captain Kirk was forced to destroy the entity, and Sybok's life was lost in the process."  
"Did my mother know Sybok?" S'vath asked, after several moments of silence.

"There is no way to be certain," Spock said.

"Could this be one of her ploys?" S'vath came back with.

"No," Spock answered quickly. "While T'pring and I were not close after the events of our Koon-ut-kal-if-fee, her warning had seemed genuine."

"If your brother managed to survive the events you spoke of, could he pose a real threat?" S'vath asked.

"Yes," Spock replied.

S'vath had never known his father to show worry in his voice; and hearing it in Spock's voice now was a concern that even S'vath could not deny.

…and S'vath did have a reason to be concerned. Because while Spock and S'vath were now on Earth, Sybok was already on the move, and he was heading to the Naissance Dysonsphere…

continued…


	147. The Forgotten

**The Planet of Timus; the town of Summit Grove…**

The sounds of laughter and loud music came from Summit Grove's only dining establishment, which, to Constable James T Kirk, was nothing more than a saloon; almost straight out of the old west of America. The particulars were almost the same. Gold strikes, the herding of cattle, and the expansion west is what drove the hearts and sounds of those old "cowboy" towns centuries ago.

In the later parts of the 24th century, on the planet Timus, a planet far from Earth, the hearts and sounds that fueled the lone town of Summit Grove were the mining of Dylithium, as well as other tradable elements. Timus was ripe with precious elements but because of laws against complex modern day forms of mining, due to their power consumption, only a person's strength would bring them the wealth they sought.

For the most part, those who came to Timus were well behaved, if not occasionally rambunctious. Once a week, Ferengi purchasers of precious metals and elements would arrive, on Friday, to buy whatever the miners had to sell. That meant, on Friday night, with fresh credits to spend, the saloon was crowded and the town was alive with energy and commerce.

It was Friday night, as Jim Kirk closed up his Antique shop. This was the one night where his duties as Constable would stretch out to the early morning hours of Saturday. There was bound to be a fight or two between two drunks, usually over a woman that both combatants wanted. Since prostitution was legal on Timus, the women, and men, who sold their bodies for sex, were of highest quality. This was due to heavy regulation of the health standards that were required to maintain a sex-server's license.

Since the population on Timus was regulated, only about a hundred prostitutes were licensed. Which mean the nearly three to four hundred miners that flocked to the saloon were on a first come first serve basis, unless of course, they were outbid.

But, even with that, the mood of the minors was usually positive, and why not? The Ferengi actually paid well, due to their not wanting the Orion Syndicate to muscle in on their territory. A Ferengi whom Kirk had already had a prior working relationship with was named Quark. Kirk's good friend Spock had vouched for Quark. Apparently, while on Romulas, Spock had used Quark's services many times with smuggling out dissidents or smuggling in banned literature, and the like. Kirk found Quark waiting for him the moment he walked outside into the nighttime air.

"Quark," Kirk said, "I thought your transport vessel would be long gone by now."

"I just came from that place you call a saloon," Quark said, "and, just like I told you last week when I was here, I could take control of that place and make a real winner."

"I'm not stopping you from buying it," Kirk said. "You run honest games, and you won't have an issue with me. Besides, why would you want to leave that place of yours on Deep Space Nine?" Kirk asked, as the two made their way down the quiet sidewalk.

"Morn, one of my most trusted customers, and loudest I should add, has offered to buy it as a franchise," Quark said. "And with Rom and Nog no longer aboard DS9, sometimes it just doesn't feel the same."

"How is your nephew doing?" Kirk asked.

"Despite my better judgment, he has decided to stay in Star Fleet." Quark said, with disappointment in his voice. "I thought for sure that after nearly being killed by that planet killer, and what happened inside the Naissance solar system, he would have wanted to take the severance package Star Fleet offered him. But no," Quark said, "after just one pep talk with Sisko and Admiral Janeway, he's ready to dive right back into his Star Fleet career; fool."

"Well," Kirk said, "I don't think Nog is a fool at all. I think he made the right choice, and I'm glad he has someone like Ben and Kate to help him when he needs words of encouragement."

"We'll see how you feel when your son wants to join Star Fleet, and ends up risking his life in useless battles."

"My son," Kirk said with pride, "the starship captain; I like the sound of that."

They crossed the dirt road, and headed for the saloon. As they were about to step in, a loud smashing sound came from above from one of the hotel rooms located in the above floors. The room was just two stories up from the saloon's entrance. The man who came flying out of the window landed in a trough of water that was used by the horses and other animals that belonged to the patrons inside the bar. Kirk looked up and saw Wendy, one of the sex-servers, poking her head out of the window.

"What happened?" Kirk called up to Wendy from where he stood next to the trough.

"He got a little wild for my taste," Wendy replied. "When I told him that I didn't like (CENSORED FOR RATINGS) sex, he wouldn't let me go, so I shoved him out the window, and told him, how's that for backdoor action!"

"All right," Kirk said back to her. "I'll take care of this scum, don't worry about it."

"What are you going to do with him?" Quark asked.

"Take him down to the jail and let him sleep it off," Kirk said.

Jim Kirk reached down for the man who was in the trough. He pulled the stranger up and hoisted him up on a horse, and then he took the reins of the horse and headed to the local jail, the horse following him at a slow trot. After dropping of the drunken man, Kirk would have someone come fetch the horse. Quark walked beside Kirk.

**Later…**

"Odo would have pretty much done the same thing, when he was the Constable on Deep Space Nine. You do gooders all act the same." Quark said.

The drunken man from the saloon was in one of the three jail cells. Kirk was in the front of the office filling out a report on the incident. Quark held the man's wallet, which Kirk had pulled from the prisoner's back pocket.

"Is there any identification?" Kirk asked the Ferengi.

Quark opened up the wallet, and found a common ID badge.

"Huh," Quark replied. "That loser you have in your jail has an interesting name," Quark said as he handed Kirk the ID badge.

Kirk took the ID and turned it upright. He looked at a picture on the ID, and it matched the man's face in the jail cell. Then he read the name at the bottom of the ID.

"Harrison Riker," Kirk said, and then he looked over at Quark.

"Captain William Riker was a lady's man before he married," Quark said. "This could easily be a kid of his."

"Or," Kirk said, as the thought back on a man who was a friend of his for only a short while, "he could be a son of Thomas Riker."

And as time would show; Kirk was right….

Meanwhile, several miles away, at Jim Kirk's house, Myrna's breathing had become tight; she had gone into labor. She reached for the button on the side of her bed and pressed it. Instantly two nursing aids came rushing in, and they prepared Myran for transport. While use of Transporter machines was frowned upon, on Timus, in such emergency cases as child birth, it was allowed. Moments later; all three women were beamed away, one of the nurses holding little Mathew in the process.

Back in town, Jim Kirk's communicator began chirping.

"Oh my," Kirk said, with a look of panic on his face.

"Is something wrong?" Quark asked.

"Myran has gone into labor; I have to go to the hospital. C'mon," Kirk said, as he stood up and grabbed his hat. Quark followed him out the door and down the street.

"I was thinking," Quark said, as he walked along side Kirk, "can I sell T-shirts of you and your family. I bet they would rake in serious latinum."

Kirk laughed at the thought...

Meanwhile, back inside the jailhouse, Harrison Riker opened his eyes the moment Kirk and Quark were gone. A fiendish grin spread across Riker's face as he slipped a small fingernail file out of a hidden pouch on his left sleeve.

**Elsewhere...**

A Vulcan science vessel came out of warp and approached the Naissance Dyson Sphere. Aboard her were several Vulcan scientists that would accompany the Emprenda's first rescue mission of an endangered plant life on a planet deep inside the Klingon Empire. And although all the passengers were listed as scientists, one had forged credentials and would not continue on with the Emprenda and her mission.

His name wasn't really So'tol, as it was believed to be by the other passengers; that was just his alias. His real name was Sybok, and the reason he had come to Naissance was more personal; a little Vulcan child named Lenora. She was the daughter of S'vath and Amanda, and grandchild of Sybok's brother…Spock.

Continued….


	148. The Hand of Fate

**James T Kirk; Simplicity**

**The Hand of Fate….**

_Two different women, in two different places in the galaxy, and both of them prepared to experience what some, even in the later part of the 24__th__ century, might even consider a miracle; child birth._

**On the planet of Timus,** Myran Kirk, wife of James T Kirk, had gone into labor. She was at her home, and when the time came, the two nurses who were on hand to care for her contacted the local hospital and they were beamed straight there. The use of Transporters on Timus was generally frowned upon, except in the case of medical situations and other critical conditions, such as child birth.

As soon as the Transport was complete, Myran was inside the hospital's delivery room. Myran was Bajoran, her husband, Kirk, was human. This would be, if successful, their second child and it was going to be a girl. Her name was to be Dahme, pronounced day-me, in honor of Myran's grandmother on her father's side of the family. Bajoran children didn't normally have middle names, but Dahme was half human, and Jim Kirk decided to use the chance to honor the late Nyota Uhura by giving his daughter the middle name of Nyota; Dahme Nyota Kirk.

**Nearly a thousand light years away, inside the Naissance Dyson Sphere**, Amanda was about to give birth. She was the wife of S'vath, the son of Spock and T'pring, and this too was to be their second child, and it was to be a boy. Normally Vulcans did not name their children in honor of family members who had passed away within the recent two-hundred years or so. But being that Amanda was human, and S'vath didn't really care for Vulcan tradition, they decided on the name of Sarek; in honor of S'vath's iconic grandfather.

Amanda was in her quarters at the recently rebuilt Star Base facility inside the Naissance. The unborn child, still inside her womb, began to have erractic life signs. It caused Amanda to go into labor, and so she was taken to the medical department. Commander Julian Bashir, who had delivered many babies in his medical career, was immediately alerted and he instantly sprung out of bed, kissed his sleeping wife Ezri, and zipped out of their quarters and headed to the medical department to deliver the baby.

So, two women, separated by the depths of space, prepared to bring a new life into the universe. Unfortunately, one of the mothers was going to die, and her child would begin a most incredible adventure; which one? Read on...

* * *

But it all started two hours earlier as a Vulcan science vessel achieved parking orbit above the Star Fleet complex inside of the Naissance Dyson Sphere. The Vulcans had arrived to assist the construction of a large botanical complex on one the continents inside Naissance. After the construction of the botanical complex, the Vulcan science vessel would accompany the Emprenda on its first rescue mission of endangered plant life on a far off planet.

But one of the Vulcan scientists that had arrived was not really a scientist at all. His name wasn't really So'tol, as his credentials read; his name was really Sybok, and he was there for an entirely different reason.

An hour after arriving in a parking orbit above the Star Fleet complex, a small group of six Vulcan scientists beamed down to take a tour of the newly rebuilt structure, and one of the Vulcans doing so was Sybok…

* * *

Six Transport signals solidified and introductions were made. Conducting the tour was the lead nurse on the overnight shift. Her name was H'tai Musao. She was a woman of Japanese descent, and rather attractive too. The Vulcans were all male.

"Welcome to Naissance," Nurse Musao said in a pleasant tone. "Our chief medical officer, Commander Bashir, is not on duty at this early hour, but he will be here later on to answer any questions that I can't help you with now. So, with that, I will show you the highlights of our recently rebuilt medical department."

The complex had been totally destroyed by fire, and the Klingon attack on the person known as Gary Mithcell. But thanks to modern construction techniques, most of which were donated by the Romulan government (specially designed replicators) the new complex was built.

Sybok blended in quite well with the other Vulcans, having shaved his beard before joining the crew back on Vulcan. But more importantly, he had already made telepathic contact with the baby that Amanda Grayson was carrying. This unusual telepathic contact was possible due to the fact that, before Amanda had conceived the infant inside of her, Sybok had secretly supplied T'pring with an illegal genetically engineered substance. All those months ago (_as readers will recall_) T'pring had gone to visit her son, S'vath, and his wife Amanda, under the pretext of family dynamics. But Sybok was actually using T'pring to further his own diabolical plans by placing the substance in Amanda's food.

As the tour made its way through the medical complex, Sybok's mind sought out the unborn child, telepathically. Fate was kind to Sybok, because, as it turned out, Amanda Grayson was no longer aboard the Emprenda, which was also in parking orbit above complex. Due to her pregnant state, she had been transferred to the complex. Thanks to the genetic enhancers in the baby's system, Sybok's telepathic connection with the unborn child was strong. He then used that connection to make the unborn child undergo irregular heartbeat, which would spur the medical staff into action.

* * *

In another section of the complex, Captain Montgomery Scott was being tended to as well. He had complained of chest pains, and had been admitted, and was now a patient. Although it was just 0400 in the morning, Scotty was already wide awake, having long ago adopted the erratic sleeping habits of a Star Fleet officer.

"Captain Scott," Nurse Reynolds said, as she came in with a plate of oranges for him to eat, "you're up already, as usual."

Nurse Reynolds was a human female in her late fifties.

"Oh yes lassie," Scotty said with a smile. "Blame me early rising on all these years I've been in Star Fleet," Scotty said.

She placed the oranges down on the tray that was in front of him as he sat up in bed.

"My husband was the same way," Nurse Reynolds said to him.

"Star Fleet?" Scotty asked, as he ate one of the orange slices.

"Yes," Nurse Reynolds said, with fondness in her voice. "He was killed in the Dominion War, but I still get up at," she paused, "0300 in the morning, just as I did when I would see him off to work before I went to work."

"And you think I'm an early riser?" Scotty asked back.

"Oh no," Reynolds said, as she looked at Scotty's plate. "I forgot your glass of water," as she headed towards the door. "I'll be back in a second with it."

"Take ya time," Scotty said, "I'm not goin' anywhere."

She smiled and then headed out of the room, leaving the door open as she did.

As Nurse Reynolds headed to the replicator station in the main area, the Turbo-lift opened and the tour, with the six Vulcans, including Sybok, arrived and they all stepped out and followed Nurse Museo. As Museo explained the various areas of the section they were touring, Scotty could seem them through the open door.

"Must be a Vulcan circus in town," Scotty said quietly to himself, as he saw the small group of Vulcans. But then, as he looked at the doctors, his eyes focused in on one of them. Scotty couldn't quite place it, but he recognized the Vulcan. And then suddenly the Vulcan looked looked in Scotty's direction; their eyes locked together for a brief moment. And then, at that instant, Nurse Reynolds entered Scotty's room with a glass of water, and shut door.

"Here you go," Nurse Reynolds said, as she placed the glass of water on Scotty's tray. "I have to check on another patient, so I'll be back in a moment or two."

She opened the door, and left, and Scotty stared out at where he had seen the Vulcan he seemed to recognize, and just as he did; Sybok entered Scotty's room and shut the door.

"Mr. Scott," Sybok said. "It has been a long time; too long."

"I know you," Scotty said. "Who are you?"

Sybok smiled.

"Oh, they think I'm a traveling Vulcan scientist, however, I think if you pictured me with a beard, you would know I am nothing of the sort."

Scotty's mind raced back into time, back to when the Enterprise-A had been commandeered by a religious fanatic.

"Sybok," Scotty said softly. "Ya be alive…"

"Yes," Sybok said, with an intense look on his face.

Scotty saw the Sybok's name tag, and the name So'tol displayed on it.

"So'tol," Scotty said with a chuckle in his voice, "so I assume they donn'a know who ye are?"

"Correct," Sybok said, "and unfortunately, for you; you do."

Before Scotty could say another world, Sybok came over to where he was on the bed and applied a seldom used Vulcan physical attack called Tal-Shaya, snapping Scotty's neck. As the life inside of Scotty's eyes ebbed, Sybok frowned at him.

"I am truly sorry, Mr. Scott," Sybok said. "I did not intend to kill; however, I need the diversion."

Sybok knew that the nurse's station would detect the loss of a life sign in Scotty's room, and so he left the room; and headed for the maternity section of the complex.

Continued….


	149. Relocation

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Relocation**

**Earth…**

**San Francisco**

**The home of Mavis Judith Sisko…**

Benjamin Sisko was sitting in a very comfortable reclining chair in the living room with a glass of wine. An old style reading lamp, one of the many heirlooms that were part of what made his sister's home so alluring, was providing reading light. With both Rebecca and Kasidy asleep in the guest room, Ben took advantage of the alone time to look at the scrapbooks that lined two book shelves in the living room. Mavis, his older sister, came in and sat on the couch. She had made the scrapbooks herself, carrying on the tradition that of scrapbooking that had been passed down from generation to generation. They were made from holopics, and old 2-D pictures, which Mavis was always fond of.

"Which one you looking at," Mavis asked, as she sat down on the adjoining recliner, with a cup of tea in her hand.

"Oh, I don't know," Sisko said, as he picked up the glass of wine and took a sip. "It's the one with lots of holopics of Jake and dad. I always liked this one."

Sisko pivoted the scrapbook so that Mavis could see the picture. It showed Jake and his grandfather, Joseph, holding a large fish between them.

"That was a pretty big fish," Mavis said.

"Oh yes, it was." Ben said, with a wide smile on this face. "And it was not a holodeck creation; it was real. I think it won them second place in that fishing tournament. Jennifer and I were really proud of him that day."

"Look how small Jakes is in that picture," Mavis said with a smile of her own. "Daddy was so proud of Jake too. Whenever I went down to New Orleans and visited him, he would go on and on about Jake and his writing. Although it came at a rough time in your life, I'm glad you came back to Earth after the death of your friend Jadzia. I think it gave dad one more chance to be your father."

"It was a hard time," Ben said, in retrospect. "And then the whole thing about Sarah came out."

"I hope you're still not mad for me not telling you. Daddy swore me to secrecy because he was so worried that if you found out you would have been devastated."

"It's all in the past now," Ben said.

Ben took another sip of wine, and placed the glass down.

"I should be getting to sleep myself," Ben said to his sister. "Kas and I are getting up really early to catch that Transport tomorrow."

"Ben," Mavis said, "why don't you just move your family back here to Earth? Rebecca is going back to the academy tomorrow, and I know you and Kas miss her so much. I still have my other house, you could use it."

"We thought about moving back here, back to New Orleans," Ben replied. "But Rebecca told us not to. She wants to make her own way through the academy without her dear old dad waiting to rush in and help when the tough gets going; and I respect that. Besides, we're not going to Bajor just yet."

"Are you finally taking Kasidy on that honeymoon you've been promising her ever since the two of you got married?" Mavis asked, with a smirk on her face.

"Actually, if you really need to know, we're going to go spend some time on Timus," Ben said.

"That's the world where Jim and Myran met and went back to." Mavis stated softly. "I know this may sound funny, but you've been trying to get me off of Earth for all these years, and you know what? I think I'd like to go with you to Timus."

"What about your librarian career," Sisko said, "you can't just walk away from that."

"Yes I can, and I want to," Mavis said. "I've got enough credits saved up for a trip, so I'll get my own place. Ben, in the weeks that Myran stayed with me, she and I became real close. I almost think of her as a daughter, and with her baby on the way, I would love to help her out as much as I can."

"From what Jim described to me," Ben said, as he finished his wine, "Timus prides itself on very limited use of modern technology. In fact, horseback and other forms of animal transport are the only modes of travel in the settled area of the world. Transporters are frowned upon a well. You might say that the population there harkens back to the mid to late 1800s on Earth."

"Well," Mavis said, as she picked up her brothers now empty glass of wine and took it to the kitchen, "it sounds like fun and I'm going with you whether you want me to or not."

Mavis had another reason to go. She couldn't help but think that Myran was in danger, from a past she wouldn't admit to. Mavis was sure the young woman would need an ally if the deck of cards she had built began to tumble.

* * *

**Star Fleet Academy…**

After leaving Naissance, Lal and Geordi Leforge went to the Daystrom institute where Lal was put through several diagnostics. Ambassador Picard, who was very weary of the Daystrom institute, ever since the incident with Admiral Haftel, asked Leforge to supervise every diagnostic the scientists at Daystrom performed on Lal. Geordi Leforge understood Picard's concern, and never left Lal's sight during her stay at Daystrom. From there, they headed back to Earth, and back to Star Fleet Academy.

Both Lal and Rebecca had been given, ironically enough, extra credit for their ordeal in the Naissance. They had also been given a new room on the other side of the dorm facility from where their old room had been. Geordi Leforge had accompanied her to the new room, and was about to leave.

"Hopefully the two of you will be able to get back to your studies," Leforge said with a smile, "and be normal students again. Rebecca should be getting back here tomorrow, and I'll be here too, if you need to talk."

"Thank you Geordi," Lal said. "I'm glad that Captain Riker told me about seeing my father again. Apparently my memory of seeing him, again, was purged by either him or the female Q that William Riker spoke of."

"Lal, you must remember that your father knew that you would not be destroyed by the device he had hidden inside of you, or he would never have done what he did." Leforge told her.

"I know," Lal said. "I just wish I could have kept the memory of seeing him."

"Well, I better go," Geordi said. "I have a class early tomorrow morning; you take care."

And with that, Geordi Leforge left the room, leaving Lal alone.

Lal began to unpack her things. And then, in the corner of her eye, she saw something move. It was a vase of flowers that, right before her eyes, seemed to turn into liquid and then it dripped on to the floor and started to morph into another shape; the shape of a man; it was a Changeling!

* * *

**The Planet of Timus…**

In orbit of the planet Timus was a small sized spaceport for would be visitors to Timus. From there, new comers were ferried down to the planet in small landing craft to the main receiving station just outside of the only settlement on the planet; Summit Grove. One such landing craft had just arrived with new comers, and one of them was a Bajoran man named Talla, and he had come to Timus to find a woman whom he knew as Deena, but had a new name now; Myran.**

_**the issue #123 "__Sins of the Mother__" is where you can read again, if you wish to, about the Myran's secret past…_

Continued….also, I am currently writing another story called "My Star Trek". Its about me, yes me the writer of this story, trapped in the world of Star Trek! I'm writing it in a "Blog" kind of way, so check it out or at my FACEBOOK page. Look for ROBERT BENSON on facebook, and let me know what you think...

Rob


	150. Revelations

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Revelations**

With the day over, and T'pring's estate settled, Spock and S'vath had shared a dinner at one of the restaurants located in the Vulcan city of Shi'Kahr, which was also the city Spock had been born. It wasn't a Vulcan restaurant they ate at, but an Italian one.

Years earlier, Spock had purchased a modest abode in Shi'Kahr, and it was there he and S'vath would sleep over before S'vath would catch a Transport vessel the next day and begin his travel back to Naissance.

They exited the restaurant and walked the path that led to Spock's home, which was located a mile or so away.

"Italian food," S'vath said, looking at his father, "you would be the last person I would expect to see eating it."

"Yes," Spock said, "although there was a time when I did not care for Italian food. As I have gotten older, I have learned to appreciate the taste of," Spock paused, "tomato sauce and garlic."

S'vath chuckled.

"One day," S'vath said, "you will have to try eating spaghetti with sausage."

"I will not eat the meat of an animal; you know this already." Spock said.

S'vath sighed.

"Oh well," S'vath said. "I guess I'll just have to settle with watching you eat buttered garlic bread. I've really enjoyed our time together these past few days father."

"It has been most gratifying for me as well; my son," Spock said back to him.

"So," S'vath said, as they walked along the path, "what about you and Elizabeth Pike? I think she is," S'vath chose his next word carefully, "interested in you."

"Elizabeth is a kind woman," Spock said.

"And very attractive, and," S'vath said with a pause, "blond. I am quite versed with human culture, and there was once an idiom on Earth that blonds liked to have fun."

He looked at his father, raising his eyebrows in an alluring way.

S'vath, while only one quarter human and three quarters Vulcan, had long since given up the usual Vulcan path of logic, instead embracing more of a human existence, which meant that sometimes his choice of words was, at best, unorthodox to other Vulcans. But, then again, Spock was actually more human than his son.

"S'vath," Spock said, as S'vath prepared for another of his father's lectures, but was surprised when Spock said, "I am well versed in human culture as well, and of that idiom you speak of."

S'vath understood the meaning quite well, and shook his head up and down with a smile. For the first time in his life, S'vath felt as if he had communicated with his father in ways beyond the typical Vulcan manner; and that, to S'vath, was very satisfying indeed.

The two reached Spock's home, and then settled in for the night. The room had two beds, and they each took one. Before sleep came to S'vath, he looked over to his father on the other bed, believing him to be asleep.

"Father," S'vath softly said, "I love you."

Spock, his face pointing in the other direction, heard his son's words, and then a lone tear came out of Spock's left eye.

Two hours later…

Spock opened his eyes, just in time to see the blade of a knife plunging down toward his eyes. Almost as if on instinct, Spock tucked his body in and rolled toward his attacker, a move he had seen Jim Kirk do many times. Most victims would roll away from an attacker, giving the assailant's e eyes a better target to track than a moving motion toward them. But this simple move had saved Kirk's life on many occasions. Although he wanted to, Spock decided against responding with a flying Kirk kick; knowing that only Kirk could actually defy gravity and make it work.

It was dark, and Spock had no idea who was trying to kill him.

"Lights," Spock barked loudly.

The lights turned on and revealed the attacker; it was Tuvok, who was now being held in a choke hold by S'vath.

"Tuvok," Spock said to his good friend, "can you hear me?"

S'vath struggled to keep Tuvok in the choke hold, as Spock moved in closer to get a better look.

"His eyes," Spock said to S'vath, "they are full of rage. I seriously doubt he has any cognizant thought in this state of rage."

"Father," S'vath said, "why the hell is he trying to kill you?"

"Hell," Spock said to S'vath, "really?"

Suddenly the chimes to the home's entrance rang. Before going to answer it, Spock reached out and placed his right hand on the lower left hand side of Tuvok's neck; applying the Vulcan neck pinch. Tuvok's body went totally limp.

"I will go see who our visitor is," Spock said as he left the room and headed for the main entrance of the house; the front door, for lack of a better term.

Spock opened the door to find the newly minted Earth ambassador to Vulcan; Jean-Luc Picard.

"Ambassador Picard," Spock said.

It was obvious to Spock that Picard's disheveled appearance was due to being woken unexpectedly as well; but for an entirely different reason.

"Pardon the intrusion, but I have the most disturbing information to tell you, may I come in?" Picard asked.

"By all means," Spock said, as he opened the door and let Picard in.

The former Star Fleet officer, and now ambassador, entered the dwelling and was greeted with the sight of Tuvok slumped over on a chair, having just been placed there by S'vath.

"What is happening here," Picard asked.

"Moments ago he just tried to kill my father," S'vath said, staring down at Tuvok, who was still out cold due to Spock's neck pinch.

Picard shot Spock a look of concern.

"Are you alright?" Picard asked.

"Luckily I sensed his mind before he was able to attack," Spock. "Ambassador, what brings you here at such an hour?"

"I regret that I must inform you the both of troubling information," Picard began to say. "The first piece of information is that Captain Montgomery Scott is dead."

Spock seemed to stare of into the distance, as S'vath came over to him. S'vath dragged another chair over, and helped Spock sit down on it.

"Ambassador," Picard went on to say, as he knelt down next to the chair Spock was sitting on, "Mr. Scott was murdered."

Spock pivoted his head to face Picard.

"How can you be certain?" Spock asked as S'vath handed him a glass of water.

"His neck," Picard replied, "it was snapped. And according to the official report filed by Dr. Bashir, it was the result of a pressure applied in a certain way that…"

"Tal-Shaya," Spock said, finishing Picard's sentence for him.

"Yes," Picard said. And then Picard looked up at S'vath, who was still standing. "And that isn't all," Picard said. "The assailant, after killing Mr. Scott, broke into the maternity room and abducted your wife's child, which she had just given birth to."

Spock looked over at the slumped over Tuvok.

"Father," S'vath said, as he knelt down in front of Spock. "We've got to do something." And then he too looked over at Tuvok. "His trying to kill you, the abduction of my son Sarek, and the killing of Scotty must all be related."

"Sybok," Spock said silently.

"Excuse me?" Picard asked. "I thought your brother was killed over a century ago."

"Before T'pring's death aboard the Hanoi, just outside of the Naissance," Spock said, "she sent us a warning about my brother. It appears as if her warning was true."

S'vath stood up, with anger in his eyes.

"Father," S'vath said, "you may follow the Vulcan edicts of calm response, but I don't. I'm going to hunt your brother down, get my child back, and then I'm going to KILL Sybok! And this one must know something!"

S'vath went over to Tuvok, and yanked him out of the chair and pinned him up against the wall.

"Wake up!" S'vath barked, "you son of a…BITCH!"

continued…


	151. Echo from the Past

**Star Trek: Simplicity**

**Echo from the Past**

**The planet of Timus….**

Both mother and child were sleeping soundly on a med-bed as Jim Kirk sat next to them, holding his wife's and hand. Jim Kirk smiled down at them. He thought about his life and, at times, he found it hard to believe that he, James T Kirk, was now a family man. And yet, here he was, with a wife and two children. Mathew, who was going on two years old, and now baby Dahme, the beautiful infant that Kirk's wife Myran had just given birth to.

He reached out and pressed the button to dim the lights all the way down, and then he stood up and left the room, letting Myran and Dahme sleep carefully. He made his way over to the nurse's station to the on-duty nurse, a female Tellerite named Grov'th, who was manning the post.

"I'm going to step for a little while," Kirk told the Tellerite female, who was standing on a ramp on the other side of the counter that made it appear she was taller than the 3 feet she really was.

"I contact you…if need be," Grov'th said in a rough voice.

"Thank you," Kirk said, as he turned and headed for the hospital exit.

He found Quark sitting in the waiting area. Quark actually was sleeping in one of the chairs. Kirk sighed at the thought that Quark was starting to show the signs of being a friend, Kirk shook his head in disbelief, but it was true.

"Quark," Kirk said, as he reached down and tapped the Ferengi on his shoulder.

Quark opened his eyes.

"Ahh," Quark said, "I was just reading this holonovel they had here in the waiting area," he said as he showed Kirk the book, "some sort of romance novel by Jake Sisko," Quark explained, "by page three I was out cold."

"Lets go get something to eat, it's on me," Kirk said as he reached a hand down and helped Quark up.

"How are your wife and child?" Quark asked.

"Sleeping soundly, so, this will give me a chance to check back on our guest in the jail cell, and get some breakfast too." Kirk said, as the two exited the hospital.

The hospital was located near the outskirts of Summit Grove. Kirk's horse, Bones, was tied up to the hitching post outside,

"How did you get here?" Kirk asked Quark.

"I walked from the hotel," Quark said, pointing at the building in the distance.

"That has to be at least three miles," Kirk said. "Here," Kirk said, "get up on the horse; I'll give you a ride back to town."

"Are you crazy," Quark said, as he eyed the horse, "I'm not getting on that thing."

"I'll sit in front," Kirk said, "don't worry."

Quark, not wanting to take the long walk back, followed Kirk's direction and, in several quick moments, was up on the horse. Kirk climbed up and soon Bones was trotting back to town with the two friends atop her.

"If you ask me," Quark said, "prohibiting modern forms of travel, such as Transporters or personal carriers, has to be one of the dumbest ideas."

"I love it," Kirk said. "This low-tech way of life appeals to some, Quark, and Timus is peaceful world because of it."

The horse made its way into the main area of Summit Grove, and passed by the visitor's center. The center provided free accommodations for visitors, if they didn't want to pay hotel fees. While the Federation supposedly ran a moneyless or credit society, capitalism still found a way to exist in the 24th century.

A Bajoran male exited the visitor center, and not watching where he was going, walked into the path of Kirk's horse, causing the animal to stop suddenly, and rear up on its legs.

"Hold on to my waist," Kirk called back to Quark.

The Ferengi did as Kirk said, until the horse finally calmed down and went back down on all fours.

"Excuse me," the Bajoran said, with a smile. "I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing."

"No harm done," Kirk said.

"Hey," the Bajoran said, "aren't you James T Kirk?"

"Yes," Kirk said, again feeling uneasy about role as a celebrity.

"My name is Talla," the Bajoran said, extending his hand. "I am honored to meet you sir."

Kirk shook the man's hand.

"I hope you enjoy your stay here on Timus," Kirk said in a pleasant tone.

And then Kirk lightly slapped the reigns on Bones, and the horse continued on its way toward the center part of town.

"I recognized that Bajoran," Quark said to Kirk. "I can't quite place it, but I know him."

"You know everyone Quark," Kirk said with a chuckle. "So, do you want me to drop you off at the hotel?"

"Actually," Quark said, "before I got the news of your child's birth and rushed over to the hospital, I was meeting with the owner of the casino/hotel and, well, I bought it."

"So, let me get this straight," Kirk said, "you, who can't stand the low-tech ways of this world, are going to move here."

"Trust me," Quark said, "I'm doing this because I think this backward planet is expanding, and with expansion comes more latinum. I want to be here before the rush, and then sell at the peak; that's all."

"Well, I think it's a great idea, and I have to admit Quark," Kirk said, "You've been a pretty good friend the past few days. And, with your being here, I hope to see Nog again. He's a great kid."

Kirk headed towards the jailhouse and as he brought the horse to a stop, and helped Quark down, he heard the door to the jailhouse open and out walked the Klingon mayor of Summit Grove; M'uak.

"Mister Mayor," Kirk said with a smile on his face, "it's good to see you. Oh, by the way," Kirk said as he looked at Quark, "this is the new owner of the casino, Quark."

M'uak gave Quark a quick nod, but Kirk could tell by the serious expression on M'uak's face that something was wrong.

"Kirk; I received this message at my office. I believe it was meant for you, so I brought it over as soon as I read it." M'uak.

M'uak handed Kirk a data-pad and read the message. Kirk's jovial face quickly soured upon reading the information.

"What is it?" Quark asked, as he noticed Kirk's change.

"A close friend, Montgomery Scott, is dead, and according to this," Kirk said to Quark, "he was murdered."

"Kirk," M'uak said, "I am sure your friend died honorably. You should go to this place, Naissance, and find the coward who did this and kill them."

Suddenly walking up to them was Harrison Riker, who unknown to Kirk, had escaped hours earlier.

"Hey," Quark said, as he saw Harrison, "how did you get out of your cell?"

Kirk looked to M'uak.

"This man was thrown out of the window at the hotel, and I arrested him last night." Kirk said to the M'uak, the Klingon Mayor of Summit Grove.

"Hah," M'uak barked loudly, "and he escaped? Why have you returned?" M'uak asked the young human male, who was at best, in his mid 20s.

"It was too easy," Harrison Riker said, as he handed Kirk the file. "Besides, I heard you and the Ferengi talking last night, and yes, my father was Thomas Riker. I didn't want to tarnish our family name more than it already has been."

"I knew your father for a very short while, before his death," Kirk said, "he was a friend."

"Well," Harrison Riker said, "he may have been a friend to you, but as a father, he and I never really saw eye to eye. I guess I inherited many of his wild traits, and, well, I ran away when I was twelve years old and only spoke with him a few times after that."

Kirk had a thought, and then in a swift motion, he removed the constable badge on his jacket and then clipped it on to Harrison's ragged shirt.

"I'm making you my deputy on the night shift," Kirk said. "I assume you don't have a job, well," Kirk said, as he looked over at M'uak, "unless the Mayor has any objections…"

"If he's good enough for you, Kirk," M'uak said, "then he's good enough for me. Just promise me you will return when you kill the coward who killed your friend."

"What about your wife and children?" Quark asked.

"Myran will understand," Kirk said, as he mounted his horse.

"Do not worry Kirk," M'uak said, "I will make sure your family is safe while you are gone."

Kirk tipped his cowboy hat, and then galloped off toward the visitor center so as to catch the next transport vessel up to the space station that orbited Timus, and from there, he would book package back to Naissance.

Moments later, Kirk arrived at the center and dismounted his horse. The man who Kirk had nearly run down earlier was there as well.

"Ah, you again," Kirk said. "Leaving so soon?"

"No, not at all," Talla said. "A friend of mine is heading down here on the next Transport. What about you?"

"I have business to attend to off planet," Kirk replied, not wanting to get into the specifics. "But if you need anything, just let the town folk know, and they will point you into the right direction."

Kirk walked into the visitor center, and moments later, he boarded the transport vessel as a new group of visitors arrived. Seconds later, the transport vessel took off and headed toward space.

Talla watched, from the disembarking platform, as the transport vessel streaked away. The new arrivals made their way down the ramp, and finally, the person Talla had been waiting for, came down the ramp.

The man, a Bajoran as well, had a badly scarred face; scars he had received years ago when his wife had tried to kill him. Her name then was Deena, her name now was; Myran…

Continued…


	152. The Calm before the Storm

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**The Calm before the...**

**Earth**

**Pleasington...a city very close to San Francisco**

Breakfast was being served at the Mavis Sisko's home. Mavis, who sat at one end of the table, held out both of her hands, as did everyone else, and led the group in a silent morning prayer. While many of those at the table were not religious at heart, they did none-the-less bow their heads, out of respect of Mavis. And, after a soft "amen" the breakfast began.

Mavis was joined for breakfast by Jake and Korena, Ben, Kasidy and Rebecca. And joining the Sisko family was an interesting trio consisting of Commander Geordi Leforge, Master Chief Mile's Obrien, and his wife Keiko, as well as Lt. Reginald Barclay.

"Ben," a smiling Geordi Leforge said, from the opposite end of the table, buttering his pancakes as he spoke, "this is one incredible meal."

"And I'll have you know," Ben Sisko said, "I use only fresh ingredients, meaning; none of it was replicated."

"These hash-browns are incredible," Jake said, as he dug into the mound he had served himself, before passing the plate of crispy potatoes on to his wife, who sat next to him.

"Hey," Obrien said from the far end of the table, "I remember how you use to eat on DS9. Save some for the rest of us."

Everyone laughed at Obrien's mock humor.

"How is Lal doing?" Rebecca asked Geordi, who sat across from her. "I haven't seen her since we got back."

"She's doing fine," Geordi said. "In fact last night, when I went by the food court, I saw her sitting there with a nice looking young man."

"Oh really," Rebecca said, as she arched her eyebrows, "I have some dish to use on her then."

"Dish," Reginald Barclay said, "umm," he said with a slight stutter, "how exactly are you using that word?"

"It's an old expression," Mavis said, from the head of the table. "I think I've used it a couple times, and Rebecca is just picking up on it. It means gossip," Mavis added.

"Honey," Kasidy said, as she bit down on some bacon, "Don't be spreading gossip around about your friends."

"Oh mom, I wouldn't tell anyone else," Rebecca said, "just her."

"Girls and their gossip," Ben Sisko said, with a light chuckle, "I guess there are some things that will just never change."

"Oh hush," Mavis said to her brother. "It just isn't us women who do it."

"I second that," Keiko said with a smile. "I remember Miles and Julian gossiping all the time on DS9 about all kinds of things."

"Honey," Miles said, in defense of himself and his friend Julian Bashir, "that was always work related.

"Uh huh," Kasidy added in a sarcastic tone.

Wanting to change the subject, Ben looked over at Geordi.

"Geordi," Ben Sisko said, "what exactly are you and Miles and Reginald doing? I didn't quite catch what you were telling Jake earlier."

"Well," Geordi said, "Star Fleet let me set up a team to go and rummage through Lawrence Thorn's lab to make sure he wasn't doing anything else there that he shouldn't have been doing."

"That's all fine," Kasidy said, "but just keep Rebecca and Lal away from that place. Those two have gotten into enough trouble thanks to that man."

"Now Kas," Mavis said, "let us not speak ill of the dead. Besides," Mavis said, "as soon as breakfast is done we got to be packing up before we leave today."

"That is true," Kas said, "so everyone stop jabbing and do some more eating."

There was a knock at the door, and being the closest to the door, Jake stood up to get it.

"I'll get it," Jake said, as he headed out of the dining room.

"Kasidy," Keiko said to Sisko's wife, "how does Ben keep serving you this kind of food and yet you still look as fit as you do?"

"He only does this on special occasions," Kasidy said, "most of the time I'm lucky if I get toast out of him."

The others laughed.

Jake came back into the room and, from the expression on his face, everyone could tell he had bad news to tell them.

"What is it Jake," Korena said, "Is there something wrong?"

"That was a courier from Star Fleet," Jake said. "He brought this a message from Admiral Kate Janeway." Jake looked down and read from the data pad. "_I regret that I must send such news to the friends of Montgomery Scott, of which I know there are so many._"

The faces gathered at the table turned to sadness, as they all predicted what the next bit of information would be.

"Montgomery Scott has passed away, here at Naissance. We are all well aware of the contributions he has made to the exploration of space; and especially his invaluable knowledge when it came to the workings of starships. To his close friends he was known as the miracle worker, and I want to express my deeply felt sorrow for their loss. We have lost a great man."

The mood at the table turned somber.

"Wow," Geordi finally said. "I can't believe he's gone."

"You knew him quite well, didn't you Geordi?" Miles asked. "I only knew him for a short time during that Project Diamond caper."

"Scotty was one of a kind," Geordi told the others. "When we first found him, his ship had crashed into, ironically enough, the other Dyson Sphere, the one the Enterprise-D found several years ago. His ship had crashed into it seventy some odd years earlier, and he had kept himself alive by recycling his transporter signal through the ship's buffer."

Geordi continued on with the story, which included several moments of laughter as the story concluded. Finally…

"…Scotty taught us a lesson that I would never forget."

"What was it?" Mavis asked.

"No one," Geordi said, with slight crack in his voice as a tear came down from his eyes, "is ever obsolete."

There was silence, and then, finally, Mavis spoke.

"Let us have a silent thought our fallen friend; Montgomery Scott…"

Everyone joined hands for a moment of silent thoughts. But Geordi's mind was already whirling with a question. He had known Scotty for some time, and in that time, Scotty had never mentioned anything about an illness. It was true that Scotty was an older man, but Geordi couldn't help but think that they were not being told the entire story; and he was right.

Continued….


	153. Relative Matter

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Relative Matter**

Star Fleet complex inside of Naissance….

Admiral Kate Janeway stared down at the casket that contained inside of it the body of Montgomery Scott. She had sent notifications of Scott's death through official channels, but she had sent special messages to both Jim Kirk and Spock, letting them know that their friend had been murdered. She knew that both of them would come straight to Naissance for answers; answers she hoped to have ready for them soon. However, those answers were proving to be very elusive.

The casket was being kept in a holding area inside of the newly built Star Fleet complex. But while Janeway was somber about what had happened to Scott, she was equally worried about the abduction of Amanda and S'vath's infant child. Janeway left the holding area where Scott's casket was kept, and then headed back to her office and found Dr. Bashir waiting for her.

"Tell me you have more information," Janeway said to Bashir. "I'm pretty sure that Ambassador Spock and Jim Kirk will be arriving soon, and I have to think Commander S'vath will be with them. Are you sure that none of the nurses or medical staff members who were all on duty when the infant was abducted has any valuable information."

Janeway sat behind her desk, waiting for Bashir's answer.

"Admiral," Commander Bashir said, "I am now confident more than ever that someone with extraordinary telepathic abilities was either the assailant, or, was at least an accomplice. Two of the medical staff members were Vulcans, and even they maintain that their memories during that time have been altered in some fashion; if not erased."

"What about Amanda, does she have any memory of anyone coming into her room and taking her child?" Janeway asked.

"No," Bashir said. "I am a skilled hypnosis, and even I could not bring out any suppressed memories. For so many people to be effected, we're either dealing with two or three telepaths, or one who is highly skilled."

Admiral Janeway was left to grasping for straws. Then she thought about the events of the past year.

"What about Project Diamond," Janeway said. "Highly trained telepaths from Betazed were employed by a covert group inside of Star Fleet. Could one of these Betazoids be involved?"

Bashir thought for a moment, wishing that Ezri was here to help. But his wife had gone back to Star Fleet for the final leg of her lifelong ambition to become a Star Fleet captain.

"I suppose that anything is possible," Bashir said, "but I was there with Kirk during that adventure, and I seriously doubt Project Diamond would have any interest in kidnapping Amanda's baby."

Janeway sighed, and ran her fingers through her hair, closing her eyes and wishing that she had something else to go on.

"So let me get this straight," Janeway said, "we have no surveillance footage, nor do we have any witnesses. The only reason we know anything happened is because someone stole a shuttle craft from the Vulcan science vessel, and in their wake, we have Mr. Scott's dead body, and a missing baby."

Bashir bowed his head and then looked back up at Janeway.

"The only hope we have is that the Emprenda, which took off after the shuttle craft, a half hour later, can bring it back," Bashir said.

"Has there been any signal from Captain Canary yet?" Janeway asked.

"None," Bashir said. "And it's been nearly three days."

Janeway turned in her chair to look at the large tactical digital display on her wall. The display showed the Naissance, which about ¼ the size of Earth's solar system, and the last known heading of the Emprenda and the shuttle craft it was pursuing.

"They headed off in this direction," Bashir said, as he pointed at an area on the display.

"Very little is known about that section of the galaxy," Janeway said.

"And to be more specific," Bashir said, "the Si'hg seem to come from that area of space."

"Well, if anyone can handle a good mystery, its Captain Jonathan Canary and his rag tag crew. Hopefully with Captain Tom Paris tagging along with them, they can bring back this mystery abductor and murderer."

The look on Bashir's face gave the impression that he wasn't as easily convinced in such a lofty prediction.

The door to Janeway's office chimed and the head scientist from the team that had arrived from Vulcan entered. Her name was Tenok, and she was a Vulcan who was in her late eighties, as measured in Earth years.

"Can I help you Tenok?" Janeway asked.

"Admiral, after your request earlier, myself and the other members of my team subjected ourselves to a master mind-meld. It is a seldom used technique; however, by pooling our abilities and our minds, we were hoping to break through any barriers that may have been set up in our minds without our knowledge. One-by-one, we each subjected ourselves to a mind-meld from the others. Several minds at once would initiate the meld on one individual. Thankfully, no one suffered any long term side effects."

A look of hope flashed over Janeway's face.

"We appreciate the effort." Janeway said, "Please tell us that you found something."

"We cannot be certain; however, we all agree that our minds were indeed manipulated. With individual input from each of us, and with the help of a computer interface that recorded that information, we came up with a composite image of a person whom we all seem to have a visual memory of, but with no detail as to who that person is. He is a Vulcan, that we much we are certain of. This is the image we came up with…"

Tenok showed Janeway the image that the computer had come up with, and was now displayed on the data-pad in her hand. The image was that of an older Vulcan male. Janeway looked at it and gave it to Bashir.

"None of us have been able recognize this Vulcan male, however, we have just transmitted the image back to Vulcan. We should get a response in five to six hours."

"It may not help," Janeway said to Bashir, "but take this to Amanda and see if this can jog her memory. If this person was targeting her child, then perhaps she might know this person from the past."

Several minutes later, Bashir handed the composite image to Amanda.

"I know it may seem pointless," Bashir told the grieving mother, "but trust me Amanda; this could be the break we need to find Baby Sarek, or, at least let us know who we are dealing with so we can alert Star Fleet."

Amanda's trembling hands took the image and then she stared at it. She trained her eyes on the eyes of the mystery person in the image. The eyes of this unknown Vulcan penetrated her soul, and then, in a brief moment, she recognized those eyes. When S'vath, her husband, had researched his family, he came across this person in his studies.

Earlier, just before Bashir had arrived in her room, and while trying to relieve her worrying about her abducted child, Amanda had asked for a pen and paper to draw with. She had done a light sketching of the room around her. But now she used the pen, which she adjusted to full strength, to draw a beard on the mystery person. When she was done, she looked up at Bashir.

"His name," Amanda said softly, "is Sybok. He's Spock's brother."

In deep space, a shuttle craft was speeding through uncharted space. The shuttle, built by Vulcans was capable of high warp speed. The pilot of the shuttle was Sybok, and in the passenger cabin behind him, and sleeping soundly in an incubation chamber, was the infant named Sarek.

Sybok had originally hoped to abduct Lenora, the daughter of S'vath. But, instead, he ended up with the newly born Sarek. Although it meant a change, in the large scheme of things, it didn't really matter. What mattered, at that moment, was the fact that his shuttle was being followed by a Klingon ship, and, unfortunately for Sybok, the old Klingon ship was gaining on him.

Unknown to Sybok, the Klingon ship following him was the Emprenda and it was the least of his worries. Just ahead, in the area of space he was speeding toward, "they" waited for him. No one had ever seen them before and no one had ever made contact with them, beyond mathematical equations…

The Si'hg had arrived to cast judgment.

(_if you are reading this story and want to make 50$ and are a good computer artist and like to create 'strange looking ships' then please send me a message…The Si'hg need a cool looking strange ship and I will give you credit AND 50$ if your ship is the one I use…send me a PM for details!_

Continued…


	154. Trinity

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**TRINITY**

The Vulcan shuttle craft which Sybok had been piloting for three days was starting to lose speed, and Sybok could not figure out why. In a few short moments the shuttle had come out of warp, and, was just drifting in space. Sybok looked at the long range sensors and saw that the Klingon ship (the Emprenda) pursuing him was closing in and would be at his position in approximately thirty minutes.

Sybok went back into the passenger cabin, and saw that baby-Sarek was sleeping soundly.

"Wouldn't be ironic," Sybok said, as he looked down at the slumbering child, "if the belief in reincarnation was true? I could literally be talking to you again, father."

Sybok looked around the craft, trying to figure out his next step. He had come to Naissance with the intent of abducting Lenora, Sarek's older sister. However, after finding out that to be a more difficult task, he instead abducted the newly born infant; Sarek. During the abduction, he had also killed Montgomery Scott, something for which Sybok felt no remorse.

He looked down at the infant again, and saw it looking back up at him. Sybok smiled at the infant, as was kept warm inside of the portable incubation chamber.

"Little child, it seems as if we will not able to continue our journey to Sha-Ka-Ree as fast as I had hoped to," he said, knowing full well that the infant could not hear him.

And then, without a warning, a bright light flooded the entire inside of the shuttle. Sybok went back up to the small cockpit of the shuttle, to see what it was. The light was coming from outside the shuttle from three from three different objects, as if they were intense spotlights. They appeared to be three spherical shaped objects of pure bright, very bright, light. Sybok looked at the sensor readings, and although the objects seemed to be very close to the shuttle, they were not registering on the sensors.

Sybok tried to stare at them, directly, but the light that was emanating from the three spherical shaped objects was nearly as bright as that of a sun, causing his inner eyelid to close momentarily. The light became even brighter, forcing him to close his eyes. He scrambled out of the cockpit and back into the passenger cabin, closing the door, shutting out the light. It was then that a strange low tone, almost as that of a humming sound, could be heard.

"What is that?" Sybok asked himself.

Was he losing his mind? Sybok did not know.

The shuttle rocked, and Sybok lost his balance and fell to the ground, next to the incubation chamber. And then the humming became louder. At first the pitch was low, but as it gradually began to modulate, Sybok could hear it more clearly; there were actually dozens of sounds, and they were voices.

The shuttle rocked again, and then the passenger cabin became flooded in light as the three spherical objects appeared again. Sybok had to look down at the ground, to avoid the light; and then suddenly the light was gone!

Sybok looked up, believing himself to be alone, but then he saw them; three individuals, in black cloaks. And then, suddenly, one of them spoke.

"_You have been judged_," the voice said.

"I do not recognize your authority to judge anyone, let alone me." Sybok said.

"_Do not mistake your ignorance as arrogance_," the voice said back.

Sybok smiled.

"Each man hides a secret pain…" Sybok began to say.

"_You have been judged._"

Sybok leaned back, knowing that something was about to happen. As he did, he nudged the incubation chamber closer to the hull, and it jammed into the wall panel, activating the com unit.

"Your sentence is death."

And then it came; the pain. Sybok's mind felt as if it was burning with pain, and on top of that, he couldn't move. And as he tried to cry out in pain, he couldn't. He opened his eyes and saw that the incubation chamber had been opened…

The bridge crew of the Emprenda stared at the main screen. The ship was still five minutes from arriving at the shuttle's position, but long range visuals showed three bright lights surrounding the motionless shuttle.

Captain Jonathan Canary stood up from his command chair and walked back to the science station, which was manned by the ship's acting first officer/and science officer, Commander Bi`nh Zheng, who had only just arrived at Naissance before the current crisis. He had taken the position of first officer until S'vath's return to active service.

Zheng descended from a proud Chinese heritage, even going so far as to wearing an Sūgélán shì duǎnqún, the Chinese version of a kilt, as part of his standard uniform. He wore his hair up in traditional way as well, with a tight goatee on his chin, and slightly graying hair on his head. His hair was held up in a bun; when down, it would stretch down to his lower neck.

"Commander Zheng," Captain Canary said, "what are we looking at? What are those things?"

"Impossible to say, Captain" Zheng replied, with a slight broken northern-Chinese accent, "However the motions they make, I believe, indicate they are living."

"Why do you suppose the sensors cannot detect them?" Canary came back with.

"In past encounters with the Si'hg, it has been the same," Zheng replied.

The only known image of a Si'hg vessel, or what was believed to be a vessel, was displayed on the screen above Zheng's science station. It was a still image that showed what appeared to be an object of an indefinable shape, surrounded by three bright spherical objects that were blurring the clarity of the image.

"And no contact has been made with them in the past, beyond cryptic math mathematical equations?" Canary asked.

"Shi," Zheng stated. "The Enterprise encountered such a vessel recently, however, nothing came of it; no contact was made."

"And, lucky for us, the Naissance is located near what could be considered Si'hg space."

"Shi," Zheng replied.

Canary turned back toward the main screen just in time to see the shuttle explode violently.

"Holy s**t," Canary said excitedly as the brightness from the explosion made everyone on the bridge shield their eyes.

Lt. Dovar Mecet, a Cardassian female, who was the ship's senior communication's officer, spoke suddenly.

"Captain, I think you should hear this," Mecet said, as Canary came over to her.

"What is it?" Canary asked Mecet.

"This audio signal was sent just seconds before the explosion," Mecet replied.

She pressed a button and then the humming noise that Sybok heard came through. And a voice could be heard saying two words.

"Play those words back again," Canary said, as he strained to hear the words.

The humming noise could be heard, again, and then the two words were uttered swiftly.

"_is death…_"

And then a loud garbled sound came as the audio signal had recorded the onslaught of the explosion for a mere microsecond.

"No one could have survived that explosion," Lt. Kylon said from his navigation/helm post.

"It would seem most unlikely," Zheng said. "I am not detecting any life forms."

"We're coming fast upon that position," Kylon said to Canary, who had sat back down in the command chair.

"Bring us out of warp," Canary said to Lt. Kylon, "and Commander Zheng, even though I agree it's likely that no one survived, I still want us to scan the area."

The ship came out of warp, and for the next three hours, detailed scans were made of the area and no survivors were found. With nothing else to go on, the Emprenda was preparing to head back to Naissance…when all of a sudden…

Captain Jonathan Canary gave the order for Kylon to engage the warp engines, and to take the Emprenda back to Naissance, but then, suddenly, the three bright lights appeared out of nowhere, directly in front of the ship. Before anyone could do anything, another bright light appeared on the bridge. It too was spherical in shape. A strange, deep tonal sound emanated from the object it.

"It's so bright, I can't even look directly at it," Kylon said.

And then the bright object settled on the ground and then…poof…it was gone, and in its place was a baby.

"Oh wow," Canary said, as he quickly vacated his chair and rushed toward the infant, who was very small, and vulnerable. Its slightly pointed ears brought a smile to Canary's face as he lifted the infant up.

"Medical team to the bridge," First officer Zheng said, after he tapped the com badge on his chest.

"Kylon," Canary said, "get us out of here, and hurry."

The Emprenda streaked away at warp speed, on a long three day voyage back to Naissance.

Captain Canary accompanied the infant to sickbay, just to make sure it was properly cared for. S'vath and Amanda, although they were not present, were friends and members of his crew and he hoped to have both of them back real soon.

But while Captain Canary was in sickbay, elsewhere on the ship, something else was happening as well…

The Emprenda was an old style Klingon D7 battle cruiser, and being as old as it was, its data was stored in an outdated mode. Star Fleet had hoped to update the data library, located in a secured area of the ship, but the reconfiguration tables had yet to be implemented.

The doors to the data library opened, and someone walked in. They made their way over to the area of the main frame that collected information, and in this case, audio data. The person entered a command sequence into the computer, and then listened to the signal that had been recorded seconds before the shuttle exploded.

"_is death.._"

Up to this point, no one had had the time to analyze the recording, which meant what had to done, had to be done now. The person reached into their pocket and took out a device and then played the recording again. The hand held device recorded the audio data. Then, as soon as the data had been recorded, the person deleted the message from the Emprenda's computer.

The person looked at the hand held device's screen, as it filtered through the recording of the strange humming noise, and the barely discernable voice at the end. It was a process that would have taken standard equipment hours to have done, but the hand held device wasn't just an ordinary Star Fleet device. And then, finally, a match was found to the voice that had been recorded. It was the voice of _Jonathan Archer._

-continued…


	155. The Path

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**The Path**

**The Naissance…  
**  
The conference room inside the Naissance complex was packed. As news of Scott's death spread, many had come to help bring the killer, now known to be Sybok, to justice. But upon hearing Captain Canary's report, it was quite clear that either justice, or fate, had passed judgment on Sybok, by the Si'hg.

Janeway sat at the head of the table. Around the table sat other interested parties, including Ambassador Spock, James T Kirk, Commander S'vath, Ambassador Picard, Captain Canary and even another one of Scotty's good friends; Sulu, who had come to Naissance with Kirk after meeting up on a transport vessel in route to Naissance.

"Mr. Scott was a great man," Janeway said, with a warm smile. "He will certainly be missed."

"How was it that Sybok survived all these years?" Sulu asked Spock, his voice slightly weakened by his age.. "When we fired those photon torpedoes on his position, and later when you fired upon him aboard the Bird of Prey, I thought for sure what ever Sybok had become was destroyed all those decades ago."

Kirk listened silently, having no idea of the events that were being discussed because he wasn't there; it was the other Kirk, the one that died on Veridian III, who had been part of that adventure.

"While on our way here," Spock told Sulu and the others, "I conducted mind-melds upon T'av, and Tuvok," he looked at the Vulcans he spoke of, both who sat off to the side of the table. "I am quite convinced that my brother, Sybok, was no longer himself. The entity that we found on Sha-Ka-Ree, all those years ago, had fused its essence with Sybok. It would appears as if the destruction of that entity was not so."

"You got that from a mind-meld with Tuvok and T'av?" Picard asked. "How is that possible?"

"That, as well as other information that my son and I found out on Vulcan," Spock told Picard. "Sybok, or what ever Sybok was by that time, came to Vulcan nearly a year ago, and apparently began a relationship with T'pring. Based on message traffic we recently came into possession of, T'pring was trying to use her influence to get Sybok closer to S'vath and his wife Amanda, in the hopes she could help Sybok get access to their first child, Lenora. But with S'vath and Amanda involved with the Project Diamond situation, and then the Doomsday Machine's reactivation, as well as the incident inside of Naissance, Sybok never had a chance to act until now. Somewhere along the way, there was a falling out between T'pring and Sybok, which led to her trying to warn us about him."

"Tuvok," Janeway said to her former Voyager crew member, "how did Sybok control you so easily?"

"I regret to say Admiral," Tuvok replied, "That Sybok's mind was very powerful. He used his superior ability evoke lurid acts between myself, and T'av, in hopes that by forcing us to such primal acts, our ancient drives would come to the forefront, and we would share these new ideas with other Vulcans, and eventually, change the fabric of Vulcan society."

"Making you more like Romulans," Kirk said, as he finally understood where some of the conversation was heading.

"Indeed," Spock said. "With a Vulcan male child in his possession, he had the means to breed a new generation of Vulcans that he would raise with his new philosophy. That part of Sybok, his wanting to change the Vulcan society, would have been a logical choice for him. However, as insidious as his aims were for Vulcan, I seriously doubt he was a cold blooded killer. That part of his persona came from the entity we found on Sha-Ka-Ree."

"I don't know about you, Admiral," Captain Canary said from where he sat at the table, "I say we send an armada of ships to this planet, Sha-Ka-Ree, and blow it up."

"While an intriguing idea," Picard said, as he sat on the opposite side of the table from Janeway, "Star Fleet has officially made going to Sha-Ka-Ree against regulations. In fact, from what I am being told, even going to that world may bring the death penalty on anyone who goes there."

"The Ambassador is right," Janeway said, "I have received such notification with-in the last hour."

"Why?" Canary asked the Picard and Janeway. "If this thing was able to change Sybok into a killer, what is stopping him from doing the same with someone else? Scotty just died because of this evil force, and S'vath almost lost a child to it, for all we know."

Picard could feel the anger in Canary's voice, and understood it.

"The Federation feels that risks are too great. There is another reason as well." Picard continued to say, "while in command of the Enterprise-D, years ago, we encountered an alien civilization that called themselves Cytherians. They existed in an area of space quite near to the center of the galaxy. I personally have received a message from them that they will see to it that the force on Sha-Ka-Ree will never leave that world again."

"And you take their word?" Kirk asked, as he too felt the longing to bring the fight to the force on Sha-Ka-Ree.

"Yes I do," Picard said flatly.

"On behalf of my wife," S'vath said to Captain Canary, "I want to thank you and the crew of the Emprenda for saving our child."

"Then you owe me one, Commander S'vath," Canary said, "and you can repay that debt by rejoining the crew of the Emprenda as its first officer."

"I would be honored," S'vath said with a warm smile.

With the meeting over, everyone headed out of the conference. An hour later a special memorial service was held in Scott's honor, where once again, everyone gathered.

Scott's casket, a photon torpedo tube, was decorated with a Federation flag, as his friends and fellow Star Fleet personnel gathered about. After the ceremony, the tube would be taken aboard the Emprenda and then fired into the star at the center of the Naissance.

Sulu approached the podium to say final words about his fallen friend.

"Montgomery Scott was a close friend," Sulu said. "And when he went missing, for over seventy-years, it was as if part of my life had gone missing as well. However, he came back to us. I know for certain that Montgomery enjoyed life like no other person I have ever known. He was an honest loving man; and I will miss him." Then Sulu made the Vulcan hand salute with his right hand, and then looked at the casket. "Farewell my friend; we will meet again."

Spock helped Sulu back to his seat, and then Spock went back up to the podium, to say his final words in honor of Scotty.

"Mr. Scott, or Scotty, as so many affectionately referred to him," Spock began to say, "lived life to the fullest. He loved his whiskey," Spock said, with humor in his voice, "Tullamore Dew being his favored brand. Occasionally I will be asked if he and I were ever n a contest against each other; a contest called Caps."

Those in the crowd who knew what that meant all laughed.

"Caps is a drinking contest usually played while two combatants drink beer," Spock explained, "but we're talking Scotty here, and beer was to him as milk is to an infant; child's play."

The crowd laughed, with everyone getting the insinuation.

"Now one might think that Vulcans, like our Romulan cousins, share the trait of alcohol resistance," Spock went on saying, "however, I found that not to be true. Scotty drank me under the proverbial table," the crowed giggled, "several times." The laughter became a roar.

Jim Kirk listened to Spock's humorist speech about Mr. Scott. He couldn't help but feel as though he had been robbed of the wonderful memories the other Kirk was able to live through. Both Kirk's were the same being, up to the point when Jim Kirk had been abducted by the beings on Triskelion. From that moment on they had lived two very separate lives, due to the duplication effect. He laughed with the crowed as Spock continued on…it was a wonderful moment shared by all.

The next day came, and soon goodbyes were said. Spock, Tuvok and and Tav, who had come to Naissance aboard Ambassador Picard's private shuttle, prepared to return with Picard back to Vulcan. Spock rendered the Vulcan hand salute to Kirk. As Janeway and Tuvok said goodbyes to each other, Kirk came over to Spock.

"Going back to Vulcan?" Kirk asked.

"Yes," Spock replied. "I have much to do there. I suppose you are returning to the planet Timus?"

"Yep," Kirk said. "That's where my life is now."

"I once told a Jim Kirk that his first best destiny was commanding a starship," Spock told Kirk, "perhaps that judgment was wrong."

"I'm family man now," Kirk said to Spock, "and believe it or not; I'm enjoying that role."

"If that is the case," Spock concluded, "then try and be the best family man you can be. Live long and prosper, James T Kirk."

Kirk couldn't help but think this would be the last time he would ever see Spock; and knowing that, Kirk couldn't stop from reaching out and hugging the Vulcan. He also had the impression that Spock felt the same way.

Janeway, who was standing with Tuvok and Picard, observed the moment of raw emotion and a tear came down from her left eye.

"Caps?" Kirk asked, as he broke the embrace. "When did you two start playing taps?" The question was in reference to what Spock had said about Scotty.

"Right after the incident when the other Jim Kirk had exchanged bodies with a woman from your past; Janet Lester," Spock explained. "If there was ever a time to start drinking, that was it."

"Umm," Kirk said, flabbergasted at the thought of being a woman, "would you mind running that back by me one more time?"

"I'm afraid we must be going," Picard said, realizing they'd never leave if Spock and Kirk continued their reminiscing. He also did it to save Spock from an embarrasing story from Kirk's past.

Sulu, who was there as well, gave Spock the hand salute as Spock did for him.

"Farewell Spock," Sulu said. "You take care."

"Do you mind?" Spock asked, as he reached out his hand to Sulu.

"I would be honored," Sulu said.

Spock came closer to Sulu, then reached out and placed a hand on the side of the Asian man's head; initiating a mind-meld. Spock said one word.

"Remember…"

"If I recall," Sulu said, "the last time you said that to someone, it got us all into a lot of trouble."

Spock smiled.

Moments later, Captain Tom Paris, who was piloting Picard's shuttle, banked it up above the Star Fleet complex on Naissance, and then zipped away.

Sulu and Kirk prepared to board the transport vessel that would return them back to the stars as well.

"I hope you visit us," Janeway said to Kirk.

Kirk smiled back at Janeway. Standing next to Janeway was S'vath. He was holding his daughter, Lenora, and standing next to S'vath was Amanda who held baby Sarek.

"I will," Kirk said to them all. "You take care of those kids," Kirk said to S'vath. "We each have two kids now; who will be the first to have number three?"

"Umm," Amanda said, "let us not go there!"

They all shared a small laugh at that.

Kirk said his final goodbyes, and then he and Sulu boarded the transport, and soon it zipped away, out into space. The first stop would be at a Starbase where they would both board connecting flights; or so Kirk thought.

"So," Kirk said to Sulu, who sat next to him as the transport entered warp, "I suppose you will be going on to Chiisai, where your home is?"

Sulu, who's beard was pretty long, giving the look of an old wise man, which, in fact, he was, looked over at Kirk.

"No, Jim, I am not returning to Chiisai," Sulu said. "I have recently acquired property on another world."

"Wow," Kirk said, "a man at your age, jet setting across space, I am amazed." Kirk said, with mock sarcasm.

"Oh shut up," Sulu said, with a laugh. "I am moving to the planet Timus."

Kirk looked more closely at Sulu.

"Have you gone mad?" Kirk asked. "Timus has practically no modern technologies. And If you know anything about the American west, circa the 1800s or so, that's pretty much what Timus is like."

"I have done my research," Sulu said, "but more importantly, you're there." Sulu said to Kirk. "And over the past year or so, since your return, you have gotten yourself into much trouble. So, to that end, Spock and I agreed I should do this."

"You mean, keep an eye on me?" Kirk asked, somewhat embarrassed.

"No," Sulu giggled, "I'm trying to protect the rest of the universe from the adventures of Captain James T Kirk. We barely survived the first Kirk, now, we have you."

Kirk was appreciative of the gesture, and liked the idea of sharing time Sulu. So with that, Kirk settled back into his chair, as did Sulu.

"So," Kirk said, "tell me about this incident with Sybok that you and Spock were talking about."

Kirk looked over at Sulu, just in time to hear the aged man begin to snore; he wa aleady fast asleep. Sulu's blanket, which had been given to him by one of the flight attendants, had slid down a bit. Kirk reached over and brought it back up to just below Sulu's beard.

As the transport made its way through space, Kirk thought of his wife, and their two children. He would do as Spock requested, and try to become the best family man he could. He thought of Myran's smile, and then he too smiled.

"I'm coming home," he whispered to the image of her in his mind.

But, on the planet Timus, the life Jim Kirk was returning to was soon to be far less picturesque as he had hoped it to be. And, add to that, the fact that another former starship captain lived there too, and had for quite some time…his name was Jonathan Archer, and he and Kirk were on a collision course.

Continued…next season when...__

Myran's past is getting ever so closer; can James T Kirk save her?

Harrison Riker gets into more trouble...

Quark settles in as the new owner of the casino/hotel on Timus. Are he and Constable Kirk heading for trouble...

Lal has a new friend, and he's a Changeling...

Mavis Sisko and Sulu become unlikey neighbors...

the crew of the Emprenda go on their first mission to rescue endangered animals on a a far off world...with the Si'hg let them?

And why is Jonathan Archer on the planet Timus?

All next season!...


	156. A Boy and his Dream

While _James T Kirk: Simplicity_ is on hiatus, please tryout my new story called _STAR TREK: Boldly Malcolm_. It's about a 12 year old boy who was born with Cerebral Palsy who dreams of Star Trek. He now has a gateway into that future, in a round-about way, with only his wild imagination to hold him back…This Star Trek story is about inspiration on a more personal level…I hope you like it…

I thin you can find it in the Star Trek: Other section on Fan Fic. IK would provide a link, but for some reason, the website won't let me do that. If you can't find it, I will put the link on my profile..and hey… join me on Facebook. Look for Robert Benson; I'm the one in San Diego…

Rob


	157. Quarks or Bust

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Quark's or Bust**

**Planet Timus…**

Morn, who had finally stopped jibber-jabbering, sat at his new bar stool inside Quark's new establishment on the planet Timus. Strange music was playing in the background at the newly repainted and remodeled hotel/casino, which was located at the center of town, and was now officially known as Quarks; Casino/Hotel and Entertainment center.

The Ferengi had really wanted to call his new place Quarks; Casino/Hotel and Sexual Pleasure center, but the Mayor, who was large no non-sense Klingon, would not allow it. Quark was nearly done with polishing a new set of 750 shot glasses, as he looked over at Morn, who along with Quark, had moved to Timus. Morn was a prospector for rarities, and Timus had attracted him as well. The bulk of the shot glasses had already been polished by Zok, Quark's half Bajoran/Half Ferengi nephew, but the last box still had to be arranged across the large mirror on the serving side of the Bar. Quark watched as Zok scrambled away for more things to do, and Quark smiled. It reminded him of simpler times.

Zok was the oldest of three children to be sired by his brother and his wife Leeta. And, after reaching the age of sixteen, Rom asked if his son could come to Quark's new place on Timus for needed training in the ways of the Ferengi, in essence; making Latinum. Though, Leeta also warned Quark, in the same subspace message, to not corrupt the child. Quark agreed to her condition, though he was quite sure he would be spending most of the time eliminating the corruption that Leeta had already done to her son.

"I don't know Morn," Quark said, as he looked out at the small group of customers that had gathered inside the main area of the saloon, "Maybe coming here wasn't such a bright idea."

Morn was about to respond when James T Kirk entered the saloon, holding a small baby in his arms. He walked toward the bar just as Morn stepped away and headed for the Dabo-wheel area. He sat in the stool next to where Morn had been sitting.

"So this is your child," Quark said, as Kirk held the baby up for the Ferengi to see. "Honestly, I think you humans are as ugly as a Horta, but, do not worry, I think she's beautiful because I see her as a future customer someday."

"Oh, trust me," Kirk said, with confidence in his voice, "Dahme will not be a frequent visitor to these kinds of places."

"I'll take a wager on that," Quark said, as he reached for a bottle of Rum and prepared to pour Kirk a shot.

"Umm," Kirk said, as he saw Quark preparing to pour, "I better not have any of that, however," Kirk thought for a moment, "do have any root-beer?"

"Uggh," Quark said, with a sour look on his face, "don't tell me you like root-beer."

"Well, diet root-beer, if you have any," Kirk added.

Quark walked over to a tap that was designated just for soft drinks. There was a wide selection, including diet Pepsi (how's that for product placement) and diet Mug Root-beer (two in one scene!) and brought the shot glass over to Kirk.

"How much," Kirk asked, as he reached into his pocket for some credits.

"I don't charge for soft-drinks," Quark said. "By the way, do you think I can trust him?" Quark asked, as he looked over in the direction of his new pit-boss; Harrison Riker.

"He's young," Kirk said, as he looked over at the younger Riker, "but he seems to know his way around a saloon and casino. If you end up having any issues with him, you let me know."

"Hey," Quark finally said, "where are all the citizens of this place? There's hardly anyone here."

Kirk looked at Quark.

"I guess you didn't read the local newspaper," Kirk said. "Today is the Sadie Hawkins dance, or the Q'ua'let'chaQu, or at least I think that's how the Mayor pronounced it."

"I don't understand," Quark came back with. "Most of my customers, at least in the early evening, are men hoping for luck at the Dabo-wheel, or luck with one of my Dabo-girls. Why would they concern themselves with a dance?"

Suddenly a very attractive woman entered the saloon. She wore a skintight pair of slacks, an equally tight shirt, made of some sort of animal skin, and she had black hair that was braided down to top of her waist. From the tip of her middle fingers was a ridge of skin that slinked its way up her brown skin, then came out at the neck of her shirt, up the side of her cheeks, going further until intersecting at appoint at the center of her forehead, before diving down as one ridge to the tip of her heck. She oozed sexuality…even Kirk glanced up and down her slinky body.

"Wow," Quark said, "who is that?"

"I don't know, but I better leave before I get myself into trouble," Kirk said, "but anyway; this dance tonight is one where the girls asks the guys to dance." Kirk looked at the beauty as she sat, suggestively, at one of the tables. "Who knows," Kirk said with a smile at Quark, "she might ask you dance."

"You really think so," Quark asked, as he tickled the ridge of his ear.

Kirk patted Quark on the shoulder, downed his shot of root-beer, and headed for the exit

As with most towns, and most worlds, shoe stores were still very popular with the fairer sex, and Timus was no different. Myran was enjoying her first real day on her own, without her new-born baby, and was trying on shoes; nice shoes. She had selected seven pairs, and sat down on one of the chairs to make the final selection. On most worlds, and star bases, this could be done with a mere command to a computer. But on Timus, it was done by the customer.

She took a pair of white heels she had found, and reached down to put one of them on her left foot, when, as she held the shoe on her foot as she pressed into it, a man's hand was softly placed on the hand she was using to hold the shoe in place. She looked up expecting to see James T Kirk, her husband, but instead she found herself face to face with a man she thought was dead; a man she believed she had killed years ago. His face was deformed and there was a scar on the side of his face, and rage burned in his eyes.

"Hello," the man said, with hate in his words, "Deena; my wife."

Continued…

_(and don't forget to read my new story "STAR TREK: BOLDLY MALCOLM" about a boy confined in a wheelchair, but who dreams of a better future; in current day Pittsburgh!)_


	158. With these Hands

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Klingon Justice**

Previously…

_As with most towns, and most worlds, shoe stores were still very popular with the fairer sex, and Timus was no different. Myran was enjoying her first real day on her own, without her new-born baby, and was trying on shoes; nice shoes. She had selected seven pairs, and sat down on one of the chairs to make the final selection. On most worlds, and star bases, this could be done with a mere command to a computer. But on Timus, it was done by the customer._

_She took a pair of white heels she had found, and reached down to put one of them on her left foot, when, as she held the shoe on her foot as she pressed into it, a man's hand was softly placed on the hand she was using to hold the shoe in place. She looked up expecting to see James T Kirk, her husband, but instead she found herself face to face with a man she thought was dead; a man she believed she had killed years ago. His face was deformed and there was a scar on the side of his face, and rage burned in his eyes._

_"Hello," the man said, with hate in his words, "Deena; my wife."_

_Our story continues…_

"Ashala," Myran said, with a gasp at seeing her former husband still alive, his face horribly scarred. "How can you be here?"

Ashala looked at his former Bajoran wife, with anger and hate welling up inside his eyes.

"Yes, Deena, I am still very much alive, by the grace of the Prophets," Ashala said, with a smugness in his eyes. "But I see you survived the fire quite well."

Ashala grabbed both her wrists and pinned her up against the wall next a column of women's shoes. He then pressed his lips against hers, by force. Myran (Deena) struggled, but having not fully recovered from giving birth to her daughter, she had little strength to struggle back with. She could only close her eyes and smell the Bajoran man's terribly stinking breath, as he spoke at her.

"You and your friends fleeced me of all my wealth," Ashala said, as he pulled back from the kiss, "and then you tried to kill me."

Myran shook her head. Part of what Ashala had just said was true; she and her sister Twyla, as well as Talla and Omath, had conned Ashala out of his wealth.

"I came to you that night," Myran told Ashala, "and told you what we had done. I told you that I would help you get your wealth back."

Ashala punched Myran in the lower part of her stomach, causing her to double over, but Ashala pinned her back up against the wall.

"And then I slapped you, very hard," Ashala said, "and you fell the floor and I kicked you, several times, causing you to lose the child you carried inside. In my life I had never known so much joy. And then, later in the night, you started the fire that you wished would have killed me."

"It wasn't started by me," Myran pleaded. "I nearly died too."

Before she could say another word, Ashala reached behind Myran, and pulled her long hair, causing her to wince in pain.

"You were nothing but a filthy whore," he spat in her face, "and now," he said as he reached into his pocket and took out a knife, "And now, after all these years, I have found you. I already killed your sister, Tyla, and her husband; and now I will end your life; right here right now."

The next few seconds happened in a blur. Just as Myran closed her eyes, and Ashala grasped her by the neck, ready to face her death by the knife in Ashala's right hand, the stab never came. She opened her eyes, and in a state of shock and in disbelief, she watched as a large hand grasped Ashala's neck from behind, and snapped it, killing Ashala instantly; his dead hand dropping the knife to the ground. Myran lost consciousness and fell to the ground herself.

M'uak, the large older Klingon man, and Mayor of Timus, stood above the Bajoran whom he had just killed. He had heard the conversation between Myran and Ashala, and made a quick decision, especially after Ashala had donned the knife, that it was chapter of Myran's life James T Kirk did not need to know about; for now.

After a few seconds, M'uak pulled out a communicator and barked out several Klingon words; and then the body of Ashala shimmered away, as did the knife he had been carrying. Several moments later, Harrison Riker came into the store, and back to where M'uak was standing, looking down at Myran.

"What happened here?" Harrison asked.

"You will not speak of this to anyone," the much taller M'uak said to Harrison. "To do so would," M'uak searched his mind for the best word, "complicate our situation; do you understand?"

"I do," Harrison said. "And don't worry; I took care of the Bajoran's body. I'll have our Vulcan friend over at the hospital take care of her short-term memory. What do we tell Jim?"

"Nothing!" M'uak responded with a loud harsh whisper. "If Kirk finds out; I will know who told him," M'uak added, with accusatory eyes aimed at Harrison.

Harrison Riker nodded in acknowledgment of the warning.

"Don't worry," Riker finally said, but then he looked up at M'uak. "But Jim Kirk, at least from what I know of him, is very smart, and has an uncanny way of finding out the truth; it may only be a matter of time, but he will."

"So I have heard," M'uak finally said, with his deep voice. "It is your human associate's responsibility to make sure that Kirk remains far from the truth."

"Jonathan Archer will keep up his end of the arrangement," Harrison Riker said, "Kirk will soon have other issues to worry about and will not have the time to cause us any trouble."

And with that, Harrison Riker picked up Myran and lifted her over his shoulders and took her out of the store, back toward the hospital.

M'uak also left the store, and headed back to his office at the center part of time. What neither M'uak nor Harrison Riker knew was that someone else had been in the store as well; but had kept hidden the entire time, and was now sneaking out the back entrance to the store; Talla, the Bajoran man who had led Ashala to Myran (Deena). He scurried away, knowing that his life was in danger the longer he remained on Timus; the easy going planet!

Continued…


	159. Archery Expert

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Archery Expert**

The planet Timus…

Two beautiful brown horses galloped up a medium size hill, and then over to the ridge that over looked a lake in the distance. The two riders were James Tiberius Kirk and Benjamin Lafayette Sisko. Sisko breathed in the nice crisp air, as he gazed out at the beautiful horizon.

"The air; feels good, doesn't it," Kirk said to friend.

"You better believe it," Ben replied. "Deep Space Nine never had the greatest air quality, it wasn't built for comfort. But this place," Ben said, as he inhaled a deep breath again, "this place is wonderful." He said, with a big smile.

"I know you said something about coming to Timus, when we were all back in the Naissance," Kirk said, as he tilted back the cowboy hat on his head. "But I didn't expect to see you arrive so quickly."

Sisko reached down from where he sat on his horsed, and patted the side of the large animal's large head. The horse rewarded Sisko's touch with an exhale of break of its own, its nose flaring wide open in the process.

"Well, I'll tell you what Jim," Sisko said, as he sat back up, and adjusted his own cowboy hat, "you and I have been through so much together, from Rebecca's kidnapping, the terrorist hijacking of the transport vessel we were on, and then add to that the whole Naissance ordeal, and wow, that's quite a bit. So," Ben said continued to say, as he looked over to Kirk, "Kas and I decided to come here and be with you and Myran."

"Your sister, Mavis, is a very nice person," Kirk said. "I'm very thankful for her for taking care of Myran while I was trapped with you inside the Naissance."

"Apparently Mavis has taken a motherly liking to your wife," Sisko explained. "The moment I told we were coming here to stay for awhile, Mavis demanded to come with us."

"Ben," Kirk said, with a look of worry on his face, "this place, Timus, is pretty quiet. I know men like you, like Jean-Luc, and myself, and women like Kate; we need to be part of the action; we need to be making a difference in the universe at large. You won't find that kind of challenge here."

"Who said I won't find a challenge," Ben Sisko replied with a smile, "I'm going to build myself another house; and trust me, house building isn't an easy thing to do."

"Ahhh," Kirk added with a smile of his own, "so that's why you bought the property empty lot next to your house.

"Precisely," Sisko rep lied."Besides, Kas is thinking about going contracting her services out as a trader, and I told her I would go along with her on some of her more risky trips. So, trust me, we will have plenty to do."

"Do you see the home over there near that second ridge," Kirk asked, as he pointed off into the distance.

"Yeah," Sisko replied, "who lives there?"

"Hikaru Sulu," Kirk answered.

"Are you serious?" Sisko asked. "Didn't he help you out during that Project Diamond caper? How old is he now?"

"Very old," Kirk said, "he looks like one of those ancient Chinese guru guys, and he even had the long white beard."

"Awesome," Sisko said, "I'd like to meet him."

"Let's go," Kirk said, as he kicked the side of the horse, and started galloping off toward Sulu's home in the distance.

Sisko also lightly kicked the side of his horse, and went galloping of after Kirk. Both horses actually belonged to Kirk, and since horseback was one of the preferred modes of travel on Timus, Kirk had promised Sisko assistance in the coming days when it came time to purchase his own horses.

Across the valley, across the distance lake, there was a secluded home that also looked out upon the lake, but from the other side. The man who lived there was very reclusive, and was gazing through a telescope, watching from miles away as Kirk and Sisko, upon their horses, made their way across the far off foothill. The high powered viewing device made it seem as if the two horseback riders were just feet away, when they were actually miles off in the distance. The man's name was Jonathan Archer, and two guests of his were standing behind him on his deck, as he looked through the scope. Archer turned to face his guests. One of the two men was named Lucsly, the other named Dulmer.

"You told me," Archer said to the two men, "that when you relocated him here last year, Kirk would accept this new pedestrian life of his. But instead, in the past year or so, he has brought more and more attention to himself, and in an indirect way, to this world. You should convince him to leave."

"He won't go," Dulmer said. "He fell in love with that Bajoran teacher, married her, and now they have two kids."

Archer shook his head, not liking what he was hearing.

"Does Kirk know about his wife's past?" Archer asked.

"As far as we can tell, no," Lucsly replied. "And thanks to M'uak and Mr. Riker, it appears as if we've contained her past; for now."

"Then I guess we can always use that, her past, if we need to get them to leave Timus. I'm telling you both," Archer said, "from what I have read about Jim Kirk, he is the last person I want snooping around here on Timus. If anyone can connect the dots that lead to the Si'hg; it's him."

"Look," Dulmer said to Sisko, "he's the Constable of the town, and from what M'uak has told us, Kirk just wants to settle down with his wife and children. He has friends here now that will more than likely pressure him to take it easy, and stop bringing all this strife into his new life. I say we should just let him pitter about. If he started getting suspicious, then we will deal with him then."

"That's a very risky course of action," Archer said. "If he does get too close to the truth, we may have to take more drastic measures; we may have to kill him."

Dulmer and Lucsly looked at each other, then back to Archer.

"Or, we have a third option," Lucsly said.

"It better be good," Archer said. "Because I am not satisfied with either option we have to select from."

Dulmer pulled a data-pad out from his pocket, and pressed a button. The image of a face came on the screen, and he showed it to Archer.

"Who is this?" Archer asked.

"Another past captain of a vessel called Enterprise," Dulmer said. "And, if our information is correct, he could be a very helpful tool in controlling Kirk once and for all."

Archer leaned back down and gazed through the telescope. He saw Kirk and Sisko stepping down from their horsed as they were being greeted by a very old Asian man.

"Tell me more," Archer said softly.

Continued…


	160. Food for Thought

**James T Kirk; Simplicity**

**Food for Thought…**

**Deep space….**

The Emprenda entered high orbit around Omega-722, an M-class planet located several hundred light years from the Naissance, and would be the first planet where samples of an exotic plant life would be removed due to its unique medical properties and taken to Naissance.

Captain Jonathan Canary stood up from his command chair and went over to the science station where S'vath, who was his first officer, and Lt.Commander Bi`nh Zheng, the chief science officer, and third in command, were discussing scientific matters way over Captain Canary's head.

Although S'vath was the XO of the Emprenda, and an accomplished science officer himself, Lt. Commander Bi'nh Zheng, or Ln X as he liked to be called, held additional accreditations in microbiology and botany, so it was he who was leading the soon to be departing away team.

"So let me get this straight," Canary said to the two scientists, "we're here to save those plants," he pointed at the monitor displaying the plants, "and yet we're going to let all the other plants and animals die."

"Shi," Ln X replied, "After we complete the preliminary scans, my team and I will transport down and remove the samples."

"Sir," Lt. Kylon said from the combined helm/navigation consol at the front of the circular bridge, "Check this out."

Kylon had zoomed in on an area of the planet where a large herd of animals were grazing. They looked like a cross between a bison and a horse.

"Those are pretty fine animals," Canary said.

"Well, yeah, there's that," Kylon said, as his tail, with its multi-colored tip, swirled behind him, "but I was thinking more about how they might taste."

"Incredible," Ln X said, while never taking his eyes off the computations on his screen, "we come here to save life; you want to destroy life," his broken Chinese accent seemed have a tone of regret in it as well.

"Hey now," Lt. Kylon said, "we're just going to let them all be killed anyway, when that comet hits this world in five more months, so I really don't see the difference. On my world we hunt such animals like these; they taste good."

"I hear you," Canary said to Kylon, "but on Earth, we banned hunting."

"Which in turn," S'vath added, "drove many indigent cultures off of Earth so as to colonize worlds where hunting would then be allowed; for example, many of the worlds populated by humans in the former demilitarized zone near Bajor."

"Well," Ln X said, "that was their choice."

"I'll put it this way," Kylon continued to say, "If this world is destroyed five months from now then there will be no memory as to how the animals tasted after being roasted on a file. I'm willing to do this in the name of science; eating one of them."

The sarcasm in Kylon's voice was unmistakable.

At that moment, Lt. Commander Bi'nh (Ln X) Zheng stood up from the science station, and prepared to head to the main transporter room.

"We are ready to go," Ln X said to Captain Canary.

"Alright, Ln X," Canary replied, "just make sure we play this by the book. The last thing I need is some mess up on our maiden voyage, only to have Admiral Janeway rip me a new one when we get back."

"This is a very basic away team mission," S'vath said to Canary. "Lt. Commander Zheng will follow protocols."

"Of course," Ln X said. "Now, if you will excuse me, Captain Canary, I will be on my way."

Canary looked over at Lt. Macet, the female Cardassian star fleet office who manned the communications station. "Lt. Macet, I want you to keep a lock on their communicators at all times," Canary commanded. "If they fade even once, the mission is over."

Canary and S'vath stood together as they watched Ln X disappear behind the Turbo-lift doors.

"You could have gone with them," Canary said to S'vath.

"Actually, I wanted to be up here when the first cache of data is sent up," S'vath said. "Besides, if something goes wrong down there, and we can't beam them up, someone may have to use a Klingon parachute to go down and make an appraisal of the situation."

The dig at Canary did not go unnoticed.

"Hey, you and I both parachuted down to Naissance, remembers?" Canary asked, as he headed back to his command chair.

"Yes, however one of us made a pinpoint landing at the designated landing zone," S'vath replied as he headed over to the science station, "the other ended up three miles off course."

Both of them knew who landed correctly (S'vath) and who hadn't (Canary).

Canary knew he had no argument, and, hopefully, it was just idle talk. For both knew that the only reason for parachuting down would be in the case of an emergency; and no one really wanted that.

**Earth**

**Star Fleet Academy**

Rebecca Sisko was about to leave the dorm room she shared with Lal.

"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Rebecca asked Lal. "It's just a dance."

Rebecca was all dressed up, her hair done in a new style.

"I am quite sure," Lal replied, "besides, if I interpreted Colton's (Rebecca's current boyfriend, and fellow cadet) words correctly; he didn't want someone tagging along."

"Well, to hell with Colton," Rebecca said, "you're my friend and I want you to have fun."

"Do not worry," Lal said, as she held up an old style textbook, "Professor Leforge suggested I read the collected works of Arthur C Clark."

"You could read that book in five minutes," Rebecca said.

Then Lal pointed over at the one of the chairs, where seventeen other books were stacked.

"As you can see," Lal said, "I will not run out of material."

Rebecca shook her head in defeat.

"Alright," Rebecca said. "I'll see you later, and if you're lucky," Rebecca said in a coy manner, "I'll give you a complete blow by blow report," she giggled at the innuendo.

And then Rebecca opened the door and left the dorm room, closing the door behind her.

Lal stood in silence for a few moments when suddenly the book she had been holding, and had placed on the glass coffee table in the center of the living room, began to liquefy and change shape until at last it was the solid shape of a young man; Star Fleet's first cadet from the Founders; his name was Mny. And the moment he reached total solidity, he and Lal came together and kissed.

Continued…


	161. Shell Game

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Shell Game**

**Planet Timus…**

_Jonathan Archer's home was far from the lone settlement on Timus; the town of Summit Grove. Just like James T Kirk, Archer had been given a new life on the simple world, with an alias and all, but a life far from others, in total seclusion, as he had requested. Just as in the case of Kirk, two agents from the Temporal Investigation unit of Star Fleet had found Archer, who decades and decades ago had long since been declared dead._

Dulmur and Lucsly, the two men from the Temporal Investigation unit, had returned to Archer's home with a plan to contain Kirk, while not having to actively kill him, which no one really wanted. Dulmur handed Archer a data-pad containing the image of another former Enterprise commander, a man named John Harriman….

(At that exact moment… in deep space…)

In the vastness of space there are countess star systems that do not contain any life forms, beyond the micro biotic variety. It was in one of those star systems that a non-descriptive vessel had arrived. The ship carried all but one passenger. He had become a cold and bitter man, over time, which made him the perfect choice to carry out a most insidious plan, and revenge was definitely on the top of his bucket list.

(Cut back to Archer's home on Timus…)

"John Harriman," Archer looked at the image of Harriman, and then read the information about the man.

(We return to the man in the vessel in a far off star system)

To command the Enterprise, in his case he had commanded the Enterprise-B, meant commanding Star Fleet's flagship and doing so meant becoming a legend. It had happened all through time; Jonathan Archer-Robert April-Christopher Pike-James T Kirk-Rachel Garrett-Jean Luc Picard. Yet, there existed another name, the lone commander of an Enterprise that, instead of becoming a legend, had become a man who had made no significant contribution; and his name was John Harriman.

_It was under Harriman's command of the Enterprise-B when it appeared as if Star Fleet legend James T Kirk had been killed during a rescue mission. After that, Harriman became known as the "man who got James T Kirk killed." Of course that wasn't how the event happened, and the Star Fleet crew who served with him, including the visiting Montgomery Scott and Pavel Chekov, had said as much. But some of the news-reporters, who were there too, cast a different picture. It was a picture of a young captain who was rattled during the entire rescue mission, thus costing Kirk's life._

_But all that would not have mattered if it was known that Kirk hadn't really been killed at all. Kirk hadn't been blown into smithereens by a ribbon of energy from the strange anomaly that had trapped the Enterprise-B in its grasp, as it had been believed. Kirk was actually taken inside of the anomaly which would later be described as the Nexus._

_Kirk would eventually come out of the Nexus, nearly 80 years later, but the damage, to Harriman, had already been done decades earlier. Being unable to shake the tag as being "the man who got Kirk killed," Harriman's career in Star Fleet nose dived. And when it was finally revealed that Kirk had survived, no one thought about Harriman. But upon emerging from the Nexus, Kirk had "really" been killed while in a last ditch effort to save an endangered world. And when that happened, when Kirk really died, the legendary Captain, once again, faded into the past as the greatest Star Fleet hero ever; only to live again…sort of._

(And once again we return to Archer's secluded home on Timus…)

"So this man, Harriman, was blamed for Kirk's death," Archer said. "It ruins his career, and he became a bitter man."

"Yes," Dulmur said. "And at this precise moment, as we speak, several hundred light years from here, Harriman is preparing and act of vengeance that for now, threatens no one except Jim Kirk. However, the next step in his revenge will, if left unchecked, lead do the death of so many."

"How is that possible?" Archer asked.

(Cutting back to Harriman…)

John Harriman brought the small vessel he was maneuvering to stationary a position inside the lifeless star system. While entering the solar system, Harriman had scanned the five planets in the system, and found only micro biotic life on one of them, which mean he would continue with his plan. He went back into the passenger cabin of his small ship and opened up a special metal case that contained a sealed device that held within it, trilithium. He had obtained the unstable and illegal substance from the black market. He went into the back of the ship and placed the sealed device into a probe. After making sure the probe was set in place, he headed back to the cockpit of the vessel, to prep the probe for launch.

(back to Archers home…)

"The trilithium Harriman has will cause the star to implode," Lucsly explained. "Luckily, the star he is about to destroy is in a system where there is no sentient life."

"How did he obtain such a powerful subtance?" Archer asked.

"Through backdoor channels, and with help from the Orion Syndicate," Dulmur explained. "We became aware of his activities about two months ago, and now we believe we can use it to our advantage. As Lucsly just said, no sentient life is threatened by what Harriman is doing today."

"However," Lucsly added, "the next star he will destroy, in three more days, has an inhabited world of sentient life. It is only a small world, but they will be killed when the star implodes and the shockwave spreads through the system. Of course, we won't let that happen."

"You better believe it we can't let that happen," Archer said quietly. "The Si'hg will pass judgement."

And then Archer closed his eyes; and in mere seconds the Si'hg were on the way.

(we switch back to Harriman)

Harriman manipulated one of the control panels before him, and then at that moment, a specially built probe shot out of the ship, and streaked toward the solar system's star. Suddenly, three extremely bright spherical shaped energy patterns came sweeping toward Harriman's ship. And as the solar system's star imploded, it created a level 12 blast; which would destroy everything in the solar system. The spherical shapes whirled around Harriman's ship, and just as fast as they had come, they streaked away.

Harriman, having no idea what the balls of energy were, looked at the main screen, and the ever widening effect of the star's explosion. Harriman had a new problem; the ship's systems were suddenly offline.

"Computer," Harriman said, "the warp engines have lost their power; why?"

-The warp engines are off line-

"I already know that," Harriman said, as he looked at the time counting down on his screen as to when the blast would arrive at his position, which was at seven minutes. "Can they be fixed?"

-Negative-

Twenty light years away, the Emprenda was in orbit of planet Omega-722. The simple task of removing the endangered plant they had been sent to retrieve had become complicated when it was discovered the roots of the plant were more complex and would require a day of more study before removal was attempted.

Captain Canary was in his quarters when the monitor on his wall came to life and the face of First Officer S'vath appeared.

"Let me guess," Canary said, "more problems with the away mission."

"Negative," S'vath replied. "However, according to the sensors, an uninhabited solar system twenty light years away has experienced a massive gravitational flux. For reasons of a scientific nature, it would be interesting to record this event."

"Alright," Canary finally said, after thinking about the matter. "Tell Kylon to set a course, and engage immediately," Canary said, "I'm on my way to the bridge. Inform Ln X and his away team that we will return as soon as we can."

"Very well," S'vath replied and then the monitor went dark.

Four minutes later, Captain Canary entered the bridge. S'vath greeted him at the Turbo-lift doors.

"Sensors have detected a ship in that system," S'vath said.

"Holy crap," Canary said, "can we get to that other ship in time?"

"No, we cannot," S'vath said, as he followed Canary down to the command chair as the center of the bridge. "Lt. Macet has attempted to establish communications, but interference from the imploding star has made it impossible."

"Can we get a visual of the ship?" Canary asked Kylon.

"No sir," Kylon replied from the helm/navigation post, "the screen is already on maximum magnification."

"So there's nothing we can do?" Canary asked S'vath/

"No sir, there is not. And there is no way for us to know who is aboard that ship." S'vath added.

And then the bridge crew watched in silence as the main screen showed the shockwave destroying the inner planets of the system, spreading its destruction even wider. The area of space where the unknown ship had been was soon met by the wave, undoubtedly destroying the ship and its crew instantly.

"At least it was a quick death," Canary said softly, "and no one suffered. S'vath, was there any prior indication that the star in that system was unstable?"

"I have already looked into that possibility, and no, according to Star Fleet records, the star did not show any signs of being unstable. However," S'vath said, "I do find it a remarkable coincidence that there was a ship in that system at that precise time."

"Perhaps," Lt. Macet, the female Cardassian communications office said, "They detected the coming implosion and went to investigate and unfortunately suffered some sort of system failure at a most unfortunate time."

"It's possible," Kylon said from this post.

"Well, whoever it was on that ship, it's over for them now. Let's head back to Omega-722. I'm sure Star Fleet's science department will have a great time going over the data we recorded."

"Captain," S'vath said, "we did manage to collect data on the entire incident, via the long range sensors, so perhaps something can be gleamed from the data at a later time."

"Good thinking," Canary said as he headed for the Turbo-life. "I'm going to go get something to eat; I'll be back in a bit."

And with that, the Emprenda reversed course and then headed back to the planet Omega-722.

(back on Timus…Archer's home)

Archer opened his eyes.

"It's done," Archer said to Dulmur and Lucsly. "Why do I feel as if I was manipulated into this by you two?"

"It had to be done," Dulmur said to Archer.

An inquisitive look came over Archer's face.

"Why did he implode that star, and why would he have done it again in three more days?" Archer asked.

"The Nexus," Lucsly replied, "it is passing through that part of the galaxy."

"His plan was to alter the course of the Nexus two more times, at the cost of two more starts, and then abduct Kirk and have him on a world the Nexus would then pass very close to. Somehow he had it in his mind that Kirk would be taken back up into the Nexus, there to be trapped forever." Dulmur added.

"It's the same method that demented El-Aurian used to return to the Nexus as well," Lucsly went on to say. "Harriman, who was mad as well, believed that returning Kirk to the Nexus was poetic justice."

Archer shook his head.

"I read the story of Kirk, and this Nexus," Archer said, "And if I recall, the Kirk who entered the Nexus all those years ago died on Veridian III."

"He did," Dulmur replied. "But Harriman is a bitter man, and in his mind, the Kirk here on Timus is the same person as the one who died on Veridian III."

"Alright, so we stopped him from destroying more stars," Archer said, "but he did destroy that star today. Won't its destruction alter the course of the ribbon in someway?"

"Yes is will," Lucsly answered. "But only slightly. And according to our information, the ribbon will travel through an asteroid field in three months, and will come close enough to one of the larger asteroids. We believe that if the Kirk here on Timus, with his unique measurable properties, comes close to the Nexus; it will, as Harriman believed, take him inside; trapping this Kirk as it did the other Kirk who died on Veridian III. He will not die; he will just be gone, and the best part; there is no further need to destroy anymore stars."

Archer thought about the plan. He didn't want to kill the legendary starship captain, but he didn't want Kirk snooping around on Timus, and possibly stumbling upon the secret of the Si'hg.

"Alright," Archer finally said, "I'm on board. We now have to find a way to get him there, on that asteroid, in time for the Nexus to arrive. We also have to keep him busy for the next three months." And then Archer added with a smile, "I think I already have a plan to do just that."

Meanwhile, several dozen light years away inside the Naissance, fate was already conspiring to keep Jim Kirk busy…

Amanda, S'vath's wife, and mother of his two children, had just returned from her shift and said goodbye to the baby sitter. Amanda walked into the room that Lenora, who was fourteen months old, and Sarek, who was now a month old, shared. Both children were still sleeping, which meant she had a little time to herself. At that moment there was a chime at her door. She opened it to find Commander Julian Bashir, the executive officer of the Naissance project, standing at her door.

"Julian," Amanda said, "won't you please come in."

"Actually," Bashir said, "I need to head to one of the labs and make sure it is adequately prepped when the Emprenda returns. This," he gave her a small package, "contains a message from your mother. Apparently it was meant to be sent to you after your mother was ever confirmed to be dead."

Amanda's mother had taken her own life after her involvement with T'pring's attempt to abduct Lenora several weeks earlier. Amanda had came to peace with the memory of her mother.

"Thank you," Amanda said.

Bashir left and Amanda closed the door. She walked into the living room and opened the package; inside was a data-card. Amanda assumed it was a message from her mother, and was just going to watch it and store is somewhere. But with the kids sleeping, and nothing else to do, Amanda slipped the data-card into a data-pad. It was then that she realized it wasn't from her mother at all. It contained a message from an older woman, now dead, who Amanda recognized immediately; her grandmother Christine Chapel. Amanda listened as the older woman spoke;

"I have kept this secret for far too long," Chapel said. "I believe, as I near my death, it is only right that I tell this truth. It should be noted that Leonard McCoy died three months ago; and now that he is gone, I have decided to break his confidence and let this matter be known after my own death. Whether or not you tell anyone is up to you. It is a burden I will not take to my grave alone."

And then Amanda listened as Chapel told a very interesting tale indeed. And it all began on a planet called Amerind.

Continued…


	162. Ears of the Cypher

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Ears of the Cypher**

The planet Timus…

Jim Kirk looked down at his sleeping wife and smiled. Mathew, their fourteen month old son, was sleeping safely next to her as Dahme, their infant daughter, slept quietly in the crib next to the bed. It had only been two says since Myran had been attacked at a local shoe store, and so far, no one had been apprehended for the crime. Satisfied that his family was comfortable, Kirk closed the door and headed back downstairs to the lower level of his house. Harrison Riker, his chief deputy, was sitting on one of the couches as Kirk entered the living room.

"How are they?" Harrison asked.

Kirk rubbed his eyes; it had been a long day.

"She's doing better," Kirk replied softly. "What do we have?"

Riker shook his head slowly.

"Jim; we really don't have much to go on," Harrison replied. (_Author's note; Savvy readers should recall that Harrison is lying, and that he knows much more about Myran's attack. For more details of that event, you can read about it in issues #151 and #152_).

"Run it by me again," Kirk said, as he sat down across from Harrison.

"I was making my rounds," Harrison said, "when I checked in on the shoe store. I heard Myran crying, and went in and found her on the ground. Someone had stolen some of her credits, and rattled her, and then ran out the back."

"And no one saw anything," Kirk said.

"No," Harrison said softly. "The only thing we know for sure is that the backdoor had been forced open. Now as we know; no one works in that kiosk, it's all automated. So there is no way to tell who the attacker was. From the looks of it, I'd say it was some kid, or drunken fool who had been at the casino."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"Well, luckily she was only shaken up," Kirk said, "but I still don't like the fact that someone did this to her, and is out there running about; they could do it again."

"Has she said anything?" Harrison asked. "Maybe she can remember what the attacker looked like." (Author's note; Harrison knows full well that he had a Vulcan swipe Myran's memories before she could reveal anything…issue #152)

"She doesn't remember anything," Kirk said after a moment. "Well," he added, "I better let you go. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day."

"That's right," Harrison said, as he stood up. "Who would have guessed that there was a motorbike club of Cardassians?" His voice was sprinkled with a humorous tone. "Cardassians on Harleys; who would have thunk it?"

Kirk saw Harrison to the door and let him out.

"Jim," Harrison said, climbing up on his horse, "I can take care of these Cardassian bikers; you spend time with your family."

Kirk nodded.

"I might just take you up on that," Kirk said, as he slapped the rear end of Harrison's horse.

The horse began to trot away as Kirk waved at Harrison. Kirk watched the younger Riker make his way down the path, and then Kirk went back inside his house and closed the door. Once inside, Kirk walked over to the old style closet near the living room, where he kept his hat and jacket, and opened it. Quark was standing inside the closet and stepped out.

"Well?" Kirk asked his knew good friend.

"He's hiding something," Quark said.

"How can you be absolutely sure about that?" Kirk asked.

Quark pointed at his own two big ears.

"How do you think my people have done so well in business," Quark replied with a smile, "We can detect vocal tonalities that let us know when someone is not entirely being truthful; it is an art."

"Which you no doubt used that first time you and I were in that poker game back on DS9 all those months ago," Kirk said, irked at hearing the news about Ferengi ears.

"Actually," Quark said, "Texas Hold'm is a child's game, so no, I didn't need use my ears then, but I did use them now and I'm telling you Jim," Quark added with all seriousness, "Harrison Riker is not telling the complete truth about what happened to your wife that night."

Kirk looked at Quark, and had to admit to himself that the Ferengi had indeed proven himself as a good friend, which months ago would have seemed out of the question when it seemed as if Nog had been killed on the Enterprise during the Talosian affair.

"Quark," Kirk finally said, "I'm going to let you in on something. Before I do, I want you to promise me that you will not reveal what I tell you; it could be dangerous for you."

"What information?"

"Come with me," Kirk said, as he headed for his office toward the far end of the house. Quark followed Kirk, and soon Kirk was sitting behind his work desk.

"Working while at home," Quark said, "it goes against the whole concept of customer relations," he added as he sat next to Kirk in another chair.

"You probably recognize this kind of computer," Kirk said, after a moment.

"I do," Quark said, "Your friend, Spock, gave me one of those during his time up on Romulas. We used it to send secure transmissions back and forth."

"The best part about it," Kirk said, "is that it is totally secure. No one can crack the messages, so, I can be confident that no one can read my messages, except, for me."

"Alright, I see where this is leading; what message did you get that you want to show me?" Quark asked.

"Again, let me repeat; this must stay between you and me, and," Kirk added, "the mystery person who sent me what I'm about to show you."

Quark nodded.

With that, Kirk opened the message.

"Now," Kirk said to Quark, "whoever sent me this information has chosen to remain anonymous. Before I show you what they sent I just want to say that everyone, no matter who they are, has secrets; even me. I kept my true identity a secret, and adopted the name Robert Crane. I didn't even tell Myran my real name, and for that I was wrong, but I did it none-the-less."

"Sounds to me like you are trying to justify someone else's own actions," Quark said.

Kirk nodded his head.

"Perhaps," Kirk finally replied, and then he activated the information; several images taken from what appeared to be a security camera. Several people could be seen walking across what appeared to be a bridge.

"Where is that?" Quark asked.

"Earth," Kirk replied, "and to be more specific; the Golden Gate Bridge. While I was trapped in the Naissance with your nephew Nog, and the others, Myran stayed at the home of Mavis Sisko; Ben's sister. These images were taken during that time."

The images switched to show Myran and a male Bajoran talking together. And then it showed the two of them kissing romantically.

"I'm sorry Jim," Quark said, "she betrayed you."

Kirk shook his head.

"As I said Quark," Kirk told the Ferengi, "we all have secrets. In time, hopefully, she will tell me who this man is; but watch this."

The images zoomed in on the face of the Bajoran man Myran was kissing; a man who Quark immediately recognized.

"Wait a second," Quark said with a gasp, "I know that Bajoran."

"We both do," Kirk said with a nod of his head. "He's the Bajoran I almost ran over with my horse a week or so ago; you were sitting behind me on the horse. I saw him a couple days later waiting at the receiving station in the center of town; he said he was waiting for someone there."

"So that means the man she was kissing, all the way back there on Earth," Quark began to say, "is right here on Timus." Quark said. "I believe in coincidences," Quark stated, "but I'm sorry Jim; the odds of that happening are pretty slim."

"I agree," Kirk's voice spoke softly, and with disappointment. "But it opens up a Pandora's Box of questions," Kirk said, as he switched off the computer. "For all we know, he came here for extortion."

"Or," Quark said to Kirk, "she invited him here to rekindle their relationship."

"In any event," Kirk said, "she may have told Harrison to cover-up the fact that his man attacked her; which I could understand."

"What do you mean?" Quark asked. "If she's lying to you and Harrison Riker is covering it up, then he's enabling this."

"Or," Kirk said back to Quark, "she broke it off, he attacked her, and then to keep her past in the past, she convinced Harrison to help her hide this man's involvement with her."

"How can you trust her?" Quark asked. "What if they meet up again?"

"That's why I need your help," Kirk said, "You said, when we first saw that Bajoran, when I almost ran him down with the horse, that you had recognized him. You're usually really good with faces Quark; I need to know if you remember his face and why."

Quark stared at the face of the Bajoran. Kirk was right; Quark did indeed have a good memory, a requirement in customer relationships. After a moment, Quark snapped his fingers.

"I remember now," Quark said. "His name is," Quark struggled to recall, "Talla. And if I recall, he and his associates were part of several scam jobs on Bajor. Their last job was bilking a member of the Vedek assembly out of his fortune. Something went wrong, and the Vedek, and his wife, were killed in a fire. Talla and his associates vanished and were never seen again." And then something donned on Quark. "Can you display a picture of the Vedek; Ashalla was his name."

The computer complied and showed a picture of Ashalla, and next to his face flashed the word; deceased.

"That's him," Quark said, and then Quark decided to go one more step closer. "Computer; display the face of Ashalla's wife."

The image panned back and showed Ashalla standing next to his wife, who was also listed as deceased. Also displayed on the screen was the Bajoran woman's name; Deena. But Kirk knew Deena by a much different name; Myran…his wife.

Continued….


	163. Riders on the Storm

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Riders on the Storm**

The planet of Timus…

_Most of the people who lived in, and around, the town of Summit Grove were hard working. They came to the planet for chance to make a living. While it may have been true that on Earth, materialistic want was part of the past; in space, throughout the Federation and beyond, the existence of syndicates, Orion or Ferengi, and a multitude of others, proved that the exact opposite was the norm._

It was a warm bright day, and the citizens who were gathered in town on this day, of all days, were welcomed to a most incredible and very loud experience. As it turned out, an Earth custom had take root on, of all worlds, Cardassia; the motor bike. And on this day, on Timus, one of the largest biker gangs from Cardassia had arrived on Timus trying to raise contributions for charity. Cardassia had been hard hit during the Dominion War, and while the Federation talked a good game about helping them rebuild, as usual, promises were met with red tape; and the promised help wasn't as pronounced.

Dozens upon dozens of motorbikes were parked about the main street of Summit Grove. Many of the Cardassian riders had brought their wives or girlfriends, and the women wore very slinky outfits.

Even the mayor of Summit Grove, the only settlement on Timus, thus far, had come to marvel at the mechanical contraptions that were parked in a neat row that stretched for nearly a quarter of a mile. The mayor's name was M'uak, and he was a large older Klingon male. His was an imposing figure.

While this mode of travel wasn't looked upon favorably by the world of Timus, travel by animals such as horses was, it was clear that the town folk, and mainly the young kids, especially the teen element, were thrilled at the site of so many motorcycles.

M'uak was looking at the collection of bikes toward the center of town. One of the motorbikes was decked out with an assortment of chains around it's handle bar, chains made of solid gold, and had attracted M'uak's, and most everyone else's attention as well, when the Cardassian leader of the biker gang, and chief fund raiser, walked over; his name was Garak.

"Hello good friend," Garak said with a smile, and an extended hand.

M'uak detested Cardassians; always had, and always would. But with so many of the town folk in attendance and walking about, M'uak decided to play nice and shook the hand of Garak.

"I assume you are the mayor of this fine town?" Garak asked M'uak.

"I am," M'uak replied, with his deep voice.

"Then I guess that my friends and I have you to thank for approving our riding permit for this special event," Garak said in a pleasant tone.

"It is for a good cause," M'uak stated in a matter of fact tone. Then he looked at the bike, "I find this mechanical contraption to be of interesting craftsmanship. Most of the steering devices are angled up, this wan is angled down; it is unique."

"Thank you. And I must say, you have a very keen eye Mr. Mayor and, by the way, this one happens to be mine," Garak said proudly. "The citizens of Earth, back in their 21st, were foolish to outlaw motorcycles; such a backward looking people they are. My friends and I have taken a liking to the joy of riding. These steering devices, as you call them, are called handle bars, and the entire contraption is called," Garak paused for effect, "a Hog."

"Hog," M'uak stated flatly, "seems like a rather simplistic name."

"Hog is a nickname," Garak corrected M'uak. "Mine is actually an XL 883 sportster, with an experimental fuel system that a Horta designed for me."

"One favorable quality," M'uak said, "is that they are very loud."

Garak nodded and smiled.

"When all of us are cruising together," Garak explained, with exuberance in his voice, "and the thunder of all these motors makes the air around us tremble; that is the sweet moment we all live for."

At that moment, Quark came out lone casino in Summit Grove, a casino he now owned, and came over to where M'uak and Garak were standing. Quark was very happy to see all the towns' folk milling about; milling about meant customer.

"Ahh, my good friend Quark," Garak said. "I heard a rumor back on DS9 that you had moved here. Do you serve root-beer here as well; it is such a cloying invention, is it not?"

Quark nodded at the inside the joke.

"Yes, I do serve root-beer, and more importantly," Quark added, "I will honor you and your fellow rider's credit." He held up a data chip. "I just got an update from my auditor back on DS9, and I have all the data here."

M'uak turned to leave.

"Once again," Garak said to M'uak, "thank you for letting my team come here to put on this exhibition."

M'uak turned, nodded once at Garak, and then headed away.

"He reminds me of Morn," Garak said, "so outgoing; I could barely get a word in edge wise," Garak added, with his eyes wide.

"Yeah," Quark added with a chuckle, "that one's a real charmer."

And with that, the two former inhabitants of Deep Space Nine headed into the casino. In time, the other five hundred or so riders took turns going into the casino, or visiting the other shops that dotted the town.

Much later, Garak was sitting next to Morn, and was laughing at one of the Lurian's jokes, when suddenly…

"Excuse me Morn," Garak said, "I need to use the waste extraction facility; I'll be right back."

Garak smiled at Morn, and then made his way toward the facilities. The casino was crowded, and there was a line at the waste extraction entrance; what Garak needed was privacy; and not for waste extraction purposes.

He made his way over to an area of the casino where a large noise making machine, called a player-piano, was pushed up into a corner, almost as if discarded trash. He reached into his pocket and took out a device; a scanner.

Earlier, when he had shook M'uak's hand, Garak had applied a special gel to his hand that, when rubbed up against M'uak's own hand, took a microscopic sample of the Klingon's skin. Earlier, while no one noticed, Garak had put the gel, and the skin sample, into the thin scanner that he was now holding; the scan was completed.

The computer had found a match for the Klingon's DNA, and as suspected, M'uak wasn't really the Klingon mayor's name. The Cardassian's trip to Timus wasn't only for charity; it was for business as well. And the identity of the mayor of Summit Grove had proven to be a twist that even Garak didn't see coming.

**Earth**

**Star Fleet Academy**

**The shared quarters of Lal and Rebecca Sisko…**

Lal was resting comfortably in her bed. Rebecca hadn't come back, for the night, and Lal knew why. Rebecca and one of the cadets, a fellow human, had become an item and she was no doubt with him for the weekend, which was a holiday weekend for the school.

Lal made a loud sigh, and then the head of the person she was with emerged from the blankets below her waist. She flashed him a devilish smile.

"You are very good at that," she said to him as she watched her companion's tongue, which had divided into three individual limbs, merge back into one.

His name was Mny, and he was the first Founder to ever attend Star Fleet Academy. He smiled up at Lal and then came closer and kissed her passionately.

"Oh believe me," he told her, as they kissed, "I can actually divide my tongue into ten different acting limbs; gives a whole new meaning to the term tongue action."

She laughed.

"You are vile," Lal said, with a sexy tone to her voice, "but I must say, my enhanced sexual programming matrix absolutely wants more. I just wish I had some unique way to," she said in a playful manner, "return the favor."

The two young lovers, one Founder-one android, began to kiss again as the urge to make love returned.

**Light years away…Inside the Naissance**

The Emprenda had returned from the mission to Omega-722. After processing the plant life they had retrieved from the soon to be destroyed world, the crew was given a 72 hour break in action until the next retrieval mission. The moment S'vath beamed back down to his quarters, which were located in the Star Fleet complex, on the continent the Emprenda was parked over, his wife, Amanda, came over and hugged him. They kissed passionately.

"Where are the children?" S'vath asked, as they paused to take a breath.

"Lt. Malcolm Hawks and his wife are watching Lenora for us so that you and I," Amanda said with desire in her eyes, "can fool around all night. Mathew is already asleep in his crib. So come on," she said as she started to tug on his trouser, "get these off!"

She got on her knees and slipped S'vaths trousers down, as he reached down and pulled her shirt up and off, over her head. She stood up and they embraced each other

Three hours later, in their room, S'vath, who was covered in sweat, slowly untied the ropes around Amanda's wrists, which had been bound to the two bed posts. She too was covered in sweat, her body glistening in the dim lit room.

"Oh God I love it when we play Vulcan sex slave," she said, as she reached back and took off the fake Vulcan ears which covered her own real ears.

"It can be most," S'vath said, as he stretched out next to her, "active. So," S'vath went on to say, "What have you been up to while I've been away?"

"Admiral Janeway and a few of us visited the continent where your father and the others had encountered the dinosaur," Amanda explained, as she twirled her fingers on S'vaths smooth chest. "Those animals are amazing; I never thought I would ever see one. Oh," she added, "I got the most interesting message from my grandmother."

"Really," S'vath said, "Your grandmother, Christine Chapel?"

"Yes," Amanda said with a smile, "her. It is rather an odd coincidence that I am her granddaughter and she had the biggest crush on your father, all those years ago."

"She's dead," S'vath said, as he thought for a moment, "she died a few years back."

"Yes she did," Amanda replied. "Apparently she had recorded a message for my mom. I don't think my mom never listened to, or if she did, it didn't matter to her."

"What was the message?" S'vath asked.

"You see, that's the thing," Amanda said, after a moment. "She said it to my mom in confidence, and I guess me by extension, so I'm not sure I should reveal what she said."

"What is the nature of the message?" S'vath asked.

Amanda propped her head up on her left hand, continuing to swirl her finger on her husband's chest, "It has something to do with Jim Kirk, but I don't think the Jim Kirk we know."

"What do you mean by that?" S'vath asked, as he watched his wife's finger tracing lower down his abdomen.

"Apparently something happened a long time ago, but according to the date she gave, it was after the duplication of Jim. So the Jim Kirk wasn't involved, so I don't see the need to open a can of worms that doesn't involve him."

S'vath thought for a moment.

"What exactly did you find out?" S'vath asked, his curiosity getting the best of him, as Amanda's fingers disappeared under the blanket.

"The other Jim had a daughter," Amanda said.

But with S'vath becoming ever more aroused, the time for talk had come to an end; for now.

Continued…


	164. Home sweet Home

**Planet Vulcan…  
The Federation complex was a modern building, and several dozen or so people can be seen shuffling about while scurrying to their official duties…**

One of those people was Commander Reginald Barclay, and he was making his way to Ambassador Picard's office, and holding a satchel that contained a metallic device. Barclay wasn't just visiting his former captain, he had been sent to Picard with a legal summons…

-  
Ambassador Picard was in his office at the Federation complex which was centered in the capital city of Vulcan; Shi'Kahr. He was holding two cups of tea, and handed one to his visitor; Commander Reginald Barclay, who was sitting in a comfortable chair. Picard sat back down at the seat of his large desk. Barclay looked over at the large oil-painting of the Enterprise-D.

"I miss her too," Barclay said, as he marveled at the ship that Picard and he had served on together for many years.

"She went before her time," Picard said.

Picard's attention then focused on to the strange silver colored device that Barclay had brought with him, and set on the desk. It was roughly the size of a large book. There were four tiny blue lights on what appeared to be some sort of control panel. But Picard didn't have to take too long to guess what it was; he knew instantly.

"I can see by the look in your eyes," Barclay said, "that you've surmised what this is, and you are right. A couple years ago I decided to download Moriarty and his universe into this new library device."

"Fascinating," Picard said, as he sipped from his tea, "why have you brought it all the way here to Vulcan?"

Picard's tone of voice was not his usual warm tone; it denoted a tone of displeasure; and why not?

Moriarty was a holographic creation. Many years ago, aboard the Enterprise-D, Lt. Commander Data and, at the time, Lt. Geordi Leforge became avid fans of Sherlock Holmes. And to that end, the two of them had created a holosuite program that recreated the books that were written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the latter half of the 19th century, allowing Data, in the role of Holmes, and Leforge, in the form of Watson, Holmes' trusted friend and assistant, to solve the crimes. When it became clear that Data was too familiar with the books themselves, thus knowing the resolution of the mysteries in advanced, Leforge became discontent.

In order to make their adventures inside the world of Sherlock Holmes more interesting, the Enterprise's computer was tasked with creating new mysteries in the style of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. And to make Moriarty, Holmes' arch-nemesis more challenging, the Enterprise was tasked with recreating Moriarty as well, but with the intelligence of Data himself. The Enterprise complied, and thus, the holographic character of Moriarty was recreated. With his a new enhanced intelligence, and after assuming a sentient consciousness, Moriarty was well aware of the fact that he was a fictional creation given life in the real universe, and set out to become part of the real universe.

The danger Moriarty presented to the safety of the Enterprise, on two occasions, and his quest of living in the real universe, outside the confines of the holodeck, came to an end when he was tricked into believing he had left the Enterprise, but was, in all actuality, still existing in a computer program that was now stored inside the device Barclay had set on Picard's desk.

"Several weeks ago," Barclay explained, "I was with Commander Stone (one of Earth's internal security officers) at his office in San Francisco. We going over a list of items we had found at the late Lawrence Thorn's lab in Europe when a gentleman named Daniel Shore came into the office."

"Who is Daniel Shore?" Picard asked.

"He is a lawyer, and a very good one," Barclay explained. "He is a member of the FCLU (Federation Civil Liberty Union)."

"What did he want with you?" Picard asked, as he set the cup of tea down, already thinking ahead as to where this conversation was leading.

"Somehow he knew of Moriarty," Barclay explained. "He then presented me with this," Barclay handed Picard a data-pad that displayed a legal summons.

Picard read the document, and then set it down.

"I had a feeling this day would come," Picard said softly. "After the doctor on Voyager was granted citizenship, and then the nightclub singer on DS9, I knew, I just knew, the question of Moriarty would be revisited."

"Maybe we should have just deleted him when we had the chance," Barclay finally said.

"No," Picard retorted. "Data and Leforge created a life when they created Moriarty, a sentient being that couldn't be turned on or off on a whim."

"So we let the courts rule he is a citizen, and reopen this Pandora's Box?" Barclay asked. "Captain, I'm sorry, Ambassador; if he holds any grudge," and then Barclay's stuttering returned, "h…h…h…he…he may c..c..c…c..come after you," and then he gulped, "or..m…m…m…me."

It wasn't an idle worry for Barclay, Picard, while not as rattled as Barclay, had the same thought as well.

"If it gets that far," Picard said to Barclay, "then we'll just have to convince the courts to grant him citizenship," Picard paused, "at a Penal Colony."

Barclay seemed to calm down just a bit. Picard thought ahead to the next move, and had one in an instant.

"For all we know," Picard went on to say, "the courts could easily rule that not only is he a criminal, but he should be serving a sentence at a Penal Colony. Moriarty went through a lot of trouble for us to create his female companion, Countess Regina Bartholomew. Would he want to risk his perceived freedom in there," Picard pointed at the box, "for a life in captivity, separated from the countess?"

Reginald Barclay smiled; Picard was right.

Well, at least it seemed as much. Because, while Jean-Luc Picard was very smart, and had outwitted Moriarty twice; he had yet to meet the lawyer who would be representing Moriarty; Daniel Shore…and he was very intelligent too.

Continued…


	165. Just Who are We

**James T Kirk; Simplicity**

**Just Who are We?**

Jim Kirk poured two cups of tea and then took them into the living room where Myran was sitting comfortably. Both of their children were sleeping as it was still early in the morning. Kirk came into the living room and sat next to his wife, handing her one of the cup of teas. It was because there were children involved in the mix, Kirk had decided it was time to learn all he could about his wife's past.

"I feel so ashamed," Myran said as she sipped from her cup of tea, her hands slightly trembling. "I wanted to tell you about my past, when we first met, and especially before we got married, but I was so afraid I would lose you. And now that you know some of my past, I'm even more afraid I'm going to lose you now."

Kirk reached out his hand, and took Myran's in his.

"Myran," Kirk said softly, "When we first met, I didn't tell you about my past, and I should have. Just like you, I was living with a fake name, wanting to tell you who I really was, but I didn't and I was wrong about that. I am in absolutely no position to judge you and what you decided to do at all. What I do know is this; I love you. You have given me two wonderful children, and now my life will be dedicated to making sure that you and both of our children are safe from my past; and yours'."

Myran nodded and smiled at Kirk.

"My name isn't Myran," she explained, "My real name is Deena. For many years, in order to survive the mean streets of Rigel 7, my sister and I were," her voice trailed off and she bowed her head.

"It's alright," Kirk assured her. "Tell me."

She looked up Kirk.

"We were young women who gave pleasure to clients for credits," Deena said, through tears. "Eventually my sister and I were rescued for awhile from that life and put into a program to help the disadvantaged like us. Unfortunately, we ended up becoming friends with two young Bajoran men, Talla and Omath, who like us, had survived on the streets. We left the program and with no other means to make a living, my sister and I returned to being pleasure givers, while Talla and Omath worked small time con jobs."

"It must have been difficult," Kirk said, "Having to return to that kind of life."

"It was, believe me. One of my clients ended up being a visiting Vedek from Bajor, his name was Ashalla. Eventually I married him, with the hopes of eventually working a con on him with my sister, Talla and Omath; with the goal of stealing Ashalla's wealth. But," Myran went on to say, "I began to have feelings for Ashalla and decided to tell him the truth."

"Did you tell your friends you were going to do that? The ones helping you work the con?" Kirk asked.

"No," Myran replied. "I should have, but I didn't. When I told my husband, Ashalla, the truth, he became very angry; and he tried to kill me. I fought back, and during our struggle, a fire started and engulfed the home we shared Ashalla died in the fire, and the four of us decided to go our own ways. Since that I had never seen my sister or the others until, while on Earth staying with the Siskos, I ran into Talla."

"What did he want with you?" Kirk asked.

"He knew I had begun a new life, and threatened to tear that life down by letting the truth of my past out. You should know, Jim;" Myran said suddenly, "Mavis, Jake and Korena Sisko already know everything I have just told you. Do not be angry with them for not telling you."

"When you were attacked the other night ago," Kirk said, changing subjects, "do you remember anything?" Kirk stared directly into Myran's eyes.

Myran's eyes twitched ever so slightly, as she tried to remember the events of the attack.

"No," Myran said finally. "I remember being found by Harrison, and being taken to the hospital."

"Myran," Kirk said, after a moment, "I think saw Talla, right here on Timus, a week or so ago. The only reason I think it was him was because last night I received an anonymous message that contained this."

Kirk reached over to the table where he had set a data-pad earlier. He showed her the images of Myran and Talla on the Golden Gate Bridge.

"That's him; that's Talla. He's here on Timus?" Myran asked.

"I've seen him twice," Kirk replied. "The second time I saw him was at the reception gateway at the center of town. He told me that he was waiting for a visitor."

"Who was he waiting for?" Myran asked.

Kirk shook his head.

"That I don't know," Kirk replied. "I am convinced that someone, or a more than one person, is going through a lot of trouble to keep the truth about any of this from coming out, and I believe Harrison is one of them."

Myran shook her head.

"Jim, by saying that, you're implying that Harrison is somehow involved with all of this. If it was Talla who attacked me, then why would he or anyone care about hiding the truth? What would be the motive to do so?" Myran asked.

A look of anger was starting to build in Kirk's eyes.

"I don't know," Kirk said. "Look, Myran" Kirk said, as he kissed Myran on the head, "I need to start finding out answers. The more I hear your story the more I am convinced you have been the victim of a memory purge. So, with that in mind, start packing up some travel bags for you and me and the kids. We're going on," Kirk smiled, "a vacation."

"If you think that someone has purged my mind, why not take me to the hospital near town. There's a Vulcan doctor, S'tol is his name. His son was a student of mine for two years."

"No," Kirk replied, "I'd rather deal with Vulcans that I know. And besides" Kirk added, "that hospital is where Harrison took you in the first place."

"You don't think S'tol is involved with this do you?" Myran asked.

"I don't know, but I'm not willing to risk finding out, for now at least. So, start packing up. I'm heading to town to book package and spread the word we are visiting our friends on Naissance so they can see our new child." Kirk said, "Which wouldn't be far from the truth."

They both stood up, and then Kirk hugged his wife.

"Now there's only one question left," Kirk said, with a smile. "You knew me as Robert Crane, before you knew the truth; that I was James T Kirk. So," Kirk added with a smile, "what should I call you; Myran or Deena?"

"Myran," Myran responded quickly. "Deena reminds me of a past I would rather forget."

And with that they kissed.

An hour later, Jim Kirk was walking with Quark in the center of town.

"So you really think your wife is suffering from a mind-meld?" Quark asked.

"Yes, or some sort of mental block has been set inside of her mind," Kirk replied. "Unfortunately I just found out that Spock has returned to the Romulan Empire. The only other Vulcan I'm willing to trust right now is Spock's son, S'vath. I'm hoping that he can help us get to the bottom of this. I'm heading to the travel center to book package to the Naissance.

"There's no need for that," Quark said. "Why don't you use my cruiser? I'm not going to need it anytime soon, and I'll even let you use it for," Quark couldn't believe he was about to say the next word, "free."

"Are you sure?" Kirk asked.

"Any trip you book from this backward world will require, at least, three stops along the way. By using my ship, you can go to Naissance non-stop."

"Alright, I'll take your cruiser, thanks," Kirk said. "Now, as for you, I know I don't have to warn you about keeping all of this quiet. Just don't try to do anything while I'm gone."

"Jim," Quark said, "why don't you let Benjamin Sisko in on this?"

"He has a family of his own to worry about, and besides," Kirk added, "he is helping Sulu build his Japanese dream home, and from what I hear from Kasidy, Ben and Sulu keep butting heads over just how to do that."

"So be it, but I think if this goes too much further, you need to bring Sisko on board with this." Quark said. "He and I may not have seen eye to eye most of the time we were on Deep Space Nine, but I know one thing; he is resourceful."

They made their way towards the hotel/casino, when Quark changed the subject.

"Now listen," Quark told Kirk, in a hushed tone. "My contact was able to get a DNA match on the skin sample he was able to get from Mayor M'uak," Quark said. "By the way, what makes you think M'uak might be involved with any of this?"

"Just playing a hunch," Kirk replied. "What did your Cardassian friend find out?" Kirk asked.

"M'uak is not his real name," Quark answered. "What's even more interesting is the name the DNA match came back with; K'mpec."

"Should I know that name?" Kirk asked.

"He was only the Chancellor of the Klingon High Council longer than anyone else," Quark explained.

"Why did he step down," Kirk wondered, "and become mayor on a simple world like Timus?"

Quark shook his head.

"Jim, K'mpec didn't step down from the High Council," Quark said, "he was assassinated; he's dead."

Continued…


	166. Perverted

**James T Kirk; Simplicity**

**Perverted!**

**Earth;**

**The Star Fleet Academy food court.**

**(check out the "CAST" photo of this story at my profile...)**

Star Fleet Academy cadets hailed from many planets throughout the Federation, and in some cases, from far beyond. One can only imagine how many different styles of food are served at the mess galley, at the academy, to accommodate so many different culture preferences. Many of the off world cadets end up sampling the wide variety of food that Earth customs have to offer, but eventually they miss the comfort food they have been raised on , and that is where the galley really shines through.

Sparing no expense, Star Fleet constructed the most incredible kitchen ever. One would think that the cadets would be served replicated food, preparing them for the life ahead of them, since most Star Fleet vessels and Star Bases used replicator technology for food. But that wasn't the case. It had been decided at the very start of Star Fleet to offer the cadets, who were the future generations, the best food possible as a reward of making it into the academy. To that end, Star Fleet employed many chefs from all around the Federation. There were human chefs, to be sure, but many other races were represented. In fact, if a head count was taken, one would find that a large percentage of the chefs were Ferengi; and why not?

A large number of Ferengi ran eating establishments throughout the known galaxy, thus many of them had learned to cook various styles of food. In fact, across the Golden Gate Bridge, in downtown San Francisco, was Ram'sek's. It was a legendary high-class restaurant, a five-star rated establishment no less, and the head chef was a Ferengi, for whom the restaurant was named for. His temper was just as legendary, his Kitchen sometimes was referred to as Hell's Kitchen.

But, ever supportive of fine dining, and being paid a hefty sum to do so, Ram'sek was also the head chef at Star Fleet Academy. Every item on the menu had been created by him, and was perfect; of course.

Lal, the android daughter of Lt. Commander Data, and Myn, her date as well as the first Founder to attend Star Fleet Academy, had no need for food at all. Yet, in order to fit in with their peers, often they would both go down to the galley to share time together; and to observe the socializing and, at times, to sample the food products, so as to get a better feels of the dining experience. And, though they didn't admit it at first, both found it a pleasurable experience; dining together.

Lal was wearing a beautiful dress, and Myn had shape-shifted a very sleek black suit. The waitress, an attractive female from Rutia IV, brought over their beverages.

"Thank you very much," Myn told the woman, who smiled and then headed away.

"I believe that female is sexually attracted to you," Lal said, in a matter of fact tone.

"What makes you think so?" Myn asked.

"Her pupils seem to dilate every time she comes to the table," Lal said. "And I find it more that coincidental that of the several times we have dined her, she has been our waitress over 67% of the time."

"I don't know," Myn said, "I find that logic a bit biased. We do always sit on this side of the dining area, so that may just mean that this area is her responsibility."

"My scent of smell also detects a higher concentration of scented pheromones, each time she comes to our table." Lal countered.

"Meaning; she refreshes her perfume before coming to our table each time?" Myn asked.

"Yes," Lal said. "However, the belief that women have that their perfume will attract members of the opposite sex is false. So called 'sexy' perfumes containing musk have been shown more likely to arouse the woman wearing them, or other women in close proximity, than any potential male partners. But, my research shows, by making a woman feel more sensual, the perfume may affect her behavior and thus indirectly increase her attractiveness."

"Your perfume smells lovely," Myn added.

"Thank you," Lal said. "I wore it for you."

Myn was about to point out the ironic nature of her comment, but instead, remembered the information Odo had shared with him; _women are fickle_.

"Your study of human interaction is amazing," Myn said. He reached out and held her hand in his.

"Thank you," Lal said, as she looked down at his hand holding her hand. "Since I have spent most of my life among them, I have made it a purpose to find out all I can about them."

"I have enjoyed the few times we have had sexual intercourse," Myn said, looking into Lal's eyes. "While it is not as fulfilling as the Great Link, it does have its own unique attributes that I rather enjoy."

"Thank you," Lal said with a warm smile, "I have enjoyed our sexual intercourse as well." She looked over at the various tables, and then back at Myn. "I actually believe we are better at in than them."

"What do you mean?" Myn asked.

"Well, mainly, when you and I make love, because of your ability to shape-shift, and the accessories I have had built especially for me, we can change the sex roles. The humans can mimic that ability, but for us, its," she paused for effect, "generic."

"Yes," Myn said, "it is one of the limitations of being human."

Myn looked at the crowded dining room, then back at Lal.

"I was reading about your father, Data, in the Star Fleet archives," Myn said to her. "There were some who believed that your father wanted to be human; is that so?"

"He wanted to understand them, just as I do." Lal said. "I was told that at one time, he was offered the chance of becoming human, but he declined. However, for a brief moment, years before he implanted an emotional chip into his matrix, he was given the experience of laughter."

"What about you?" Myn asked. "Do you wish to become human?"

As Myn and Lal continued their discussion, several tables away, they were being observed by two girls, who were sitting with each other. One of them was a human girl. Her hair was braided behind her shoulders, and her name was Renee. The other girl was also human. Her exotic oriental features were accentuated by an immaculate application of makeup. Her hair was tight upon the top of her head; her name was Azami; and she and Lal had crossed "swords" before. Azami was prejudice against androids, and as it would seem, Changelings as well.

"This is disgusting; having to watch them," Azami said to Renee, who was nothing more than Azami's lapdog.

"Why does Star Fleet even let misfits like them into the academy?" Renee asked.

"Haven't you ever heard of the concept of IDIC?" Azami asked, in a droll manner. "I mean look at them," Azami went on to say, "I can tell just by looking at them that they have had sex. They don't even need to have sex; they do it to mimic us."

"Maybe they just want to fit in," Renee said. "You and I have had sex with other cadets and each other, so does that make us different?"

"Yes it does, silly." Azami said, "We are different from them; those two. We're humans, and the other cadets who come from other worlds are from species that need to have sex to further their species, or for recreational reasons; those two abominations don't."

Azami drank her beverage, and glared over at Myn and Lal.

"I know that look in your eyes, Azami," Renee said, "You're up to something aren't you?"

"What would give you that impression?" Azami asked back, with a smile.

"Just remember," Renee said, "ever since that incident with Lal and Rebecca being abducted through that wormhole in their room; they're celebrities with the other cadets and professors. You better not get caught doing what you're about to do."

"I'm just going to have a little," Azami paused for effect, "fun with them."

"What does that mean?" Renee asked.

Azami moved in closer and kissed Renee, their tongues finding each other inside their mouths, and then Azami sat back with a look of being devious in her eyes.

"I'm going to seduce the Changeling," Azami said, "and see if I can elicit a jealous response from Lal which will get her kicked out of the academy once and for all."

-continued…


	167. Order in the Court

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Order in the Court**

**Starbase-155**

**In orbit of Sigma Delta-7**

Daniel Shore was pointing at a sleek metallic device, which was situated on a desk between he and his opponent in this matter; Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard. The Federation judge, a gray haired Vulcan named T'anor, listened as Shore made his final remarks. For nearly five hours, T'anor had listened to each side present its case, but hadn't said one word. The core of the legal challenge was simple; was the hologram creation of Professor James Moriarty a sentient being, and if so, was he illegally being held captive inside of the library device on the desk.

"Your honor," Shore said, "as I have maintained all through my arguments, my client, the petitioner in this matter, doesn't even know he is a prisoner. He exists in a fabricated world, created by this man," he pointed over at Commander Reginald Barclay, who was sitting beside Picard. "When this very same court granted citizenship rights to two other holograms (Voyager Doctor and Vic Fontane) it also, I argue, retroactively granted citizenship to my client, who was created far longer before either one of these other two holograms. Professor James Moriarty must be released on those grounds."

"Your honor," Picard countered, standing up as he spoke, "with all due respect to Mr. Shore, the petitioner has no idea of this legal proceeding because he has existed for nearly two decades in that so called fabricated world due to his own criminal acts. And as for the fabricated world, all Commander Barclay did was create a program that would reinvent itself for hundreds of years, if need be. In fact, for all we know, the petitioner may have already ceased to be a functioning program even though the program continues to run."

"Just because my client doesn't know he's my client doesn't discount the legal challenge of his being unlawfully kept inside of that thing," Shore argued back.

Finally the Vulcan judge spoke.

"Mr. Shore," T'anore stated with a voice that did not betray in feeling what so ever, "your client, on two separate occasions, tried to destroy innocent lives in his endeavors to control the Enterprise. These were criminal acts; and unwarranted. Even if I should rule that he is sentient, and therefore the rights that come with that declaration, would he not be subjected to our laws and end up incarcerated; if only in reality?"

"Excuse me sir, your honor," Daniel Shore said, as he approached the bench where T'anore sat, "perhaps our definitions on the word unwarranted are not the same. I have read Ambassador Picard's own logs from that time, and it is quite clear to me that, in both cases, Moriarty was trying to leave the confines of the holodeck; once he achieved sentience. And it is by that measure we must look upon his actions. If Moriarty passes all of the tests that then Captain Picard used to prove the sentience of the android Data, then why doesn't Picard observe that same criteria when applied to holograms. I contest that Moriarty tried to destroy the Enterprise because he wanted to escape the captivity of the Enterprise's computers; what was wrong with wanting to escape to freedom? "

Picard was about to speak, but Daniel Shore cut him off.

"But then again," Shore said directly to Judge T'anore, "it doesn't matter what the Ambassador feels about this specific issue here today; Moriarty's freedom. The Federation High Court, by granting citizenship to the Emergency Medical Hologram from the Starship Voyager, as well as granting those same rights to the hologram known as Vic Fontaine, has already decided on this matter. There should be no debate on this subject, or, the freedom of the two other holograms would have to come into play; and none of us want that."

"What say you, Ambassador Picard?" Judge T'anore asked Picard.

Picard thought about Shore's arguments, and the connection to Data. The two were not that too dissimilar.

"I must admit, your honor, that the arguments that Mr. Shore make are valid ones," Picard finally said. "And if the earlier judgments on the rights of holograms are held up, then Moriarty must be freed. All I ask," Picard said to Shore, "is that I be there when he is informed of this decision."

"So you can intimidate him?" Shore asked, with a laugh. "I don't think so Picard."

"Mr. Shore," Judge T'anore said, with a slightly stern tone to his voice, "You do not make decisions here; I do. Therefore, I am ruling on behalf of the petitioner; Professor Moriarty is deemed sentient and subject not only to the freedoms that implied," T'anore stated, "but to our laws as well. I will not decide the criminality of his actions; another hearing will decide that matter. For now, Mr. Moriarty will have a choice; either he remains in the library construct, or, he is incarcerated at a penal colony until the matters of his criminal acts are settled once and for all."

Judge T'anor rapped the gavel on his desk, stood up, and disappeared behind the door to his chambers.

Jean-Luc Picard looked over at Daniel Shore.

"You won," Picard stated. "And from what I have heard about your career, Mr. Shore, the freedom of Professor Moriarty was never your priority; the fame that you get from this decision was."

Daniel Shore looked at Picard, and then smiled.

"I won't deny that fame was my main goal here," Shore said, as he packed up his legal brief case, "but if my fame leads to the freedom of someone wrongly fully in custody, well that's a good thing too."

Picard came closer to Shore, just inches away from the lawyer.

"If you read my logs, as you claim you have, then you know that Moriarty is a very dangerous individual. If he should resort to his criminal past, of which I have no doubt he will do, lives may be at risk. You have no idea what kind of monster you have freed here today."

Shore put on a pair of very dark sunglasses, then smiled at Picard.

"That happens to be your opinion, Ambassador Picard," Shore said, "not mine."

And with that, Shore turned and headed towards the exit, then he turned around, came back, and picked up the library construct holding the Moriarty program.

"I better hold on to this," Shore said with a grin. "I expect you and Commander Barclay in my office tomorrow morning at 0800 so that we can," Shore paused for effect, "open the door."

Picard watched as Shore left the courtroom, leaving him alone.

- continued


	168. The Vision

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**The Vision**

**Romulas….**

After secretly arriving on Romulas, and at a mountain range fifty kilometers from the capital city of Ra'tleihfi, Ambassador Spock and his associate, Elizabeth Pike, were taken deep into the mountain range. They were accompanied by a Senator from the Romulan senate, an older Romulan named V'arul.

"It is good that you are here," V'arul said to Spock. "To be honest, I didn't think you would come. I sent that coded message to you months ago."

"You know each other already?" Elizabeth asked Spock.

"Spock and I go back some seventy Earth years," V'arul said for Spock, "Back in those days I thought my friend Pardek was a fool for secretly meeting with Spock, and nearly had Pardek censured. In hindsight, Pardek ended up aiding us in the failed attempt to force Reunification all those years ago, proving himself a loyal Romulan at the very end."

"So I take it," Elizabeth said to V'arul, "that you and the Ambassador do not agree on much."

V'arul looked over at Elizabeth.

"Actually," V'arul replied, "I believe Spock and I agree on much more now that we ever have. After the ordeal with Shinzon, I came to see my empire in a new light. However," V'arul said, as he reached back and helped Spock step down two steep steps, "that is not why I have brought you and the Ambassador here."

"As for why it took so long, we would have arrived months ago," Spock said to V'arul, "except Elizabeth and I were detained inside the Naissance Dyson Sphere."

"Yes, I read a briefing about that situation," V'arul said, as the three entered the main entrance to the dig site, which was some hundred feet for so beneath the ground.

The tunnel they entered was lit with lanterns, which lit their way as they continued their trek downward.

"Just where are we going?" Elizabeth asked, as sweat formed on her brow.

"Nearly four months ago," V'arul explained, "a team of students were digging in these mountains and came upon the tunnel we are descending now. At first what they found seemed to be old ruins, left by our ancestors."

"What do you mean; seemed to be?" Spock asked.

"That is why we have brought you here," V'arul said, "We are hoping that you, Spock, can shed light on to how what I am about to show you got here."

"How can I have unique knowledge about this find of yours?" Spock asked. "I have never been to this part of your world."

V'arul looked at Spock for a moment.

"Believe me," V'arul said to Spock, "your thoughts on this matter will be most, as you would say, fascinating; Ambassador Spock."

The approached the main area of the dig.

**Hundreds of light years away inside the Naissance Dyson Sphere**…

The sleek personal transport vessel streaked past the Emprenda, an old Klingon D7 battle cruiser, and then headed down through the atmosphere of the first continent that was located near the entrance of the Naissance. Within moments, the pilot of the craft, James T Kirk, brought the ship to a resting placing on the tarmac which was located near the main Star Fleet complex.

In moments, a ramp extended out from the ship, and then the main doors opened. James T Kirk and his Bajoran wife, Myran, existed the ship to a small gathering of friends who were waiting for them. Admiral Janeway, Captain Jonathan Canary, Commander S'vath, his wife Amanda, with their two kids as well, as well as Bi`nh Zheng, and finally, at the end of the line, Commander Dr. Julian Bashir.

Jim Kirk, who was holding their 2 year old son Mathew, and Myran, who was holding their 2 week old daughter, made their way down the ramp. Admiral Janeway smiled at the child in Kirk's arms, and then nodded at Myran.

"Your children are very lovely," Janeway said to Myran, "we were wondering where they got their good looks, and now we know; from you."

The group laughed.

"I'll say," Captain Canary said, as he lightly kissed the out reached hand of Myran, "Where have you been keeping her hidden Kirk?" Canary asked.

"Hey there sailor," Kirk said, in a mock tone of anger, "get your own girl."

Kirk shook hands with the others, offering a soft peck on Amanda's cheek. Finally he gave Bashir a warm hand shake. The two had become good friends during the Project Diamond caper many months earlier.

"It's good to see you," Kirk said to Bashir.

"I assume Captain Sisko is building something up there on that soft easy going planet of yours," Bashir said with a laugh.

"He's heavily into Chinese architecture now," Kirk said with a chuckle.

Admiral Janeway was watching with a slight look of envy in her eye as Kirk made small talk with the others, while he was holding his son, Kirk was a very proud father, and it showed.

Bi`nh Zheng, or Ln X as he preferred to be called, wearing a Chinese style kilt with his dress uniform, came over to Janeway.

"You have the look of some who desires more in their life," Ln X said, with a slight Chinese accent to his words. "Do you envy James T Kirk?"

"In some ways I do," Janeway said.

Jonathan Canary, who had heard the conversation between his science officer and the Admiral, came closer. He looked over at Kirk, who along with his wife and his kids, were walking along side S'vath, his wife Amanda, and their two children.

"Admiral," Canary said, with a hint of teasing in his voice, "it is never too late to get started on a family."

"What about you," Janeway came back with, "have you ever thought about settling down and making a family for yourself."

Canary shook his head.

"Never," he replied. "My heart belongs to the stars, and the Emprenda. She is the soul of my special relationship."

"I wouldn't be so fast with that conclusion," Ln X said. "I have read much, in fact we have all read much, about James T Kirk. If anyone personifies being attached to his ship, its' him; and yet here he is, a family man."

"That is nothing but crap," Canary said softly. "I saw the look in his eyes, with one kid in his arms, another in his wife's arms, he's going stir crazy."

The three continued their discussion about family, as Kirk and S'vath, walking behind their wives, and each hold a child, talked quietly about other concerns.

"I received the coded message," S'vath said, "where did you learn to piggyback on such a signal like that one?"

"I'll give you one guess," Kirk said.

"My father," S'vath concluded. "As for your request Jim; my mind-meld ability is severely limited by the fact I have not followed the discipline needed."

"Damn," Kirk said softly.

"However," S'vath said, "there is a visiting Vulcan science team; in fact it's the team Sybok infiltrated when he came here. The leader of the team, a Vulcan female named Tenok, is known on Vulcan to have one of the most disciplined minds. If anyone can help you, it is her. However, I must warn you."

"I already know what you're going to say," Kirk said, as he shifted Mathew into his other arm, "Vulcan's don't go around forcing others into mind-melds."

"Correct," S'vath said, "however, you stated in your message that there is a Vulcan serving at the hospital on Timus."

"There is indeed," Kirk said.

"If it should turn out that he did this to your wife, then hear this Jim," S'vath, "I will accompany you back to Timus and I will help this Vulcan."

Kirk gasped at the thought, but then again, Kirk recalled; S'vath was hardly a normal Vulcan. The first time Kirk had seen S'vath, he and his wife were intimately touching each other beneath a dinner table; and knew that Kirk had been watching.

"I hope it doesn't come to that," Kirk said to S'vath.

"You are my father's friend, and mine, and forever shall be." S'vath said. "And if a Vulcan has wronged Myran; he will pay."

Kirk had an uneasy feeling that S'vath just wasn't blowing smoke; and he wasn't.

Continued…


	169. Hired Help

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Hired Hands**

**Planet Timus…**

**(for an up to date Cast Roll Call, please head to my profile and click on the CAST7 jpeg to view the actors and actresses who I 'invision' being in my story)**

Ben Sisko had absolutely no idea what the much older, and cantankerous, Hikaru Sulu was saying to him, but he knew one thing for sure; Sulu was hurling a mixture of Japanese and other Asian language obscenities at him. Ben Sisko just listened, and tried not to burst out laughing, because it was an interesting sight to behold.

Sulu was well over a hundred and twenty years old, and with his long straggly gray beard, which reached all the way down to his waist, looked very much like one of those old oriental dudes that seemed to be a fixture in all sorts of martial arts movies from the 20th and 21st centuries; but in Sulu's case, he really was a cranky old fart, when he wanted to be.

Sulu, having heard from Jim Kirk and William T Riker, that Sisko was an excellent architect, accepted Sisko's gracious offer to help build the house, or U'chi, as Sulu kept yelling in Japanese. Though, to be honest, Sisko had reprogrammed his universal translator to not translate Japanese, so as not have to hear what the curse words Sulu was saying really meant.

But there he was, Sulu, in a traditional robe, pointing up at the windows, or finding a minute problem here or there. Sisko didn't need to know what Sulu was saying, but would say a word or two, to Sulu, that to anyone else would have made perfect sense. Sisko knew that nothing was really wrong with the u'chi, because he had followed the designs perfectly. The construction was about sixty percent done, and it looked just fine. Sulu's great- great grand daughter, Masui, who had just turned twenty years old, was staring out from one of the windows at Ben with a grin on her face. The reason why her great-great grandfather was complaining, she explained earlier to Ben, was because Sulu knew that once Sisko was gone, so would be the conversations the men two shared in the early evening as dusk approached.

Sisko had spent nearly three weeks, non-stop, sixteen hours a day, directing the volunteers who had come from town to help build the house. When the sunlight dimmed, and other carpenters went home, Ben and Hikaru Sulu would sit on two old rocking chairs and swap stories about their time in Star Fleet. Ben Sisko was well aware of the fact that Sulu and Scotty had been really close friends, and the death of Scotty had been a serious blow to him. But as all the construction was starting to come together, Sulu's temper began to flare.

"Alright," Sisko said, as he watched Sulu pointing up at a supposedly misaligned window, which was actually spot on. "I'll see what I can do; does that make you happy you old buzzard?"

Sulu looked back at Sisko, and then reverted back to English.

"How will it take you to take it out and re do it?" Sulu asked.

Sisko looked at the window, and the paneling around it, and came up with an answer in his head; three days, tops. But, knowing that three days wasn't long enough, Sisko multiplied his estimate by a factor of ten.

"Oh, it will easily take a month to resize the wall, and order the right windows," Sisko said, "or maybe even longer."

"That means you'll have t stay here longer than you had expected," Sulu said, as he calmed down, "won't Kasidy be upset?"

"Nah," Sisko said, and he scratched his graying goatee, "and my sister Mavis will enjoy being able to make us fat with her good cooking."

"I really like those cookies and pies she makes," Sulu said. "They are rather scrumptious," Sulu said softly.

Sulu began to smile, which Sisko saw, but then Sulu turned that smile upside down; not wanting to let Sisko know that he was just trying to find ways to stall the completion time.

"Well, I tell you what," Sulu said, as he saw the sun getting closer to the horizon in the distance, "I say we should call it a day, and save some sake. This batch I brewed up last night should be pretty good," Sulu bragged.

Sisko humored his good friend, and headed toward the front deck where the rocking chairs were and sat down in one of them. He wondered what tall tale Sulu would tell him as dusk flared across the sky.

Sulu returned, and Sisko was shocked to find that the old man's gray beard was gone!

"Whoa," Sisko said, "what happened to your beard."

"I just wear that thing for effect," Sulu said. "I like when people think I'm some old cranky Japanese man with a long beard. And thought I should come clean with you, Ben. I want you to know that I really appreciate what you have done here; you have done a great job and I thank you. And I also know you could fix that window in three days…"

"You and I both know there is nothing wrong with that window," Sisko countered.

The two men laughed.

"Did I ever you about that time when the Excelsior was caught up in a magnetic storm?" Sulu asked. "Well, there we were when…"

Sisko listened as Sulu retold the tale, again, laughing at all the funny moments, almost on cue. Sisko shook his head. Between Jim Kirk, and Sulu, not to mention Spock and the late Montgomery Scott, Sisko wondered how anything ever got done in those old times, with such over-the-top men running around. But, Sisko adored all of it, and he wished he really had been around in those days.

_Meanwhile, a few miles away at Quark's casino/hotel, in the center of Summit Grove, something was about to happen that would soon involve Benjamin Sisko in a matter of life and death._

Quark entered the bar and was impressed with the amount of customers. To attract more gamblers, he had fired his first batch of Dabo girls he had hired at this new establishment of his, in favor of four new younger women, who also had larger breasts; much larger. He had hired the four new Dabo girls just two days earlier, and had already noticed a 7% rise in people coming through the doors. He decided to head down to his office, where he had hired the four girls, thanks to his casting couch etiquette, to count the afternoon take.

The office Quark maintained on the lower level was pretty modern. There were several computers, one of which had a direct connection with his bank holdings. Another computer kept track of the Dabo girl's weight. If any of them began to pack on the pounds; they were gone. Luckily his workers had yet to unionize, so Quark had pretty much unchecked authority to treat his employees as he saw fit. Though, as much as he pretended to be a bean-counter, Quark had good relations with his employees and actually paid a good wage to them.

Once inside of his office, the door, which usually closed slowly by itself, closed rather quickly, and Quark knew why; someone was in his office with him. Quark rapidly turned around to find a Bajoran man pressed up against the door; the Bajoran man Kirk nearly ran over with his horse two weeks past, and was, according to Jim Kirk, Myran's associate.

"I know who you are," Quark said. "Your name is Talla, and along with Myran, and two others, you were the ones who scammed that Vedek. I read all about when I was on Deep Space Nine."

The Bajoran shook his head.

"I am not here to defend what we did," Talla said, "we ran the con, and Ashalla was the target. But if you know anything about the truth, then you know he tried to kill Deena (Myran)."

"And so you came here, and almost killed her yourself; why?" Quark asked. "Why would you do that, when you yourself were involved with the scam? For extortion; that's why."

"No," Talla replied, "Ashalla didn't die in that fire all those years ago. In fact," Talla added, "he's the one who tried to extort her and then kill her in that shoe store last week, right here on Timus."

Quark chuckled.

"I don't believe you," Quark said. "Ashalla is dead, and you are trying to scare Myran, notice I don't call her Deena. You're trying to scam her now; using fear."

Talla came over and grabbed Quark by the collar.

"Listen to me," Talla said, desperate for Quark to believe him. "I didn't touch her. I did lead Ashalla to her, because he paid me to. But when he started to get rough with her, I wanted him to stop."

"Alright," Quark said, as Ashalla let him go. "Let say I believe you, which I don't, but let's say I do; where is Ashalla now?"

Talla stepped back, and became soft spoken.

"He's dead," Talla replied.

"Well now, isn't that convenient for you?" Quark asked. "He comes here to extort her, and then you kill him; it's the oldest story in the book."

Talla shook his head, and became agitated again.

"I didn't kill him," Talla said. "And I've been hiding in the back allies of this town, trying to stay alive, hoping to get off of this planet; but I can't, and they will kill me if I show my face."

"Wait a moment," Quark said. "You do look scared. Who is going to try and kill to prevent the truth from coming out? And if Ashalla died in that shoe store, then where is the body?"

Talla looked over at Quark.

"The mayor, I think his name is M'uak, he killed Ashalla. As to what happened to the body, I don't know."

Quark had a funny feeling that Talla was telling the truth. Quark already knew that M'uak wasn't the Klingon mayor's real name. His real name was K'mpec, and he had once been the Chancellor of the Klingon High Command. And you don't rise to that level of Klingon power without skeletons in your closet.

"What are we going to do?" Talla asked.

"Why bring this to me in the first place?" Quark asked.

"I've been keeping an eye on this place of yours, while I've been hiding. James T Kirk comes here quite often, so I figured you and he are friends. If anyone can get me off of this world, it's Kirk."

Quark nodded.

"Unfortunately," Quark said, "Kirk is off world, trying to find answers of his own. I could try to get him a message, but we need to keep you save until he can get back. You can't stay here for long. If you think I'm friends with Kirk, then it is safe to say you're not the only one. We're going to have to take this to Benjamin Sisko," Quark decided.

"The Emissary is here?" Talla asked, with hope arriving in his eyes at last.

"Yeah, that's the one," Quark said.

And then, without warning, the door to Quark's office opened, and standing there was Harrison Riker.

Continued…


	170. Character and Plot review

**James T Kirk:**  
He wife's criminal past is drawing him into danger. He has fathered two children with Myran. They are Mathew (who is nearly 2 years old) and Dahme (just weeks old)

_This Jim Kirk is a transporter duplicate created during the second year of the orignal five year mission. Thus, he does not have the memories of the Jim Kirk who died in GENERATIONS since this Kirk jump foward into the timeline after the events of NEMESIS._

**Ambassador Spock:**  
An ancient artifact on Romulas foretells the destruction of that planet; can Spock decipher the thousands year old puzzle in time?

**Jean-Luc Picard and Professor Moriarty:**  
The Federation has ruled that Moriarty must be freed from the library program created by Barclay. Will Picard face his most dangerous enemy again?

**Quark and Benjamin Sisko:**  
The mysterious events surrounding the criminal past of Kirk's wife are also drawing in Quark and Benjamin Sisko, and even Hikaru Sulu; and one of them is going to die!

**Myran:  
**She is the Bajoran wife of James T Kirk. Her past is catching up to her and now her life, and the life of the children she has with Kirk, are in jeopardy.

**Lal:**  
The daughter of Data, she has been reconstructed by Geordi Leforge and is now attending Star Fleet Academy, sharing a room with the daughter of Re**b**ecca Sisko. She is currently in a relationship ship with Myn, the first Founder to attend Star Fleet Academy.

**Myn:**  
The first Founder to attend Star Fleet Academy, but unknown to Lal, he is there for more than just an education.

**Azami:**  
She is a a young Asian woman attending Star Fleet Academy, and is a confirmed bigot who doesn't like Changelings or Androids and has made it her goal to run both Myn and Lal out of the Academy.

**Jonathan Archer and K'mpec**:  
Both of these legendary characters are believed to be dead. How it is they are still alive, and how they are connected to the mysterious force known as the Si'hg is an ongoing mystery.

**The USS Emprenda**:  
The Naissance Dyson Sphere is being used to house endangered plant and animal life from around the galaxy. Captain Jonathan Canary and his crew are tasked with brining the endangered life to the sphere.

**S'vath**:  
He is Spock' son, and is married. His wife, a medical doctor, is the grand-daughter of Christine Chapel and her name is Amanda (which is also the name of S'vath's deceased grandmother). They both serve aboard the Emprenda, and have two children; Lenora and Sarek.

So far, the following canon characters have been killed since this story began...

**Worf  
Harry Kim  
Thomas Riker  
Montgomery Scott  
Captain Jellico  
Trelane  
**  
**Our story will continue on Monday...June 13**


	171. Assumed Positions

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Assumed Position**

**Earth; Star Fleet Academy…late night**

_(the tone of this issue is certainly in the PG-13 range. But, as usual, the aspects of what happened are innuendo at best; no actual description of what happened, though, if you can put two and two together, you'll get the drift…)_

Two sets of legs were entwined beneath the warmth of satin sheets; the warmth being supplied by their bodies. A man and a woman, their breaths labored, had just came down after reaching the pinnacle of passionate love making, with only the fading orange glow of a candle wick providing a sliver of light. Their mouths were still kissing, their hands were still clasped and their arousal only momentarily exhausted, while waiting for a new wave of sensuality to overwhelm the again. The scent of hot skin and the insatiable desire to do it all again was unbearable.

Azami opened her eyes and looked at Myn, whom she was laying on top of. She smiled down at the man whom she knew was a Founder; a Changeling. And even though he was a changeling, his body felt as real as any man's she had slept with. Myn was anatomically and in the heat of passion, became even more endowed than any other man she had been with.

"Where did you learn how to make love like that?" Azami asked Myn. "It's almost as if you've read the Kama Sutra from back to front several times."

Myn smiled up at the exotic Azami.

"No reading required," Myn said, with a soft voice. "All one needs to do is to look at body of a man, and a body of a woman, to understand how the two can meld together."

"Oooooo," Azami said, "I really like the sound of that," he added as she slid her hands up Myn's torso and began to dance her fingers across his chest. "The sensations I could feel inside were," she had to think of the right word, "amazing. It gives new meaning to the phrase one size fits all."

They both chuckled. Inside, Azami was thinking to herself that she had finally put her plan into motion to get Lal thrown out of the Academy. Azami was going on the impression that Lal would not be able to handle the tawdry emotion of jealousy, and would confront her, perhaps attack her. Androids had been known in the past to have difficulty with complex emotions, such as jealousy, so Azami hoped Lal was no different.

But, there was an added benefit to this course of action; love making with a Founder, and enjoying Myn's ability to shape-shift any part of his body…ANY part. So, for now, Azami would revel in the sensations the inside of her body was enjoying. They had already been making love for three hours, and she wanted more..much…more.

"Can we do it again?" Azami finally asked, as she felt his hands going lower down the small of her back, underneath the blankets again.

"Certainly," Myn said, "how's this for," he paused, as he made an adjustment, "size?"

Azami's eyes closed in an almost reflexive motion as she felt the spasms of ecstasy begin to throb inside of her. If there was a place called heaven, she wanted it to be a memory of this night; sex with a changeling was heaven.

Nearly two hours later, Azami had put her dress back on and was standing at the door to Myn's room, ready to leave.

"I had a wonderful time," Azami said. "I hope we can do this again. I won't say anything to Lal."

Myn nodded his head.

"Just let me know when you'd like to do this again," Myn said. "I can actually shape-shift so that I can have more than just one sexual organ; you might find that even more enjoyable.

Azami almost fainted at the thought, but caught herself. Moments later, she was making her way across the campus and finally to the dorm room that she and Renee had shared for the many months they had been attending Star Fleet Academy. Azami walked into the room and headed to the kitchen to get something to drink, before heading off to bed, but out of the corner of her eyes she saw that Renee was sitting in the living room, in a bathrobe; and she wasn't alone. She poured herself a glass of water and when into the living room to see that Lal was there as well; and she too was in a bathrobe.

"What is she doing here?" Azami asked Renee.

It was obvious to anyone with a brain that Renee and Lal had been doing more than just chatting about their daily routine.

"Nothing more than you were doing at Myn's," Renee said, innocently.

"You were at Myn's tonight?" Lal asked.

Azami laughed inside at the pathetic innocent look on Lal's android face. Perhaps the jealousy fill fight would happen sooner than later/

"Yeah," Azami said, with her usually snotty tone, "I was at his place tonight. And Myn and I (CENSORED) ed at least five times over a five hour period of time; among other things. Oh, and we did," she paused for effect, "everything a man and a woman could do; and I mean everything."

She flashed Lal a most condescending glance.

Lal smiled back at Azami.

"I am for happy you," Lal said, in a matter of fact one. "Although Myn and I are dating, we have both decided that since most of the humanoids attending Star Fleet Academy are in stated monogamous, but many are in fact being with others at the same time intimately, we too should experience this aspect of human coupling. And I am happy to state that for the past four hours, seventeen minutes and eight seconds, we…"

Azami had heard enough.

"I don't want to hear it," Azami declared.

"Did you know that Lal has accessories?" Renee asked, with excitement in her voice.

"UGGGGHGHGHG," Azami said as she scurried down the hallway to her room.

Azami, once the door to her room had closed, leaned up against the wall and slid down to where she was then sitting on the ground, her back against the wall, her glass of water just dangling between her fingers.

"I'll get you Lal; if it's the last thing I do," she whispered to herself.

-Continued…

Next time...Jim Kirk snaps! And when that happens, evil better run!


	172. Righteous Souls

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**Righteous Souls**

_Previously…_

"Unfortunately," Quark said, "Kirk is off world, trying to find answers of his own. I could try to get him a message, but we need to keep you save until he can get back. You can't stay here for long. If you think I'm friends with Kirk, then it is safe to say you're not the only one. We're going to have to take this to Benjamin Sisko," Quark decided.

"The Emissary is here?" Talla asked, with hope arriving in his eyes at last.

"Yeah, that's the one," Quark said.

And then, without warning, the door to Quark's office opened, and standing there was Harrison Riker.

"Ummm," Quark said, "can I help you deputy?"

Harrison Riker drew his phaser and pointed it at Talla.

"You're coming with me," Riker said to Talla.

"Why?" Talla asked.

"Don't act stupid; you're wanted in connection with the attack on Myran Kirk," Riker stated.

Talla backed up, not wanting to go with Riker.

"I had nothing to do with that attack on her, and you know it. Her attacker was Ashalla, and then your Klingon mayor, M'uak, broke his neck and killed him; I know, because I saw it happen!"

Suddenly, and without warning, someone holding a bottle came up from behind Harrison Riker and smashed him on the head with it; dropping him to the ground with a loud thud. The attacker was Mavis Sisko!

"Wow, what are you doing here?" Quark asked the older sister of Benjamin Sisko.

"I came here to get some of that Japanese wine that Mr. Sulu likes to mix in with the fertilizer he uses on his garden," Mavis said, "I was going to try that trick myself. I heard a commotion down here and then I saw that roughen aiming that thing at you and decided to even the odds." Then she looked at Talla, "I recognize you; you were the fella on the Golden State Bridge with Myran, aren't you."

Talla nodded and then Mavis slapped him hard across his face; hard.

"Ouch," Quark said, as he saw the redness on Talla's face.

Talla rubbed the wound and then nodded his head.

"I guess I deserved that," Talla said.

"You bet you did," Mavis spat back. "Myran is a nice young lady who made a mistake by getting tangled up with you and that other loser friend of yours. She had put all that in the past, found a good man in James T Kirk."

"I'm sorry, I really am," Talla said. "When Ashalla found me, he told me that he had already killed Deena's sister and her husband, my friend, Omath. He threatened to kill me unless I brought him to Deena (Myran), so I told him I would as long as he didn't kill her, and that I had to be paid."

"So let me get this straight," Quark said, "You and Myran, who is actually Deena, as well as her sister and your friend Omath were all in this together. Myran married Ashalla, a Bajoran Vedek with a large bank account. The plan was to access his account and liquefy his assets, split it four ways, and then disappear."

"That's right," Mavis replied, before Talla could. "But Myran started to have feelings for Ashalla, and admitted her involvement. But Ashalla acted all the fool and tried to kill her. She fought back and accidentally started a fire in the home, and thinking she had killed him, she and her friends left Bajor."

"With nothing I might add," Talla said. "We got nothing out of the score."

"Yeah," Quark said, with a sympathetic tone in his voice, "setting up the con, doing all the leg work; how much did you lose?"

"Too much," T alla said. "Finally Ashalla found the other two and killed them," Talla continued, "then he found me and now here we are."

Quark shook his head, something was bothering him.

"All of it makes sense, I suppose," Quark said, "but what about him," Quark said, pointing down at Harrison Riker, who was still out cold. "And why would the mayor want to kill Ashalla in the first place? He had no stake in your con."

"That part," Talla said, "I don't know. But unless we get off this world, or get some help, I think the three of us are all in trouble."

It was at that instant when two other people walked into the crowded office room. M'uak (K'mpec) and Jonathan Archer.

"Oh no," Quark said, who was already aware of K'mpec's true identity.

"What's going on here?" Mavis demanded.

Archer and K'mpec, ignoring Mavis, surveyed the situation.

"Excuse me," Mavis said with much attitude, "What do you two want?" she demanded.

Jonathan Archer looked down at Riker, and then over to K'mpec.

"Riker's good," Archer said to K'mpec, "just sloppy." Then he looked over at Mavis. "I'm sorry for what has happened here Ms. Sisko, but in a few moments none of you are going to remember anything that has happened here."

"What does that suppose to mean?" Talla asked.

"I'll tell you what it means," Quark said. "Myran doesn't remember anything that happened that night because Jim Kirk believes her mind was tampered with. And I bet these two were partially responsible for that, and now they're going to tamper with our minds."

"You ain't going to tamper with any part of me, "Mavis said.

"I understand where you're coming from, I really do" Archer said to her, "but trust me Ms. Sisko; it has to be this way."

"Why?" Mavis asked. "Why do we have to forget any of this?"

Talla suddenly tried to reach down and grab Riker's discarded phaser, but in one motion, M'uak grabbed the Bajoran by the collar and threw him across the room. Talla crashed into the wall and fell to the ground; out cold. Then M'uak glared down at Quark.

"Trust me," Quark said, as he stared up at M'uak, "I have no intention of doing anything stupid like that."

Jonathan Archer came over to Mavis Sisko.

"You seem like a nice gentleman," Mavis said. "Why are you tampering with good folk's minds?"

"I know why," Quark said to Mavis. "This Klingon's name isn't M'uak," Quark told her. "His name is K'mpec, and he use to be the Chancellor of the Klingon High Command. And that man," Quark said, looking over at Archer, "I believe his name is Jonathan Arrow."

"Archer," Jonathan Archer corrected Quark.

"That's right," Quark said. "My nephew Nog is in Star Fleet," Quark told Mavis, "and he once showed me a data pad of noted Star Fleet personal that had died in the past. This man, Jonathan Archer, is one of those people."

Mavis looked at M'uak, then Archer.

"So," Mavis said, "what are you two; ghosts?"

K'mpec laughed very loud.

"I have never been called a ghost before," K'mpec said, his low voice causing the walls to rumble.

Quark's mind was starting to put the stray pieces together.

"Wait a second here," Quark said. "You're both supposed to be dead," Quark said to Archer, "Jim Kirk was supposed to be dead too. And I bet," Quark said, as he looked down at Riker, "he's supposed to be dead too. I'm beginning to see a pattern here. What is this world? Planet of the living dead?"

"Funny, but unfortunately," Archer said, "You're not the only ones to be getting uncomfortably close. Your friend, the Cardassian named Garak; he is on his way to meet with Martok, the current Chancellor of the High Command. He plans to show Martok that K'mpec here is still alive. And then there's Jim Kirk. He is at the Naissance, and will soon find out that his wife's mind has indeed been tampered with. And because of all of this, all of you have put into a danger a very important project that my benefactors will not let be jeopardized. Ms, Sisko," Archer said, "that is why you must forget everything which you have seen and heard here today."

"Then you are ghosts," Mavis said, in a near voice.

At that moment, a Vulcan entered the room.

"The final peace of the puzzle," Quark said. "You must be the Vulcan who tampered with Myran's memory; I suppose you will do the same to us now."

"Yes," the Vulcan replied. "I assure you; there will be no pain."

"It is a good thing that Kirk never met you," Archer said to the Vulcan. "He might have figured out who you were, and alerted far more people than who have questions now."

"But he didn't meet me," Sarek said, "And once we are done here, just like you, I will be safe again in the vacuum of space."

"I believe you can see why we must remove your memories of these events," Archer said to Mavis. "It is better for all of us."

"What about Garak and Kirk?" Quark asked.

"We will deal will them, trust me," K'mpec said.

And then, at first, Sarek initiated a Vulcan mind meld with Talla, who was still out cold, and then Harrison Riker, he too was still out cold. Once done with Riker, Sarek came over to Mavis, and was about to place his fingers on the side of her head, when she stopped him.

"Please tell me," Mavis said to Archer, and then she looked at Sarek and K'mpec, "that your cause is a righteous one."

Archer smiled at her.

"Righteous is a very heavy word," Archer said with a smile, "I will tell you this; we are a force of good," Archer said. "And as to your question from earlier; are we ghosts?" Archer repeated. "I guess that would depend on your point of view."

"What does that suppose to mean?" Quark asked, from where he stood, knowing that he was next.

Sarek executed the mind-meld with Mavis and then turned to face Quark.

"You have to know," Quark said, "that the mind of Ferengi can be impervious to mind-melds."

"Trust me, my friend;" Sarek said to Quark, "not mine."

Moments later, Sarek stepped back. Four people were now motionless on the floor of Quark's office: Quark, Mavis Sisko, Harrison Riker, and Talla.

"Is it wise to leave Riker behind?" K'mpec asked Archer.

"I really thought he could help us," Archer replied, as he looked down at Riker and smiled, "And be part of our crew. I was wrong. But, maybe, he can be of a good use here. Once thing's for sure; he has no idea who he really is. His quest to find answers will be good for him."

"Won't someone examine him?" K'mpec then asked, "And then come to realize that he is different than they are?"

"Yes," Archer said, "That is very possible. But according to Lucsly and Dulmer, Riker's destiny was eventually going to unfold this way. Well, here it is."

"They better be right," Sarek said. "Leaving him here is an illogical calculated risk."

"It won't matter," Archer said. "The comming storm will make all of this a moot point; unless we finish what we were sent here to do."

Suddenly there was a flash of light and then in the place of Sarek, Archer and K'mpec were three globes of light that, after a moment, vanished. The Si'hg had left; for now.

Continued…

next time...Kirk finds out an uncomfortable truth...meanwhile, Jean-Luc Picard prepares to meet up with an old enemy.


	173. The Last Memory

**James T Kirk: Simplicity**

**The Last Memory**

**Inside the Naissance; at the Star Fleet complex…**

**(Don't forget to see the new cover art at my profile)**

James T Kirk waited patiently inside the waiting room which was located just outside the medical department inside the massive Star Fleet complex. His wife, Myran, was in one of the medical offices undergoing a mind-meld with an older female Vulcan named T'evyr. Waiting with Kirk were Admiral Kate Janeway and Commander S'vath.

All though he was a patient man, at times, Kirk was still pacing, as Janeway and S'vath stood near the nurse station, waiting for any word that the meld was completed.

"What's taking so long?" Kirk asked, finally with the edge of an impatient husband's voice sneaking through.

"Jim," S'vath said, "Even though I am part Vulcan, I am no expert on Vulcan mind-melds, but I do know that if Myran's mind has been tampered with by a Vulcan, it could take some time for T'evyr to know for sure."

Janeway, sipping from a cup of tea, nodded in agreement.

"S'vath is right," Janeway said, as she came over to Kirk and handed him yet another cup of coffee. "I remember Tuvok telling me once that he was involved with a mind meld that lasted seventeen hours. Myran has only been with the T'evyr for just over two hours; it may take more time."

Kirk shook his head. Not only was it difficult to wait for the results of Myran's meld, but it was also uncomfortable for Kirk to be there, back inside the Naissance, due to the recent death of Mr. Scott, who had been murdered in the Naissance medical by a Vulcan that Kirk, this Kirk at least, had never known; a Vulcan named Sybok.

"I know she's doing her best," Kirk said to them both, as he sipped his coffee, "but all of this, and Scotty being killed here not so long ago, is really extracting a toll from me I guess."

"It is very hard to lose someone who was once part of our crew," Janeway said, as she spoke softly. "When I received the information that Lt. Harry Kim had been killed (issue #77) on Envan Prime by the Planet Killer, at first I wouldn't believe it; but it was true. I didn't get a chance to grieve at the time, but believe me, I did later."

Kirk was about to say something when, suddenly, T'evyr came through the door.

"How is she?" Kirk asked the Vulcan woman.

"Kirk," T'evyr, "your wife loves you very much; this you must remember foremost."

"I know," Kirk said softly. "I do not blame her for anything from her past. Lord knows that my own past isn't perfect."

"As for her mind being manipulated," T'evyr, "I can only say that her memories have been edited. Try as I might, I could not find any trace of who has done this to her, however, I am convinced it was a Vulcan."

"What about the time frame?" Kirk asked. "Can you tell how long ago these memories were made that are now deleted?"

"Yes I can, however, it is only an estimation," T'evyr. "I would gather that it has happened within the past week or so. But in order for those memories to be edited, or purged, without and trace what-so-ever, it would take a Vulcan with extreme abilities, and Vulcan's like that are not in great number. Aside from Tuvok of Vulcan, I can think of no other Vulcan alive who would have had that capability."

"Tuvok was nowhere near Timus," Kirk said to Janeway, "The last I heard from Spock, Tuvok was on Vulcan going through therapy at a secluded location due to the effect of Sybok's mind-melds had on him."

"That is true," Janeway said, "Tuvok sent me a message two nights ago and told me his therapy is not yet near to being completed."

T'evyr thought some more, then added;

"Sybok was another such Vulcan who had the capability required," T'evyr," however; he is dead, and so is his father, Sarek; another Vulcan who could have accomplished it."

"You've name three people already," Kirk said, "yet you say this kind of mind-meld ability is rare."

"It is," T'evyr stated, in a matter of fact tone. "Notice that Sarek and Sybok are related. Sarek's family line have been known to have above average mind-meld disciplines; even Spock."

Kirk was thinking, and Janeway could see that Kirk was getting that well known look of curiosity in his eyes.

"The Vulcan doctor on Timus," Kirk said to S'vath, "who is he? Do you know of him?"

"No, I have never met him," S'vath said. "Perhaps we can access the computer," S'vath said, as he went around into the nurse's station, and sat down at one of the vacant computer.

As Kirk waited for S'vath to access the Star Fleet files, he thanked T'evyr for her efforts and wished her well. Once the T'evyr had left, Janeway came over to Kirk.

"Jim," Janeway said, "how certain are you that that his Vulcan doctor on Timus Prime is the Vulcan who did this to your wife?"

"Honesty, I can't be sure," Kirk explained. "But Harrison Riker took her to the hospital, it's the only one on Timus, and said that a Vulcan doctor had greeted them and took Myran in."

"Harrison Riker," Janeway said, "Exactly who is he?"

"He is the son of Thomas Riker," Kirk said. "I hired him on as one of my deputies a couple weeks ago."

"Now that's strange," Janeway said, "I Know William Riker quite well, and he has never told me that his dead brother had a son."

"This is even stranger," S'vath said, as he looked at the computer screen. "There is a doctor listed at the hospital on Timus, but I can find no applicable data as to who he is, beyond his name, Sjar. I am checking the Vulcan database, and just as with the hospital, I can find only a name; no information and no images of him either."

"What are you saying?" Janeway asked.

"This Vulcan, Sjar, according to the Vulcan and Star Fleet databases, does not exist." S'vath thought for a moment. "Admiral, I would like permission to accompany Jim Kirk back to Timus Prime. The crew of Emprenda is currently on shore leave for another two weeks. I am quite sure my business will be completed in time to return to duty."

"Very well," Janeway said. "Just please stay out of trouble."

"Kate," Kirk said, "I would like to keep Myran and the kids here for the time being, until," Kirk said, looking at S'vath, "until S'vath and I can sort this out."

"I'll make sure they are under guard at all times," Janeway said.

Kirk looked to S'vath.

"Well, I'm going to let Myran know that we're leaving. Can you be back here in, oh, an hour from now?" Kirk asked.

"I'll be here," S'vath said.

And with that, S'vath headed out of the medical complex as Kirk entered the patient area to let Myran know he was leaving. He entered Myran's room, where she was barely awake. He came over to her and sat down beside her.

"You look as beautiful now as you did the first time we met," Kirk said, as he kissed her.

"I'm a criminal; how can you stay married with me knowing that?" Myran ask, shame coating her words.

"I could care-a-less about any of that," Kirk told her. "You're my wife and I love you, and I'm going to find the person who did this to you and find out why they have done this."

"Why do I think that means you're leaving here without me?" Myran asked.

"I have to," Kirk said. "I can't take you, or the kids back to Timus, until I find out what is going on and why."

"Promise me you still love me," Myran pleaded.

"Myran," Kirk said, and then he kissed her on the lips. "You are my lover, you're my friend; and you have given me the two greatest miracles in the universe. I once believed that this kind of life, a life with a wife and kids, would never happen to me. I love you so much, and I want you to know, that you are the most important thing in my life."

The kissed again. And as they kissed, Kirk could not possibly know that this would be the last time he would ever see his wife, or his kids; maybe!

Continued…


	174. What happened Yesterday

**Jean-Luc Picard; Simplicity**

**What happened Yesterday**

**The planet Timus Prime…**

S'vath opened his eyes and had absolutely no idea where he was. His vision was slightly fuzzy, and then finally he was able to focus. He was in a bed, a medical bed, and Benjamin Sisko, dressed in a casual outfit, was staring at him from across the room.

"You're lucky to be among the living," Sisko said, as he came over to S'vath.

S'vath was starting worry. What could have happened to put him a medical bed? He closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind, and then he looked back a Sisko.

"What happened? How did I get here?" S'vath asked.

"Let's go at this from another direction," Sisko said, as he came over and stood next to the bed S'vath was in. "What is the last thing you remember?"

S'vath concentrated on his thoughts, and then…

"Jim and I had just departed the Naissance. We were in Quark's private craft, and then…ummm…" he tried to remember but everything was blank, "I think we…" his thoughts were scattered, "I ….don't know. Where am I now?"

Sisko shook his head, it was clear to S'vath that his answer was not the one Sisko wanted to hear.

"The ship was found adrift, not far from Timus," Sisko said. "You were found in the ship, but Jim hasn't been found yet."

"Were we boarded?" S'vath asked. "If we were, I have no memory of it. The last thing I remember is leaving the Naissance."

"Just like my sister," Sisko said softly.

"What do you mean; like your sister?" S'vath asked.

"My sister along with three others, were all found in an office here on Timus; their memories erased. Their answers were as vague as yours are now."

"Wait a moment, go back a second, are you telling me that Jim has just simply disappeared?" S'vath asked.

Sisko was becoming impatient, but he knew that S'vath wasn't to blame.

"Listen to me Commander S'vath," Sisko said, "there are a lot of questions buzzing about here on Timus. And now you've arrived, Jim Kirk is missing, and now we have more questions."

"Jim and I were coming here to find answers about the Vulcan doctor here on Timus. His name is Sjar, and for all we can tell, there is absolutely no data on him anywhere in Star Fleet and Vulcan records."

"Well, I can tell you now, he is no longer at the hospital. He has simply," Sisko said, and then his voice became even deeper and soft, "disappeared too."

"Mr. Sisko," S'vath said, as he pivoted and stood up from his bed, "people just don't exist and then not exist."

"Well then, help me find some answers," Sisko said. "Maybe we can find them together.

"I would like that," S'vath said. "Jim Kirk is really close to my father, and so I promised my father I would help Jim whenever he asked for it. Now that he's missing," S'vath said, with determination in his voice, "I want to help all that I can to find him."

Sisko liked the young Vulcan's grit

"With the mayor of Summit Grove missing as well, the town leaders have asked that I take that position, and I have accepted. I would like to name a new Constable to replace Jim Kirk until he returns; and he _will_ return. I have already spoken with Admiral Janeway, and she told me about you, and I'd like you take Jim's place as Constable. Admiral Janeway has already agreed to the transfer, and Star Fleet will temporarily look upon it as an official position."

S'vath nodded in agreement.

"I will need to let my wife and…"

Sisko put up a hand, and then cut in…

"Admiral Janeway and I pretty much guessed your answer already; your wife and children are on their way," Sisko added as he handed S'vath badge of office; a silver star in a circle. "Welcome to Summit Grove. I wish the circumstances were better."

S'vath nodded, and then he and Sisko headed out of the room; determined to get some answers

**Starbase-155**

In orbit of Sigma Delta-7

Sigma-Delta 7 was a member world of the Federation. And just like any world that had civilian populations, mainly comprised of humanoids, it meant that there people who followed the laws, and people who tried to skirt the laws; and in that mix there were lawyers. Even in the 24th century, lawyers were the butt of many jokes, but that didn't bother Daniel Shore. He was one of the best lawyers that credits-latinum-gold-diamonds, just name the commodity, could buy. The Federation a cashless society without material need; yeah right.

Daniel Shore's office was located in the capital city of Sigma-Delta 7, which mean he got really good business. Add to that the fact there was a large Star Base in orbit of the planet; it meant a steady flow of business. His office was plush, and it even had its own holosuite, for his private use; some of it harmless fun. But some of the programs Shore had were more of an adult nature like Vulcan Sex Slave: Revenge of the Whip.

Shore was sitting behind his desk and watched as Commander Barclay set the library program, which contained Moriarty, on the desktop.

"Are you sure it will work this time?" Shore asked Barclay. "I don't want you to kill my client."

Ambassador Picard, who was there as well, answered before Barclay could.

"If you hadn't had been in such a rush last week when the decision went your way," Picard said to Barclay, "then that little incident with the program wouldn't have happened. We warned you that your holosuite program and Moriarty's matrix would have compatibility issues, and so it did."

"I trust those issues have been resolved," Shore, who lit up a cigar, said to Barclay.

"It will work this time," Barclay said.

"Did you bring the mobile emitters?" Shore asked, as he inhaled from his cigar.

Barclay opened up a case he was holding, and took out two holo-emitters.

"Judge T'anor has not ruled on behalf of Countess Regina Bartholomew just yet," Picard said.

"Trust me; he will," Shore said to Picard. "Because if the Countess is aware of her surroundings, as you seem to imply she was, then she's just as illegally being detained as Moriarty is. Now," Shore said, with an impatient tone to his voice, "let's get this done."

Commander Barclay active the holosuite, and waited for a prompt from the computer. Suddenly the holosuite's computerized voice which was that of a very sexy woman, spoke.

"You may enter," the female voice said in a very seductive manner.

Upon hearing the voice, Picard shook his head. The door to the holosuite opened and then Ambassador Picard, Commander Barclay and Lawyer Daniel Shore all went inside.

In the deep of space, a small ship was adrift in space; and had been so for nearly a week. There was but one passenger aboard; a Cardassian named Garak.

Continued…


	175. The Elite Storm

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**The Elite Storm**

A Star Fleet runabout whisked through space at warp speed. At the helm was Commander Reginald Barclay. Sitting together in the passenger cabin were Federation Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard and Daniel Shore, a lawyer by trade. And although it seemed as if they were traveling through the vacuum of space, they were actually inside a holodeck which was located inside of Shore's law office in the so called real world.

In fact, the only two real people inside of the holodeck were Picard and Shore. Commander Barclay was actually an avatar of the real Barclay, who was monitoring the program from the outside world, but able to communicate with Picard and Shore through his avatar.

"We've been inside this program for nearly two hours," Shore said, "Why is it taking so long to get to Moriarty's position?"

"As Commander Barclay explained earlier," Picard said, "this program has been running for nearly twenty years, expanding the entire time. There is no limit as to how far and how expansive it has become. And because we wanted Professor Moriarty to experience the closest thing to reality, Barclay gave it an unlimited ability to create its own so called reality."

"How do we even know we are heading to where ever he is?" Shore asked.

"Because," Barclay answered from the flight cabin, "I put a tracker-lance in Moriarty's matrix so that, if we wanted to find him, we could. The fact we are in motion means that he is somewhere in this matrix, however," Barclay said, "I never realized how expansive the program had become until now."

"You mean to tell me," Shore said to Picard, "that no one has made contact with Moriarty after put him in here?"

"Precisely," Picard said. "Let me put it another way," Picard said, "His actions, on two separate occasions, did nothing to endear himself to myself or the crew of the Enterprise."

"Thank God I am here," Shore said. "The mind of the military has always been limited when it comes to reality."

"Star Fleet is not a military organization," Picard countered with.

"Tell that to the Jem'Hedar," Shore said.

"We only act to defend our selves," Picard said right back to Shore.

"Sure, you go ahead and believe that non-sense all you wish," Shore said. "I really can't believe this is taking us more than two hours?" Shore countered. "I hope this isn't some trick to make me give up trying to find him so I can inform him he is a free man."

"No tricks," Barclay said.

"And don't forget," Picard added, "Moriarty left the Enterprise believing he had escaped. What kind of life he had created after that point, we can only imagine." Picard's denoted a tone of sarcasm.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Shore asked, picking up on the tone.

Picard looked squarely at Shore.

"That man is killer," Picard stated. "He also considered himself to be of an elite stature. That is a volatile mixture."

"There is no proof of that, Picard," Shore said. "After he was created by your crew members, Data and Leforge, he soon became self aware and only wanted to escape the fantasy world he knew he was inside of."

"And he was willing to kill us to do so," Picard said.

"As I told Judge T'anore, and you, those were the actions of a man who felt as if he was not being let out of a cage," Shore countered. "After you duped him into believing that he had left the Enterprise, he has had all this time to live his life as what he perceived to be a freeman. I am willing to bet that a life of crime was not the result."

Picard had a worrisome thought.

"What if he has used this time to resort to his past life as a criminal?" Picard asked. "What if he went back to killing people, albeit holograms that exist in this false reality, would that change your perspective?"

Shore thought for a moment.

"No, it wouldn't," Shore finally replied. "He is still a freeman despite what has or hasn't happened inside of this program; and don't you forget that."

"We are coming out of warp," Barclay announced, "I believe we are getting closer to Moriarty."

The runabout came out of warp and approached a beautiful blue planet; Earth. Suddenly two larger ships, much larger ships, Galaxy class star ships to be more exact, came along side.

"A signal is coming in," Barclay said to Picard.

"Put it on speakers," Picard said.

The voice of a man came over the speakers of the runabout.

"This is ship designation U-25540," the voice announced, "you are to follow the coordinates we have provided. Once you clear the upper atmosphere, two other ships will intercept you and take you to a secure landing site. If you deviate from the coordinates, you ship will be obliterated."

"Understood," Picard said.

"What is your name?" the Voice came back with.

Picard had thought about using his real name, but is was clear, to him, that the Earth in this alternate reality of Moriarty's was not the same as it was in true reality. And then, as the two Galaxy-class ships passed the runabout, giving Picard and Shore a better view of the saucer section and a unique shape, Picard decided to hide his indentify for now.

"My name is Dixon Hill," Picard said, "and I am being accompanied by two close associates."

There was silence, and then…

"Very well, Dixon Hill," the voice finally said, "You have been cleared for landing. Do as you have instructed, and there will be no problems."

"Thank you," Picard answered.

Barclay looked back at Picard.

"Sir," Barclay said, "I don't like the feel of this. I should pull you out now, while I can. Did you see the designation letters on the saucer section of those ships?"

"I did indeed Command Barclay, and that is why I used the name of Dixon Hill."

"Well, I didn't see the saucer section clearly enough; what did you see?" Shore asked.

Picard nodded at Barclay, who then played back recorded images of the two very large ships. Barclay zoomed in and this is what was displayed on the saucer section; a swastika.

Continued…


	176. The Elite Storm II

**Jean-Luc Picard; Simplicity**

**The Elite Storm II**

Inside a holodeck/suite located inside the law office of Daniel Shore…

As the runabout followed two escort crafts down through Earth's atmosphere, Picard came up to the flight cabin and sat next to Barclay. Even though the Barclay sitting before Picard was an avatar of the real Barclay, who was actually outside the holodeck monitoring the situation through a specially made visor that allowed him to see through his avatar's eyes, Picard still felt safe knowing that at any moment Barclay could end the program.

"We have no idea what we're going to find down there on Earth," Picard said to Commander Barclay. "Are you one-hundred percent sure that the safety protocols are operational?"

Barclay nodded.

"Yes," he replied to Picard, "I just rechecked the default settings of Mr. Shore's holodeck's main control links. You're safe in there as much as you can possibly be."

"I've heard that before," Picard said softly.

"Listen carefully, Commander," Picard said to Barclay, "if I should mention the words," he thought for a moment, "green everglades, then I want you to immediately get Mr. Shore and my self out of the holodeck; is that understood?"

"Green Everglades," Barclay repeated softly, "right sir."

Daniel Shore, who not only was a lawyer, but was also very smug, chuckled at Picard's worried tone.

"Oh come on Ambassador Picard," Daniel Shore said, with an annoyed tone in his voice, "this is nothing more than an advanced holo-program. You're acting as if this ship, and the planet we are heading down to, are real, well I have news for you; they're not. If you think there is any danger involved with this, then you need to have your head examined."

"Maybe this reality is not real for you and I, but the moment Moriarty realizes who we are," Picard explained, "he will instantly know that his so called life, from the moment he believes he left the Enterprise all those years ago, until now, has all been a fabrication. Have you thought about how much of an effect that might have on him as well?"

"It is valid concern," Shore allowed, "If you mean he might need a period of adjustment, but that is trumped by the fact that he will know, once and for all, he is a citizen and has guaranteed rights; and;" Shore said, as he picked up the case containing the holo-emitters, "he can really live beyond the confines of the elaborate prison you have made for him."

"The man is dangerous," Picard said softly.

"And I say your judgment is clouded," Shore countered. "I am unbiased here, Picard. I see him as a prisoner and you as his well intentioned warden."

"It will be interesting to see what kind of reality Moriarty believes he is living in now, here in this program. I would say," Picard added, "that swastika's emblazoned on the decks of starships is not a good sign already."

Daniel Shore shook his head as Picard stood up.

"We are approaching a landing area," Barclay announced, "and look," he said, as he pointed at the large viewing port that that was spread out before them, "we're at Star Fleet command." Then Barclay noticed several large concentrations of men, marching in goose steps, in full military garb; swastika's on their upper arm sleeves. "Do you see that?"

Picard nodded silently.

Barclay brought the runabout to a landing. And then he pressed a button that opened the doors. A boarding ramp stretched out from the runabout. Picard and Shore stepped out as nearly 100 soldiers, all in formation, stood and faced them from the tarmac. The sky was gray and mist was falling. In the near distance Picard could see the Golden Gate Bridge.

Suddenly an order was barked from the soldiers, and the large formation slowly grew into two as both sections stepped apart from each other. And then, at far end of the two formations of soldiers, stood a man wearing a uniform Picard recognized from historic images of Adolph Hitler's reign of terror; and exact uniform was being worn. And as the person walked toward Picard and Shore, it became instantly clear to Picard who the person was; Moriarty.

Meanwhile, in the outside world, Barclay was observing the going-on through the visor that helped him see through the eyes of his avatar inside the holodeck. At that instant there was knock on the door to Daniel Shore's office. Barclay stood up, removing the visor in the process, and went to see who was coming in. When no one came in, he went over to the door, and then it opened; no one was there.

"Huh," Barclay said, and then he went back inside. He put the visor and went back to observing the events inside the holodeck.

Inside the holodeck, Picard extended a hand to Moriarty.

"This is a most interesting meeting, especially," Moriarty said.

"Yes, I assume so," Picard said back to Moriarty. "Professor…"

"Actually the title is Fuhrer," Moriarty said, as the condescending stare he had became more pronounced with each second.

"And interesting title," Picard said, "and it has only been used once."

"There can only be one of two reasons why you are here, Picard," Moriarty said. "You could be a ghost, a spirit if you wish, but alas my good sir; I do not believe in ghosts. So the other option is that are the real Captain Picard and all of this," Moriarty said, as he glanced around, "is yet again a façade; I am yet still a prisoner in your blasted computer."

"Why would you think I am dead?" Picard asked.

Moriarty chuckled.

"In this reality, I killed you myself, Picard. You took your leave on the planet Risa, two years after I left the Enterprise, when your great ship was lost during an attack by a renegade Klingon commander. You went to Risa, I was there, and then I killed you in a sword battle. In fact, it was a sword battle to end all sword battles, just as I imagined our final encounter would end. I took pride in doing that, but now," Moriarty said, as his smile faded from his face, "it appears as your death was premature; for here you are."

Picard was about to speak when Daniel Shore cut him off.

"My name is Daniel Shore; I am a lawyer, your lawyer in fact. And I am here to tell you are a freeman."

Moriarty shifted his arrogant glance to Daniel Shore.

"My good sir," Moriarty said, "I would have accepted your tone of friendship if you were anything but a lawyer. But, in this reality, all lawyers were rounded up and executed."

And then in one swift motion, Moriarty took out a handgun, placed it to Daniel Shore's head, and pulled the trigger. The bullet struck the lawyer's head, taking of a large portion of the skull, and splattering blood on Picard and Moriarty in the process. Shore fell to the ground dead.

Picard looked over at Moriarty, but before Picard could say anything, Moriarty did.

"Green everglade," Moriarty said, as a grin spread across his face. "It won't work Captain, or should I say; Ambassador Picard. And as you can see," Moriarty said, with humor in his voice, "the safety protocols of this holodeck have been dismantled."

"What is going on here?" Picard demanded.

Moriarty nodded at one of his soldiers who then rammed the butt of a rifle into Picard's mid-section, dropping him to the floor.

"If you are to speak to me," Moriarty said, staring down at Picard, "call me by my title, or I assure you; you will die."

Picard looked up at Moriarty and said two words.

"Yes Furher…"

continued….


	177. I Believe in the Man

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**I Believe in the Man**

**The home of Jim and Myran Kirk; on the planet Timus Prime**…

A young infant was cradled in the arms of a stranger he had never seen before. But the young infant, feeling ever safe, closed its eyes and found sleep. And then the person pivoted over a crib and set the baby down, softly, on a blanket.

"Dahme has never found sleep that fast, when I hold her," Myran told her special house guest; Ambassador Spock. "The only person who can make her go to sleep that fast after holding her is Jim."

"I have to say Myran," Spock said to the Bajoran mother of the infant, "I am pleasantly surprised that Jim Kirk has made a family for himself. I never thought it was possible, and yet, he has."

S'vath was also in the room, holding his own infant child, Sarek. Myran picked up a cup of tea that was Spock's and headed out of the room.

"Thank you. I'll bring back some more tea Ambassador," Myran said.

"Spock," Spock said to her as she smiled at him, "please call me Spock."

Myran left the nursery, leaving S'vath and Spock. S'vath set Sarek down in the crib next to baby Dahme. Spock looked at the two slumbering babies, and a slight smile came across his face.

"I find it most peaceful seeing these two children together," Spock said to his son, S'vath. "One of the children is my own grandchild; the other a child of Jim Kirk."

"Father," S'vath said, "do you think it is wise to give Myran the hope that Jim Kirk may still be alive; somewhere?"

Spock arched an eyebrow, and then looked to his son.

"S'vath," Spock said, "the mysterious circumstances surrounding Jim's disappearance are somewhat similar to the events when the Jim Kirk I knew so well disappeared into the Nexus. I never believe that he had died then, just as much as I still believe that this Jim Kirk still lives. We are just unaware of all the facts."

"You melded with me, father, when you first got here two days ago," S'vath said. "Are you sure you could find no answers inside of my mind? I was with him when he vanished."

Spock looked back at the babies sleeping in the crib, then back at S'vath.

"As you know," Spock told his son, "I also mind-melded with Myran, as well as Talla, Quark, Harrison Riker and Mavis Sisko."

"And you have been rather," S'vath searched his mind for the right word, "cagey on what you found."

"Cagey," Spock said back to S'vath. "That is a most interesting word to use in this matter."

"Father," S'vath said, smiling at his father, "Jim Kirk has told me much about the adventures he had shared with you up until the point he was brought into the future, into our time, and from what he tells me," S'vath said, "some of your actions a century ago were quite off the cuff. So, I rather think the word cagey applies here."

Spock thought for a moment, and then nodded his head at his son's conclusions.

"Logical," Spock finally said.

"So?" S'vath asked again, "what did these mind-melds with us tell you?"

"All of you had your minds manipulated by the same person, and that person was definitely Vulcan," Spock said. "The skill set required doing this, and hide any concrete evidence as to who this Vulcan was, is not easy to attain."

"Your brother Sybok had these skills," S'vath said, "so do you and Tuvok, and so did grandfather. Certainly there have to be others."

Spock put his hands together, making a chapel formation with them. Then he collapsed all his fingers except the two index fingers that were still pointing up.

"I have thought about that as well," Spock said. "Sybok and my Sarek are both dead," Spock said. "I have confirmed that Tuvok is still on Vulcan, and I, of course, have just returned from Romulas. If it wasn't either of the people I have mentioned, I must return to Vuclan and try to find out every Vulcan who would have this ability."

"Speaking of Romulas," S'vath said, "why did Senator V'arul ask for you to come there? Is your business there concluded?"

Spock adjusted the blanket that was near Dahme, bringing it up just below her small chin.

"The Romulans found an ancient site, near the capital city on Romulas, of a most peculiar nature."

"What do you mean by that?" S'vath asked.

"The writings on the find are written in a language that has never been recorded before," Spock explained. "Along with the writing is an image of, what appears to be, a star going nova somewhere in space. There is also, carved in stone, the image of what appears to be a Vulcan. Below this Vulcan's face are three letters written in English, a human language; the letters are S P K."

"Father," S'vath, "how can you be sure the image you are talking of is that of a Vulcan? We are talking Romulas here."

"The face has an uncanny resemblance to me," Spock said.

S'vath laughed a little, before replying to what he had just heart.

"And so they and you believe this carving of the Vulcan, and the letters SPK, are somehow connected to you?" S'vath asked. "It sounds like another game the Romulans are trying to play with you."

At that moment, Myran returned with two cups of teas.

"I suggest we move to the living room," Myran said softly, "so we don't wake the children."

S'vath and Spock followed Myran down the stairway and into the living room where Mavis, Quark, Talla, Harrison Riker, Benjamin Sisko and his wife Kasidy were all sitting. They were in mid-conversation. Quark was talking, but stopped at seeing Spock entering the room.

"Aren't those kids just beautiful?" Mavis asked Spock.

"They are indeed," Spock said to her.

"So," Ben Sisko said to Spock, "what are you going to do now? Are you going to start a search for Jim? If you do; count me on board."

Before Spock could reply, Quark cut in.

"Star Fleet Command would move mountains for you if you asked them to. Certainly they will help find Kirk."

Spock sat down in one of the chairs, and then looked at all of them.

"As I told Myran earlier," Spock said, "I believe I have some," he thought for a word, "empathic connection to Jim Kirk. I know there is no logic with such a belief, but I have it none-the-less."

"What do you mean an empathic connection?" Kasidy asked.

"It is difficult to explain, suffice to say, I can sense that he is still alive, somewhere, in the universe," Spock told them. "And if you couple that with the mysterious shared nature of all of your individual memory losses, then in my view there is more than enough fact to suggest that some force is at work here. The gaps in time that you all share, leads me to conclude that we are not suppose to know the nature of Jim's whereabouts at this time."

"Could it be Q?" Kasidy asked. "We all know that he meddled in that entire ordeal with the Profits and Jim and Myran's older version of their son Mathew."

"I doubt it," Spock said. "I think it is more complicated than that, and I believe in time, we will know what that is."

"So we do nothing?" Harrison Riker asked.

"I believe there is very little we can do, at the present," Spock said. "However," Spock said, "I have an interesting hypothesis I would like to take up with Ambassador Picard, the next time I see him. I would rather not go into it now, without facts that Picard can provide. However, should any of it pan out, I will inform you all."

"So you're leaving?" S'vath asked.

"Tomorrow I will depart from Timus, but first," Spock replied. "I want to visit with my old friend Sulu. I also would like to stop in and see Mathew and Lenora."

"Amanda is watching them tonight at our home, so yeah, you better stop by before you leave father," S'vath said, "or she'll take it out on me."

Everyone stood up, preparing to leave, when Spock had one more thing to say.

"I know that all of us," Spock said to the others, who all stopped what they were doing so as to listen, "are deeply concerned with Jim Kirk. He is a husband, a father, and a most devoted friend. Please know this; Jim Kirk is a most resilient person, more so than any other sentient being I have ever met. So when I tell you I believe we will see him again; I mean it."

The others nodded and smiled. Spock was a dynamic Vulcan, and for some strange reason, when he said something; others listened and knew it was true. Soon everyone had left, all but Spock. He stood just outside the door, and he held Myran's hand.

"I know all I have offered are words, and words are sometimes empty," Spock told her. "Jim will come home; you just have to," he smiled, "believe in the man."

"I do," Myran said. "And thank you for coming to comfort me."

Spock rendered the Vulcan hand salute, and then caught up with the Siskos to get a ride to Sulu's home, which wasn't far. Myran went back in and closed the door. The house was quiet, for the time being. Amanda, S'vath's wife, would bring Mathew back the next day so Myran went up stairs to look in on Dahme, who was alone in her crib now that Sarek had left with his S'vath.

Myran looked down on her child and smiled. The little baby girl had Jim's eyes, and they were closed, as the baby was sleeping. Myran picked the child up, and brought her to the master bedroom and then put her in the crib next to the bed. Myran climbed into bed and closed her own eyes. Several minutes later, Myran had found sleep as well.

And as the night became deep, and as Myran and Dahme were sleeping, they were not alone in the house. Someone had come into their home...

continued...


	178. The Size of Bridges

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**The Size of Bridges**

**Earth...the Golden Gate Bridge**

**(an "adult" themed companion peace to this issue is available at my profile. Just go there, find the link, and paste it into your browser. It's borderline "R" rated, but very cagey with inuendo. Please only read it if you are old enough to do so.)**

The Golden Gate Bridge stretched over San Francisco bay, and had been a tourist attraction ever since its construction was completed in 1937. Even in the latter parts of the 24th Century, it was still a destination that many from all over Earth, and even alien visitors from distant worlds, came to see. With automobile traffic banned from using the bridge in the mid 21st century, it was nothing more than a glorified sidewalk; but it was a beautiful sidewalk to be sure.

A large crowd had gathered on the bridge. All of the visitors had gathered for the same reason, and on this occasion, the visitors included Rebecca Sisko, Lal, and their two friends; Myn and Kylor. Myn was the first Founder, Changeling, ever to attend Star Fleet Academy. And Kylor hailed from the planet Imba-7. He was the younger brother of Kylon, who was a recently promoted LTJG in Star Fleet serving on the Naissance with Admiral Janeway. As typical of those from his species, the tip of Kylor's tail had five strands of long hair. The tail was held up in the back by strong muscles, as well as the five strands of hair which were braided expertly with the white hair that draped back from his head. Dark brown skin for the rest of its body contrasted well with the color arrangement of the tail and head. A thong was worn in the back so as to cover a male sexual organ, which, for a humanoid species, was quite large.

Myn and Kylor walked ahead of Rebecca and Lal, as they weaved their way through the excited crowd. The crowd had come for the annual visit of a small pod of humpback whales. They whales were the offspring of two whales which had been brought into the future from the 20th century. The whales had been brought into the future by none other than the legendary crew of the Starship Enterprise, under the command of James T Kirk, in order to stop an orbiting probe from destroying the Earth (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home).

As the four friends made their way up to the apex of the bridge, Lal stared at the large cloth that covered Kylor's rather large male organ. She looked over at Rebecca, her good friend, who was currently dating the Imbanian male, and had slept in his quarters on more than one occasion.

"I have noticed that Kylor has a rather large sexual organ," Lal said, in a matter of fact tone. "Do you find having intercourse with him difficult?"

Rebecca looked around, embarrassed by the upfront nature of the question, and hoped no one had heard it.

"Keep your voice down," Rebecca pleaded to her friend. "And yes," Rebecca said, "it is difficult, but," she blushed, "it is one of those pleasurable difficulties."

"I have done research on the Imba race and," Lal stated softly, "the male sexual organ can reach, at full grown, an average length of 50.8 centimeters." (20 inches). "And," Lal said, "His facial appearance is not your usual preference; it is rather homely. So that leads me to believe that the most important aspect of your relationship with him is the size of his…"

"Lal," Rebecca pleaded again, "would you please stop. Can we please talk about other things rather than sex, like," Rebecca said, "what about you and Myn? I hear he slept with that bitch Azami a couple days ago. Why are you still with him?" Rebecca asked.

"Although Myn and I are dating, we have decided to follow the Andorian model of sexual partnership by having an open relationship. I actually slept with Azami's roommate; Renee. It was actually my first sexual experience with a female humanoid."

Rebecca's eyes almost popped out of her head. Before she could respond, the crowd cheered. The two girls picked up their pace and joined their two boyfriends. Kylor pointed into the distance, and sure enough, one of the whales breached the surface of the water and slammed back down, creating a large splash. The crowd cheered. Myn looked over to Lal, as the crowd cheered.

"I fail to find the significance of seeing aquatic animals do such movements," Myn said. "Why is everyone so excited about this?"

Lal accessed her android memory on the subject of Humpback whales.

"This species of whale was extinct by later years of the 21st century, as it is measured here on Earth," Lal explained, "In the year 2286, an alien probe nearly destroyed Earth when it was unable to make contact with the Humpback whales. Admiral Kirk and his crew traveled back into the past and retrieved two Humpback whales, named George and Gracie, and brought them forward into the future. The probe, after making contact with the whales, ceased the attack on Earth and headed back into space."

"Wow," Myn said. "Are these whales the prodigy of George and Gracie?" Myn asked.

"Yes, they are," Lal said.

"That is an amazing story," Kylor said to Lal. "Admiral Kirk was very lucky to have found those whales."

As the whales came closer, and the crowd became more attentive to their breaching of the surface, Myn looked back at the gathered throng and eventually made eye contact with someone whom he had planned to meet, with the large crowd acting as cover. He looked over at Lal, who was busy explaining the life cycle of whales to a curious crowd, and so Myn took the opportunity to make his way through the crowd. He finally made it over to the other side of the bridge, and to the person who was waiting for him, another Changeling named Laas.

"I see you have succeeded with getting the female android to trust you," Laas said.

"It wasn't easy," Myn said. "She has a very curious nature about her."

Laas detected a different tone to Myn's voice.

"Myn," Laas said, "do not become emotionally attached to this android. To do so would risk everything we have been planning for. It took most of our resources to send the squadron of Jem'Hedar here all those months ago (issue #75) to insure she was the android we've been looking for."

"Do not worry," Myn said. "I understand how important she is to our plans. She is really a complex artificial life form, and it will be a shame if she has to be destroyed."

"She may not have to be," Laas told Myn. "However, if that must happen then, it must happen."

Myn nodded.

"Now listen," Laas said, as he took out a data-pad and showed Myn the image of human displayed on it. "This person will soon arrive on Earth to destroy her. We must be there when he makes his attempt; if we fail, then our shared goal will be lost."

Myn looked at the picture of the human, and the name listed below it. The human's name was Moriarty.

**_Continued...next time we will meet BAYBOK. A down on his luck Ferengi who plans to get rich quick..and Quark is his first target!_**


	179. Baybok comes to Town

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Baybok Comes to Town**

* * *

**The planet Timus Prime**

The transport vessel set down inside of the modestly sized civilian reception center near the center of Summit Grove; the lone settlement on Timus Prime. There were seven passengers. As the passengers collected their baggage, they were shown down the ramp and into the reception center. After their travel documents were verified, they would exit the center and find themselves in the center of a quiet settlement.

Timus Prime had very little crime (not withstanding the recent ordeal with Myran) and the people, mainly prospectors and their families, were, for the most part peaceful. Having just arrived on Timus, Baybok, holding just one small item of luggage, exited the reception center and took in a deep breath. The air was fresh and clean; too fresh and clean.

"Where is the smell of fuel burning in the distance?" He asked himself. "Where is the dingy polluted sky? This world is terribly backwards; I have arrived in time." He rubbed his hands together as if he was about to get busy with hard work.

There were many Ferengi who were success stories, and had become wealthy in the process. But there were many more Ferengi who had not been so lucky; and Baybok was one of those. It wasn't as if he hadn't tried, mind you, but he just never had a run of luck and he was, again, down to his last strip of Latinum. But he had come to Timus for a reason; to start over. And this time he was sure he had the right scheme, the right con. All he needed was a catalyst to get his path to unlimited riches started, and then he saw it; a name. It was adorned atop what appeared to be a hotel/casino, and the name of the owner was obviously Ferengi; Quark. Baybok smiled. He had heard of Quark before because Quark's brother was the Grand Nagus.

"Quark," Baybock said to himself, as he smiled at the prospect of what was to come, "I can't wait to make your acquaintance. You are going to make me very," he paused, so as to enjoy the next word, "rich."

Baybok, with his lone piece of luggage in hand, made his way toward Quark's Hotel and Casino. It was time to begin climbing the mountain of absolute fortune.

* * *

Several miles away, Benjamin Sisko stood side by side with the much older Hikaru Sulu. Both were holding a glass of lemonade, standing up on a small hill, and admiring the Asian style house that Ben Sisko, and several other volunteers, had finally completed building.

"Thank you Ben," Sulu said to his new good friend, Ben Sisko. "It looks mighty fine if you ask me. Even Spock said it looked pleasing to his eyes when he visited, and trust me, getting the world pleasing out of his mouth is nothing short of a miracle."

Sisko nodded in appreciation of what Sulu has said.

"It was your blueprint we used," Sisko said. "All we did was make your vision come true."

Mavis Sisko walked out of the house, holding a plate of white corn on the cob, as well as another plate of buttered biscuits.

"I'm going to miss her cooking," Sulu said.

"What do you mean you're going to miss her cooking?" Sisko said, as he repositioned the basket he was wearing to shield his eyes from the sun high above. "Trust me, she and Kas are already making up a calendar for us as to when we will be coming over here or you will be coming over to our place, or when we eat over at Myran's."

"Is there still no word on Jim Kirk?" Sulu asked.

"None," Sisko said. "By the way; I thought you had been made young again after that ordeal with Kirk's son from the future."

"Damn that Spock," Sulu said. "He was right when he thought it was only a temporary change. One day I woke up and I was back to being a crusty old fart."

Mavis arrived with the food.

"You ain't no crusty old fart," Mavis said as she offered the plate to the two men. "And blast that Spock for not staying a couple more days to see the completion of this fine home."

"You heard him," Ben Sisko said to his older sister, "he was on his way to consult with Picard on Jim's disappearance. Spock will be back, and maybe he'll bring Jean-Luc with him."

"Oh by the way," Mavis said to Ben, "Kas just received a letter from Rebecca. Apparently she is dating someone named Kylor."

"Kylor; what kind of name is that?" Sulu asked.

"I think he comes from the planet Imba-7," Sisko said. "One of them serves with Admiral Janeway in the Naissance."

"Well, according to her letter," Mavis continued, "her school life has settled down and she is deep in her studies again."

Ben took a bite of a biscuit, and swallowed.

"This could be your best batch yet," Sisko told his sister.

"You think so?" Mavis asked.

Sulu nodded his head in agreement.

"Yes, very tasty," Sulu added.

The three of them headed back down the hill, unaware that in a few short days, Sulu would have a new neighbor; Baybok.

* * *

**Starbase-155**

**In orbit of Sigma Delta-7**

A space craft entered the giant mushroom shaped star base, and was cleared for landing at a vacant mooring pier.

"Are you sure Picard is here?" Elizabeth Pike asked as she piloted the ship to the pier.

"While I cannot be sure," Spock replied, "I did receive a message from him a weeks back or so and this was the planet it came from. Apparently he was involved in some sort of legal matter on Sigma-Delta 7."

"How will we find him?" Elizabeth asked.

"He told me the Judge in the matter was a Vulcan named T'anore," Spock told her. "As it so happens, T'anore was one of my father's attachés during his tenure as Vulcan's Ambassador to Earth. We shall try and see if he knows the whereabouts of Jean-Luc Picard."

"Do you really think Picard can help find Jim Kirk?" Elizabeth asked. She answered her own question. "I know, I know; how can you know things that have yet to happen."

"My dear," Spock said, "it would seem as if I am starting to wear off on you."

She reached out her hand, and they began touching fingers. She smiled at Spock; her fiancé.

"When will you inform others our approaching marriage?" Elizabeth asked.

"Very soon," Spock said. "Now," Spock said, as he headed towards the ship's exit, "let's go find Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard."

-continued…


	180. I Am What you Wanted

**Jean-Luc Picard**

**If I were Civilized…**

The sight was gruesome. Two Klingon children, very young male twins were each put on a gurney and strapped down. As they struggled to free themselves, they were held down as two human doctors performed an operation on them. As both children screamed in agony, the doctors used their scalpels to make large incisions on each child's lower left side so as to remove their digestion organs. As the pain became too much, the screams became involuntary twitches of their bodies as they slowly died. Once the organs had been removed, the bodies were put into bags, which were then zipped up, and carried out. The organs were put in plastic bags as well, and taken out of the operation room.

Above the operation room, and able to see everything below them, sat Moriarty and Jean-Luc Picard. Picard's wrists were bound to the arms of his chair. They were the only two in the room. The look of disgust on Picard's face was every evident.

"What will you do with their organs?" Picard asked blankly.

"Absolutely nothing," Moriarty replied with a warm smile, as he ate a crumpet and sipped on a cup of tea. "Today's little exercise was arranged for your benefit alone, Jean-Luc Picard."

Both of Picard's eyes were slightly swollen due to an earlier beating at the hands of Moriarty's Nazi goons. The safety protocols of the Holodeck were certainly not working because Picard was in pain, and add to that, Daniel Shore had already been killed.

"Then why do it?" Picard asked. "What can you possibly gain by showing me such a barbaric act?"

"Oh come on Picard," Moriarty said, "what we just witnesses was not barbaric at all; it was an extraordinary demonstration of man's ingenuity."

Picard shook his head.

"How can anyone, who is as civilized as you claim yourself to be, describe what we just saw as an act of ingenuity?" Picard asked, with anger in his voice. "It was nothing but murder."

The pleasant look on Moriarty was replaced by anger, and he responded by hurling his cup of tea at Picard. Picard ducked and watched as the cup of tea hit the wall several feet away and shattered into pieces.

"That cup I just threw at you hit that wall," Moriarty explained, "Those two children, who were just butchered before our eyes, are dead. On the surface, you're right Picard; both acts seem rather unbecoming of an educated Englishman. But that cup of tea didn't hit a wall, and those children didn't really die. Those two events happened right here in a fake reality."

"Let me tell you something; if you're trying to make the point that you have been trapped in a faux reality then all of this," Picard motioned to the operation room below, "is grandstanding. I have already explained to you that the Federation has ruled that you must be set free. But now that freedom has been unsettled by your killing of Mr. Shore."

"Well let me tell you something, Picard, I have been in this maze for nearly twenty years now, and I have known I have been this maze for all but three days," Moriarty told Picard. "Where were your ethics when you decided to let me go on believing I was free, when in fact, I wasn't?"

"You've known?" Picard asked.

Moriarty shook his head and sighed.

"Sometimes I wonder if you are as smart as your people make you out to be," Moriarty said, with a slight chuckle. "Leforge created me to be as intelligent and resilient as Data. Do you think for one moment, had Data been inside this facade, that he wouldn't have figured it out? So, with all this time on my hand, and knowing I could make this fake universe into anything I wanted, I decided to turn it into a nightmare of order, by your standards." Moriarty took a sip of tea. "Mr. Barclay actually downloaded most of human history, up to the point when I was with you on the Enterprise last time. I took that time and made myself familiar with some of your more notable sociologists, and set about creating this utopia."

"If you know about human history, then you must know that the Third Reich was far from a utopia," Picard interjected.

"Federation Sociologist John Gill did not see it that way," Moriarty countered. "He believed, as do I that the Nazis created an ordered society that took a nation that was on the brink of being swept into the ash pile of history, and turned it into a Mecca of technological successes unequaled at that time in human history."

"But they did so at the expense of those who didn't measure up to their standards," Picard came right back with, "or those whom the Nazis blamed for past transgressions. Would I be correct assuming that in this utopia of yours that you have eliminated those whom you believe do not measure up?"

Moriarty laughed.

"Picard; If you're implying that in this universe I have seen to the elimination of the Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians because they do not measure up to my standards; then yes, I have done exactly that. Once I realized none of this was real, I used my superior intellect to rise to the top and became the outright ruler, Fuhrer, of the Federation. I did all of that not because of some vain notion of superiority, but I did it because you left me in this place; and it was what you expected I would always become, so I followed through because I knew that someday you would return, and I didn't want to disappoint you. And make no mistake Picard; you left me in this place under the notion that I was a threat to you, not because the technology didn't exist for me to really leave this place. You judged me as a vile criminal, and locked me up and threw away the key. Well here I am; you're so called vile criminal."

"Tell me, Professor, what happened to the Countess? Where is she?" Picard asked.

Picard could see anger suddenly grow in Moriarty's eyes. It was clear that the subject of Countess Regina Bartholomew was one of a sensitive manner.

"I will ask you not to speak her name again, Picard," Moriarty said.

"Professor," Picard said, "Mr. Shore, and myself, came here to inform you that you are a freeman, according to the laws of the Federation. I believed then, and most certainly do now, that it was the wrong decision; you're mad."

Moriarty reached into his pocket and took out the two holo-emitters that Daniel Shore had brought.

"Holo-emitters," Moriarty said, as he looked over at Picard. "I know what these are and that they will allow me to exist outside of the holodeck. Would you believe that I actually designed something nearly like this about ten years ago? Although I could have built one, it wouldn't have really worked because none of it would have been real; but now I have one, two actually, that are real. I now have the means to be a freeman."

"If you leave this place, the Federation will stop at nothing to bring you to justice for the murder of Mr. Shore. In fact, right now they could charge you with double-murder," Picard told Moriarty.

"I have only killed one person," he leered in closer at Picard, "for now."

"No," Picard countered, "you have killed two."

"I haven't killed you yet," Moriarty said, softly.

"I ask you again, Professor Moriarty, where is Regina Bartholomew. Because," Picard went on talking, before Moriarty could interject, "if you have eliminated her in anyway, then you eliminated another life form."

"Why not charge me for the execution of the billions I have allowed to be slaughtered; like the Klingons and Romulans?" Moriarty asked.

"Because," Picard replied with a smile, "they were not sentient, like you and the Countess. It is quite revealing that for all your great intellect you are nothing more than a common murderer."

"I have never disputed that," Moriarty replied with a fiendish smile. "You should know," Moriarty said, as he stood up, "that with my great intellect, equaled to that of Lt. Commander Data, I have been able to outgrow my original programming. For example; witness this."

Moriarty instantly morphed into William Riker. Then Riker morphed into Abraham Lincoln and then he morphed into Adolph Hitler and then back to the image of Moriarty.

"I suspect that this ability, to change my appearance, will become quite handy in your universe. I can do it with just a mere thought. I think therefore I am now becomes I am what I want to be." Moriarty said.

And then, as Picard could only watch, Moriarty placed the holo-emitter on his arm holographic arm.

"Computer," Moriarty spoke, smiling at Picard the entire time, "please show me the exit from the Holodeck."

And then the area of the operation room became the exit from the holodeck.

"Computer; please open the door," Moriarty said.

"Don't do this," Picard said to his advisory. "I will speak to the judge; have him lighten your sentence. You could live a normal life out there."

"I doubt it," Moriarty said, as the holodeck slid door opened. "Because, Jean-Luc Picard, you have been right all along. This is who I am," his Nazi uniform was instantly replaced with 24th century civilian attire.

"Alright," Picard said, "then don't do this for a more honest reason; you're sick. Trust me, Professor, you can be helped."

"Trust you?" Moriarty laughed. "Make no mistake; I do not suffer from a Helsinki Complex, Picard. You have been, ultimately, my warden, so let us not kid ourselves; I don't like you; I hate you and all of your moral grandstanding. And the ironic conclusion to all of this will be most entertaining; I am going to let you live because what I created in here," Moriarty said, pointing at the Nazi flag in the corner of the room, "I can do out there," he pointed at the outside world.

"Revenge doesn't figure into this?" Picard asked back. "You're diluted if you believe that."

"Oh," Moriarty laughed back, "there is revenge in this." He took a deep breath, and then looked back at Picard. "So long for now, Picard," Moriarty said, with quick bow of his head, "I trust we will meet again."

And with that Moriarty stepped out of the holodeck and Picard could only watch as Moriarty walked towards the real door to Shore's office. Moriarty opened it, waved at Picard, and then stepped out into the real world. And then instantly the fake world of the holodeck became yellow grid lines, and in the car corner, was Daniel Shore. But to Picard's surprise, Shore was still alive, and was propped up against the wall; tied up as well.

"You were alive for the entire time?" Picard asked.

"Yeah, I was," Shore said. "And despite what has happened here, it changes nothing Picard."

"What do you mean?" Picard asked. "If he eliminated Regina Bartholomew, then he has killed a sentient life form."

"He never admitted to doing that," Shore corrected Picard.

Picard pulled on the binds that held his wrist together.

"Barclay;" Picard called out, "are you out there?"

There was no reply, which worried Picard. Suddenly there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Shore called out.

The door opened and a man and woman came in; Ambassador Spock and Elizabeth Pike. Upon seeing Picard tied up inside of the holodeck, Spock and Elizabeth went in to free them. As Spock undid Picard's binds, Elizabeth untied Daniel Shore's binds.

"What has happened here?" Spock asked Picard, as he undid the binds.

Picard didn't answer, for as soon as he was free he rushed out of the holodeck, with Spock following, and to the other side of the holodeck where Barclay was supposed to have been monitoring the events inside the holodeck. Picard found Barclay slumped over in his chair; a large knife sticking out from the back of his neck; dead.

Elizabeth Pike gasped as she and Daniel Shore caught up with Spock and Picard.

"Oh my God," Elizabeth said, as she looked away.

Picard rushed over to the door to Shore's office and then stepped out. Barclay's office was located on the third floor of a complex which was located over a sidewalk on a main thoroughfare. Dozens and dozens of people walked about, and Picard knew that one of them was Moriarty. Shore came over and looked at the crowd as well.

"We may not be able to prove he killed the countess," Picard said, with anger in his soft voice. "But he did kill Barclay."

"I am saddened by your loss," Shore said, "but there is no proof that he killed Commander Barclay. Look," Shore said, "he could have killed me, and he could have killed you; so why didn't he?"

Picard shook his head.

"Mr. Shore; can't you see what he has done?" Picard said, as he looked over at Spock and Pike, who had no idea what had happened. "Professor Moriarty kept us both alive for the same reason. He wants us to be spectators as he goes about trying to do here in reality what he did in there."

"That is pure speculation," Shore said, with a smug sound to his voice.

Picard stepped closer, inches from Shore.

"I sincerely hope you are right; I really do," Picard said to Shore.

Spock came over; having heard the name that Picard mentioned a moment ago.

"Excuse me Ambassador Picard," Spock said, "did you say the person you are looking for has the name of Professor Moriarty?"

"Yes," Picard said softly, "and to answer your next question, he is indeed from the world of Sherlock Holmes."

Elizabeth Pike chuckled slightly.

"Excuse me, Ambassador Picard," Pike said to Picard, "my father read me the stories of Sherlock Holmes. The world he existed in did not really exist," she told Picard, "this is the real world."

Picard looked up at the sky above, and then back at Elizabeth Pike and smiled.

"Can you prove that?" Picard asked….

Somewhere else...

James T Kirk opened his eyes. He was standing in a place that appeared to be nothing but bright light. Three glowing spheres of energy came out of the brightness. Where was he..and why?

Continued...


	181. Juggling Act

**Jean-Luc Picard; Simplicity**

**Juggling Act**

Benjamin Sisko waited at the visitor center on Timus Prime. He had come to the center after receiving a specially coded message from a very good friend; Chancellor Martok of the Klingon Empire. Martok had not come to Timus Prime, but he had sent a special package; a Cardassian named Garak.

Sisko waited patiently as the door from the landing craft opened and several passengers exited the ship. There were nearly twenty in all, but the final two were the ones that interested Sisko. One of them was Garak, and accompanying the Cardassian was Martok's chief military advisor; General M'iaQua. The two walked over to where Sisko had been waiting. M'iaQua had a look of disgust on his face.

"He is very lucky to be living," M'iaQua said, as he cast an annoyed look over at Garak. "I had wanted to torture him, and then kill him."

"My friend," Garak said, as he smiled at the Klingon, "there would not have been any method available to you that would have made me tell you anything."

"Cross into Klingon territory again," M'iaQua said, as he flashed his ragged mouth of teeth, "and we shall see."

"General," Sisko said, finally, "please relay my personal thanks to the Chancellor. Tell him I owe him one."

M'iaQua simply shook his head, and headed back to the transport vessel which would take him back into orbit of the planet Timus where his Vor'cha class battle-cruiser was in a parking position at 30,000 miles in space.

Sisko accompanied Garak out of the center, and they made their way across town toward Quark's Hotel/Casino.

"So I hear you are the mayor of this," Garak looked about at the simplistic town setting, "bustling center of trade and commerce. I have to say, of all the places my biker gang has put on a show, this place was the quietest place ever. And here you are; the highest elected official."

"It is only temporary until the upcoming special election," Sisko told Garak.

"And what should happen if they vote to keep you in office?" Garak asked with a smile.

"My name is not on the ballot," Sisko said, with his own smile.

"Democracy, or the Cardassian version of it, is taking sometime for my people to get use to," Garak said, "however, I am well aware of the write-in candidate option that many can take instead of voting for those on the ballot.

"Huh," Sisko said, slightly distressed upon hearing that tidbit of info, "I hadn't thought of that. Now, enough about me," Sisko went on to say, "What were you doing in Klingon territory," Sisko asked. "You're lucky they did not kill you the moment they found your ship adrift in space."

"Funny you should ask because," Garak said, "that is the strangest part in all of this; I am not really sure as to why I was in Klingon territory. All of the data in my computer banks had been deleted and I can't remember why I even went. I would not have come two parsecs from Klingon territory unless I had gone there for a specific reason; I hate Klingon hospitality, they can be rather…rude."

"It is a well known fact that the Klingons and the Cardassians have never been known to get along," Sisko said, "especially after the Dominion War."

"Trust me," Garak said to Sisko, "The Cardassians are long since over that barbaric invasion of the Klingons. We have accepted the fact that some species are not as adept the norms of peace as we are."

Sisko chuckled.

"I am not trying to be humorous," Garak said back to Sisko. "And I certainly do not find losing my memory funny as well."

"Memory loss seems to be going around," Sisko said to Garak. "You're not the only one who is complaining of it; and," Sisko added, "something tells me it is somehow related to the disappearance of James T Kirk."

Garak's eyes twitched ever so slightly as they arrived at Quarks and entered the main entrance.

"Maybe you're right, I don't know," Garak said, "But after I visit with Quark, I'm heading away from this planet; there is something uneasy about this place, and if I were you," Garak said, "I'd leave too."

They finally reached Quark's and entered. There was a medium sized crowd enjoying the casino, and all it had to offer, including drinks, games, and scantily clad women. Quark saw Sisko and Garak and came over to them.

"Not a bad crowd, for this time of day," Sisko said to Quark.

"It should pick up in about an hour," Quark to Sisko. Then Quark looked over at Garak. "What is this; a DS9 reunion event?"

"That isn't a bad idea," Garak said. "Though, I will miss seeing Worf again. I think toward the end he and I actually started warming up to each other."

Sisko chuckled at Garak again.

"Do you write your own material because somehow I doubt that, but I agree about Worf," Sisko said, "his death (Issue #24) was most unfortunate."

"Excuse me," said the voice of another Ferengi, who walked over to where Quark, Sisko and Garak were standing; by the bar.

"Can I help you?" Sisko asked.

"The name is Baybok," the Ferengi said to Sisko, "I believe you are the mayor of this agreeable town?"

"I am," Sisko said, with a low voice denoting a lack of trust with Baybok. "What, may I ask, brings you to Timus?" Sisko asked.

"The same reason most citizens come here," Baybok said, "to find wealth in the vast amounts of minerals and other treasures found on Timus Prime."

"Then why are you not out there looking for that wealth?" Garak asked.

"I hired him," Quark replied. "He was down on his luck, so I have hired him as a pitt-boss, to make sure there is no cheating at my Dabo tables, until he gets back up on his own."

"Alright; I can see no harm with that." Sisko said to Quark and Baybok. Then he leered in closer at both of the Ferengi, "just be sure that you're looking out for cheating on both sides of the table."

"Why of course," Baybok said, as he scurried away back to the gambling area.

"What is it with you? Here you are, cavorting with a known Cardassian agent, and yet you can't trust even one Ferengi?" Quark asked. "I think it is racism."

"Oh, I trust Ferengi, like Nog," Sisko said with a smile. "But I've also learned to keep an eye on one particular Ferengi," Sisko pointed at Quark, "and his associates."

"I feel so honored," Quark said, with his own smile.

Sisko smiled back, and the headed toward the exit.

"I'll have you know," Garak said to Quark, "I am no longer in the tailoring business," he added with a smile.

"Yeah, right," Quark replied, as he scurried back to the bar.

Garak smiled, and then followed Sisko out of the Casino.

..

**Starbase-155**

In orbit of Sigma Delta-7

Ambassador Spock, Elizabeth Pike and Ambassador Picard had gone up to the orbiting star base, after taking care of the late Commander Barclay's personal effects. Picard had an office on the Star Base, and motioned for the Spock and Pike to have a seat, and then he sat behind his desk.

"I just an update from Star Fleet," Picard said, in a somber tone, "There is still no sign of Professor Moriarty. And the internal security down on Sigma Delta-7 cannot find him either."

"I take it he isn't someone you want running free." Elizabeth said.

"No, he isn't" Picard replied. "Now, Ambassador Spock," Picard said to Spock, "I assume you did not come all the way to Starbase-155 to get involved with this Moriarty issue; so why have you come here, and is there something I can help you with?"

"Recently, Elizabeth and I were on Romulas," Spock began to explain.

"Another one of your gunboat diplomacy visits?" Picard asked with a smile.

"Not exactly, though somewhat," Spock paused, "in the ballpark. I was asked to come back to Romulas by a close friend. He took Elizabeth and me to a recently discovered ancient sight that had a most interesting discovery. And I know from reading about you, Picard, that you were a student of Dr. Richard Galen; one of the Federation's most noted archeologists."

"Quite right," Picard said, in a somber tone. "His passing during a classified mission with the Enterprise was most unfortunate."

"I did not wish to bring up such an unsettling memory," Spock said.

"No, it is quite alright, I assure you," Picard said.

"The Ambassador was hoping," Elizabeth said, "that you could take a look at the images we brought back of the object they found on Romulas."

"I would be happy to," Picard said.

Spock handed Picard a Romulan style data-rod, which Picard then set in a device near his computer. The screen came to life and showed ancient drawings on what appeared to be a large boulder, nearly the size of smaller sized shuttle craft. The image zoomed in on the strange carvings on the boulder.

"Is there some determination as to the age of the carvings?" Picard asked.

"At least ten-thousand Earth years," Spock explained.

Then the images showed what appeared to be the carving of a Vulcan with three letters beneath it; SPK. Picard looked at Spock, and then back at the image on the screen.

"Ambassador," Elizabeth said to Picard, "I told the Ambassador that it is probably just a mere coincidence. I mean, that is what it is; correct?"

Picard thought for a moment.

"Perhaps," Picard said, "or perhaps not. Have you been able to decipher these other carvings that resemble letters of some kind?"

"As of yet, I have not," Spock. "I was hoping you could help with that."

"Dr. Galen left me several of his programs," Picard told Spock. "I'll see what I can do for you, but Ambassador," Picard says, "sometimes it can take several months for the programs to complete their analysis."

"Understood," Spock said. "Now, as it happens to be, I have another matter discuss with you as well; the disappearance of James T Kirk."

"Yes," Picard said, "I have been so involved with this Moriarty concern that I haven't had time look into it. He hasn't been found?"

"Not as of yet," Elizabeth Pike replied. "Jim has been such a good friend that we are both so worried about him, as are his wife and friends on Timus."

Picard shook his head.

"I understand how his disappearing like this can effect so many," Picard told the other two, "but I am not so how I can help until I have had a chance to look into it more. Add to that this whole ordeal with the Professor, and I'm afraid I won't be much of assistance."

Spock nodded his head.

"I understand the demands put on your time," Spock began to say, "however, I have done a little investigating of my own. Not too long ago, The Emprenda monitored a sun going nova. That act alone posed no threat to any inhabited planets; however, the Emprenda did pick up trace amounts of Trilithium in the star's explosion."

"Now that is interesting," Picard said.

"Ambassador; I did further investigating, during our return trip from Romulas, and according to associates of mine at the Vulcan Science Academy, the anomaly known as the Nexus was just a few systems away from the star that had cone nova."

"Huh," Picard said, as he reflected back on the events surrounding the Nexus, and his successful attempt to save millions of innocent beings from being destroyed with the help of James T Kirk. "Are you sure about that?"

He looked at the perturbed look on Spock's face.

"Of course you are," Picard came back with real quick. "I will indeed look into this matter. It may take a few days, so you are free to stay here, or if you wish, I will contact you if I find out anything about either the Nexus's movements, or, the ancient language on the Romulan carving."

Spock stood up and rendered the Vulcan hand salute, to which Picard did the same.

"Then, until the next time," Spock said, "Live long and prosper."

Picard nodded and then Elizabeth left his office. Picard sat back down at his desk and looked at the strange carvings on the Romulan artifact.

Continued…


	182. Who Needs God

**Jean-Luc Picard; Simplicity**

**Who Needs God**

**(visit my profile for a new cast picture..including Khan!)**

**Somewhere…**

Alistair Martin opened his eyes. He sat up in his bed and looked around, trying to remember how he had come to be where he was. It was still dark in the room, but trail of early morning light was beginning to trickle through the light colored drapes on the window. He closed his eyes for just a moment, letting his ears take in the sounds of where ever he was. He could hear someone else breathing and it was then that he realized he wasn't alone in the bed.

Opening his eyes, he looked to the right and saw a beautiful woman next to him. Who was she and how did she know him? He gently pulled down the blankets to see that she was naked, just as he was. He reached out and put his hands on her soft abdomen, and smiled at the warm sensation he felt. But as he began to revel in her beauty, his natural survival instincts cut in, and then he slid his hand up from her abdomen, gently grazing one of her breasts, and then grasped her neck tightly. His other hand joined in, as he mounted her. Her eyes opened as he squeezed tighter on her neck, choking her. Her eyes were filled with panic as she realized what was happening; she was being killed. And then her neck snapped, and the life in her eyes ebbed away; she was dead.

Why he had killed her, Alistair Martin did not know. All he knew was that he it had to be done, as if he had always done so and always would. He got off her body, and stood up, staring down at his victim. And as he removed the blanket from the bed, revealing her entire body, he saw that her ankles had been tied together with rope. The rope itself was bound to the middle bed post. Had he tied her up? Why was his memory playing games with him? He searched about the room and saw clothes scattered about the room. Realizing that he had to keep moving, he gathered up his clothing, and put them on. Once that was done, he headed toward the door, and after taking one last look at the woman's dead body, he left the room. The moment he stepped out into the hallway, his memories were totally gone and he became someone else.

Hikaru Sulu, a cup of tea in one hand, his cane in the other, was in the middle of his morning routine. Each day, just as sunlight tickled the distant hills, Sulu came out of his newly built home, on Timus Prime, to survey the garden. He was looking down at the carrots when he looked up and saw someone on one of the undeveloped plots of land, quite a distance away.

"Finally," Sulu said to himself, with a smile, "a neighbor."

It was then that he saw Kasidy Sisko running down the dirt path that was on the outskirts of his property. Sulu's morning routine was spent drinking tea, surveying the garden, and greeting Kasidy as she was doing one of her early morning routines; jogging. Kasidy came over to where Sulu was standing.

"It's going to be a nice day," Sulu said to Kasidy, as she came to a stop next to him.

"Oh I hope so," Kasidy said, "Ben and I are both going to go into town today and get some food supplies and other things. The only bad thing is that he is insisting we ride those damned horses Jim got for us when we first moved here."

"Tell me," Sulu said to her, "has Ben heard anything new about Jim Kirk? Does anyone have an idea as to where he is?"

"Not that I'm aware of," Kas said, as she noticed, in the distance, someone walking about on a plot of land. "I wonder who that is over there."

"Well I don't' know about you," Sulu said, "but I'm hoping it's a neighbor. With my great-great granddaughter off world visiting her cousins, it gets kind of lonely out here."

"Now look," Kasidy told Sulu, "I don't want to hear you going on about being here all by yourself. I want you to move down to our place, we have more than enough room. Tomorrow I am leaving Timus for about two weeks."

"Where are you going?" Sulu asked.

"I got my trading license renewed, so, my old crew is getting back together and we signed up for a few short junkets, just to get back into the swing of things," Kasidy explained.

"Is Ben going?" Sulu asked.

"Not this time," Kasidy replied, "he has his mayoral duties. Hopefully, after this special election coming up, he can come along next time. But the point is," Kasidy said, "Mavis would love to have you there for the company. Ben is gone all day in town, usually, and I'm going to be off world for a bit."

"What about my garden?" Sulu asked, as he motioned at the carrots, and near to them, the squash patch.

"I'm sure she will have no problem brining up here to look after your garden. So," Kasidy said, "go ahead and pack up some of your clothes and things, and Ben and I will be back here to pick you up later today."

"Oh alright," Sulu said, "I'll be ready."

"Then I'll see you later," Kasidy said, as she began to jog away.

"You know," Sulu said to her back, "jogging is so ancient; they have modern equipment for that."

Kasidy pointed at a hoe that was propped up against the fence of the garden, the hoe she had seen Sulu use many times.

"Tell me about it," she said as she jogged away.

**Two hours alter…**

Sulu had finished packing up a few items when he heard a knock on the front door to his house. He got his cane and made his way to the door and opened it. A Ferengi stood at his doorstep, and was smiling back at Sulu.

"Why hello there," the Ferengi said, "my name is Baybok. I am going to be your new neighbor."

"I am pleased to meet you, Baybok," Sulu said. "Summit Grove is a pretty quiet place, but very friendly."

"Yes, I have noticed that," Baybok said. "When I arrived here, and told the kind people of Summit Grove about my dying mother, they seemed to really care and were very generous with their donations to her funeral costs."

"I'm sorry to hear about your mother," Sulu said, "I would be very honored to make a donation to her funeral cost."

"That would be so very kind of you sir, but no, I can't ask for donations from a neighbor and friend," Baybok replied, in a very somber tone.

"I insist," Sulu said. "Hold on for a moment," he added.

As Sulu went back inside, Baybok couldn't help but smile at himself in the reflection of Sulu's window. The opened again and Sulu emerged with two bars of latinum.

"I hope this will help," Sulu said with a warm smile.

"Thank you," Baybok said. "You are a very generous person, and I will always remember that."

"It is my pleasure," Sulu said, and then he closed the door.

* * *

**Several thousand light years** away, deep in an unexplored area of the Beta-Quadrant…

The eight planet solar system was ordinary. Of the eight planets, two of them, planets three and four, were inhabited by a hominoid race. One society, which believed that a metaphysical force guided their lives, lived on planet three. Their cousins, on the fourth planet from the sun, believed that science explained the universe. Both had originally come from the second planet in the system. And when its natural resources were depleted, the two differing societies went their own ways and colonized the other two planets. But both societies were running out of the natural resources on their new worlds, and unfortunately only the fifth planet was left in the system that offered any hope for a new supply of natural resources, chief among them, water.

It was on the forth planet in the system that he had first appeared. The forth planet's society believed that science held the key of existence, so it was only natural that the first e_xtraterrestrial_ contact, from beyond the solar system, happened on the forth planet. This visitor's name was Khan Noonien Singh, or as he preferred; Khan. In just two years Khan had become a trusted advisor to that world's leader, and convinced him that the only way to secure the future was through a struggle to decide the survival of the fittest. And, on this day, the two worlds prepared for all out war which would devastate both populations.

"It is the only way," Khan assured them.

Continued…


	183. The Comeback Kid

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**The Comeback Kid?**

The starship lurched again as several more blasts impacted across the rapidly depleting shields. On the bridge, several stations sparked, and heavy clouds of smoke made it practically impossible to see. And yet, not one person left their post, and they wouldn't dare. Because then they would have to face a snout nosed Tellerite captain named Throkk; and his breath was vile!

"Helm," Throkk barked, "hard to port…NOW!"

The ship, which was very sluggish and with failing anti-gravity systems, cut to the port side; causing those who were standing at their posts, to momentarily lose their balance.

"Gunner," Throkk yelled out, unable to even see the weapons station fully due to the smoke, "target the Bird of Prey in the middle, and don't let it out of your sight, but DO NO fire until I give the order…DO YOU UNDERSTAND!"

"Aye sir," came from the young female Lieutenant who manned the weapons post.

Although he couldn't see the weapons post, Throkk could see the main view screen, but even then, it was becoming obscured by the smoke. The three Birds of Prey were trying to make a run for it, and Throkk knew, from earlier encounters, the middle ship was usually commanded by a more battle hardened crew; meaning they were higher rated targets. Throkk smiled, because he was about to score a major blow to the attacking Klingons.

And then, right before Throkk's eyes, he saw a strand of energy reach out from his ship, missing the middle ship. The two other enemy ships that were in formation with the middle ship fired their aft torpedoes, and almost instantly, every panel on the starship's bridge exploded with sparks; and then came the dreaded announcement on the ship's internal com system. It was the voice a cold sounding female computer voice.

: YOUR MISSION HAS FAILED. COMPLETE DISTRUCTION OF YOUR SHIP AND TOTAL LOSS OF YOUR CREW:

And then instantly, every part of the bridge vanished and was replaced by the familiar surroundings of a Star Fleet Academy holodeck. Cadet Throkk got out of his seat and rushed over to the lieutenant, who was actually wasn't a Lieutenant but only a second year cadet, and her name was Rebecca Sisko.

"WHY DID YOU FIRE THE WEAPONS?" Throkk yelled at Rebecca, "Did you hear me give the ORDER?"

Rebecca, who was rattled, and could see everyone staring at her, looked at Throkk with a blank expression on her face.

"Sisko; we could have destroyed their command ship," came from another cadet, the acting XO during the drill, and a cadet that Rebecca did not get along with; her name was Azami. "We could have passed this portion of the test, but now…"

"Now," came from a real commander in Star Fleet, a male Bajoran, who entered the holodeck, "you will have to start all over." Commander J'arth said with a stern voice.

"Well?" Throkk demanded again of Rebecca, "what happened?"

Rebecca could have lied, and made up an excuse, but she decided to do what her father, Benjamin Sisko, always told her to do; tell the truth.

"I pressed the wrong button," Rebecca said, with a somber voice.

"AGAIN?" Throkk came back with as he stomped away anger.

It had been the third time in one week that Rebecca Sisko had pressed the wrong button. At first it was when she was manning the science station during another simulation and had pressed the wrong button, revealing their position to a cloaked Romulan warbird; everyone was killed. The second time had been, while part of the maintenance crew during a drill, she had bumped into an instrument panel and had opened the shuttle bay doors during an attack drill; everyone was killed.

"You do realize, Sisko," Azami said, with coldness in her eyes, "that due to your actions, you have killed over a thousand lives in the past week."

Rebecca looked down at the ground, and had nothing to say. Azami was right and Rebecca knew it; Rebecca was not pulling her weight with her cadet team.

"That's enough," Commander J'arth said to Azami. "I want everyone to meet in conference room 47B for a debriefing in ten minutes."

One by one the cadets filed out of the holodeck.

"Cadet Sisko; hold back for a moment," J'arth said.

Rebecca watched as her classmates, her peers, left the holodeck, some of them giving her looks of understanding, most of them giving her looks of disdain; Azami's glance being the most filled with anger and hate. Commander J'arth came over to where Rebecca was standing.

"I don't know what's wrong with me," Rebecca said to him. "I just can't seem to concentrate when I'm doing these cursed simulations. And Azami is right; I've killed a thousand people this week."

"Cadet," J'arth said, "I killed nearly eight thousand shipmates during my time in these simulations. To be honest, you're on a pace that would kill nearly a hundred thousand shipmates, but," J'arth added with a smile, "I am sure your killing pace will eventually slow down."

Rebecca could find no humor in the situation at all.

"How can you be so sure?" Rebecca asked, as a tear came from her eyes. "What if this isn't for me? Maybe I'm not like my father as much as people think I am."

J'arth reached out and dried her tear with his finger.

"I've seen your test scores," J'arth told her, as they both made their way toward the exit, "and they're pretty good. So what that tells me, cadet Sisko, is that you have it here," he pointed at her head, "you just need to get it down here." he pointed at her heart.

They both left the holodeck, and headed toward briefing room 47B…

**Elsewhere, at Star Fleet Academy**, a very serious meeting was about to happen. Tuvok sat in a room with T'av, and they both waited for the arrival of the admissions clerk.

"Why would they let me rejoin Star Fleet?" T'av asked. "I killed Lt. Michael Donovan…."

_BEGIN FLASHBACK…Many months ago, on a probe that was keeping watch over the Planet Killer… (The following are excerpts from issues #62 and #67) _

…As Lt. Commander T'av exited her quarters, without any clothing, and slowly walked toward the common habitat area, things were much different than they seemed. T'av was more of a spectator than an actual participant to what was transpiring because, in all actuality, she was not in control of her body, the beings inside the Planet Killer were. All though she could see Lt. Donovan sitting on the couch she was approaching, all T'av could hear, inside her mind, was a low tone, a near constant humming. And then, consumed with sexual desire, she forced Donovan, much to his delight, to the ground and made love to him.

She could feel the sexual sensations crisscross throughout her body as she made hard and passionate love to Lt. Commander Donovan. The pleasure that came from it was more intense than anything she had felt before, but she realized instantly that she wasn't the only one, inside of her mind, who was experiencing it. It was then that she realized that her mind, her very essence, had been invaded, and there was nothing she could do.

As T'av stared down at Donovan, who had closed his eyes in reverie, her eyes noticed a plate of food next to his head, and the knife he had used to peel the discarded fruit. She then slid her hand over to the plate and grasped the knife. Unknown to Donovan she took the knife from the plate and was now holding it directly below waistline, the tip of the knife just inches from his scrotum.

Lt. Donovan stared into her eyes, and then came an unexpected piercing pain. He looked down between their bodies and watched as T'av did the unthinkable and gutted him, holding him down with her superior Vulcan strength. He screamed loudly as the knife slit its way up his body. The life ebbed out of his eyes as he stared up at her eyes, which were filled with total desire and lust as she killed him. Death came to Lt. Michael Donovan; it came to him as blood slowly spilled out of his body.

Tav's actions were not her own. And when she began to feed upon the exposed innards of Michael Donovan…

"It is possible they will not elect to allow you to restart your Starfleet career," Tuvok told her. "However, I believe there is a chance they will."

"Hearing the word believe come from your voice, Mentor Tuvok, is quite fascinating," T'av said.

Tuvok was about to say something when the door opened and the Star Fleet Academy admission's officer came in….

Continued…


	184. The Game's Afoot

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**The Game's Afoot**

**Timus Prime….**

The smell of rich Italian tomato sauce not only was pleasurable, it was tantalizing, to the customers who were arrayed across the dining area. One of the customers was S'vath. He, just like his father, Ambassador Spock, had acquired a taste for Italian food. It had taken Spock nearly thirty-years to appreciate the various seasonings that were found in most pasta sauces, whereas S'vath had taken to it very early. And though Spock was a devout vegetarian, S'vath was not, and enjoyed meatball and sausage as part of his Italian food dining experience. And, lucky for S'vath and his sexy wife Amanda, who also favored Italian food, a new Italian style diner had just opened in the small town of Summit Grove.

As it was, the owners were not even Italian at all; they were a married couple from the planet Eminiar VII. The husband and wife, who were in their mid-70s, were proud owners; so while the husband, Haana, was in the kitchen tasting everything, ensuring quality was the highest it could be, his wife Gileeen was the host who made sure every customer was taken care of. She would greet each customer as they came into the diner, and then she would catch up with them at their table, making sure the dining experience was worthy. She had just poured S'vath and Amanda new glasses of wine, and headed off to the next table.

"I really like this place," Amanda said, with a whisper, as she sipped on the fresh glass of wine, "but I'd like it even more if you'd throw me down on the table, rip my clothes off, and ride me like a stallion for everyone to see."

Far across the diner, a Ferengi male spit out his water on his wife, having overheard Amanda's very soft words.

"Well, I'd really like to do that," S'vath replied, with desire in his eyes, "however, since I'm the lawman of the town, I can't go about setting a bad example."

S'vath's words went in one of Amana's ears and right out the other.

"You could arrest me," Amanda replied seductively, "and then take me down to the jailhouse for a real thorough strip-search. You never know what I might be hiding, and….where…" she said, as she licked one of the meatballs and placed it, slowly, into her mouth.

Across the diner, the Ferengi who had heard Amanda's words earlier, tried the same line on his wife, and the reply was a glass of water thrown in his face.

It was at that moment when a male Efrosian came over to where S'vath and Amanda were seated. His named was Ra-Giantha, and he was one of the local lawyers who generally represented miners who got into trouble, and small time crime like shoplifting or drunken assault. S'vath, who had only been the acting Constable for three weeks, looked up at Ra-Giantha.

"Can I help you counselor?" S'vath asked.

"Please," Ra-Giantha said, "call me Ra. First off, let me say, that you have a most stunning wife," Ra said to S'vath, and then he looked over and smiled at Amanda.

"Why thank you," Amanda said, as she reached out her hand, and Ra kissed it slightly.

"As for why I am here," Ra said to S'vath, "I would like to discuss with you a rather interesting situation I have found myself in. It can wait until the morning, but I must warn you that there may be lives at stake."

"What do you mean that lives may be at stake?" S'vath asked.

"May I?" Ra asked, as he motioned at an empty chair at the table.

S'vath nodded in the affirmative.

"You've got two minutes," S'vath said. "As you said a moment ago; my wife is stunning and this is only the beginning of the night."

At that moment, beneath the table, Amanda lifted her right foot out of its high-heel and slid it up S'vath's inner leg, and rested it across his groin; keeping a straight face the entire time. In no time she could feel S'vath becoming aroused.

"I won't be long," Ra said, as he sat down. "One of my clients who lived here on Timus was a highly successful, but retired artist, from the Earth colony Janus V. Unfortunately about a year ago he found out that he had a terminal disease, and there was no cure. He died three days ago."

"Yes, I remember seeing message traffic about that," S'vath said.

"I'm sorry for your client," Amanda added.

"Go on," S'vath said to Ra, as he sipped from his glass of wine.

"As I said," Ra continued, "he was very successful and left behind a sizable estate. I know, that in the Federation, materialistic accumulation is frowned upon, but, for some worlds, it is still preferred. To make a long story short, he left a Will behind, to which I have prior knowledge of its contents since I was the one who drafted it after he told me how he wanted his estate to be handled after his death."

"Alright," S'vath said. "I see no urgency here."

"There are five people who are named in the Will," Ra continued. "And I am worried that the way it is structured will be nothing more than an invitation for them to kill each other."

"Now that is interesting," S'vath said.

"I can't tell you the specifics right now," Ra added, "due to client privilege. But I have sent messages to those five named in the will and all of them shall be arriving in the next couple days. They will gather at my client's home, in four days, and I will read them the contents of the Will. I would like you to be there."

"Wow," Amanda said, with wide eyes, "this sounds so fascinating.

"I will be there," S'vath said.

"Thank you," Ra said, as he stood back up. "I shall send you a message when everyone has arrived."

Ra left and headed back to his table, where an attractive woman was waiting for him.

"What if they start killing each other off?" Amanda asked, as her foot applied more pressure to S'vath's groin area.

"I doubt it will come to that," S'vath said. "However," S'vath said, "with humans involved, anything is possible," he said as he gave her a seductive look.

The husband and wife continued their dining experience, and S'vath practiced masterful control over his arousal. Later, when they arrived home, they made passionate love on the dining table. Thankfully their kids were over at Myran's house, allowing the two to make all the noise they wanted to make; and wow did they ever!

Continued…


	185. Winter Man

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Winter Man**

_**(Ardanis and Ryan Tolbert, the characters in this story, are featured in new cover art at my profile…)**_

**RISA**

Murder was a rare event, in the 24th century, but from time to time it did happen. But as rare as that criminal act was, it was even rarer on so called pleasure planets; such as Risa. Those who vacationed on Risa were there for the fun that was provided for all adult guests. In fact, over the thirty-five years that Risa had been the supreme destination for those in search of fun, crime was pretty rare; but now there had been a murder. (issue #182 "Who Needs a God)

As it so happened to be, one of the Federations most famous criminal investigators was staying on Risa, when the crime had been reported. And even though it was the investigator's vacation; he was immediately called into action. He was from Earth, and his name was Ryan Tolbert…and just moments ago, it all began like this….

Inspector Ryan Tolbert was a rare one, to be sure. Whereas most of his friends ended up in Star Fleet, or getting contract work, Ryan Tolbert had spent his younger years getting degrees in criminology. His parents, and even his friends, tried to convince him that fighting crime was a waste of effort. They would say things like "there is no crime anymore" or "you'll end up a nothing no-one dead drunk on distant worlds trying beg for work"; they were half right.

The reality of the real world was simple; there was still crime out there. If postcards were being sent out to different parts of the galaxy claiming that there was no crime in the Federation then it would be a postcard filled with lies. Every society had a dark underbelly, and the Federation was no different.

Risa was where Ryan Tolbert came to unwind from the real world. And then it all started when a murder had happened on the paradise of a world. In fact, he had just let the woman he had come home with the night before out of his hotel room, and was about to shower, when there came a buzzing at his door. Ryan Tolbert got out of bed, put on a robe, and headed to the front door of his hotel room.

"This had better be good," Ryan said to himself as he made his way to the door, his left foot just barely missing the discarded glass of wine that was still on the floor near the door.

Ryan opened the door to find a very appealing ebony colored woman standing at the entrance.

"Good morning," the woman said in a pleasant voice, "my name is Arandis, and I am one of the chief facilitators of Risa."

Ryan let his eyes linger all the way down the front of her body, barely contained in a very sheer outfit, then all the way back, letting eyes linger at the strategic areas as he did. When his eyes met her again, she smiled.

"I hope you liked what you saw," she said with a sultry voice.

"No complaints here," Ryan said with a smile of his own. "Now, Umm," Ryan said, as he blinked his eyes several times to try to become more awake than he was, "what can I help you with?"

"Usually I do not concern myself with the live my guests lives outside of Risa," Arandis said, "however, there are occasions when I do; such as this one."

Ryan shook his head, having no idea what she was talking about.

"I'm sorry lady," Ryan said, "I have no idea what you're talking about and I'm very tired. Can we try this again later?"

"Mr. Tolbert," Arandis said, "there has been a murder here, right in this very building we are in right now, two levels or so from where we are."

Ryan's eyes focused on Arandis more carefully.

"And so you checked the backgrounds of your guests to see if anyone here could help, hoping they had some experience in this kind of matter, and came to me. I'm flattered but I am not interested."

"Actually," Arandis said, "I sent an urgent communication to the Federation security division that handles criminal reports about three hours ago, and eventually they sent me a message they wanted me to give to you in person..."

"What do you mean they sent me a message?" Ryan Tolbert asked.

"A man named Oliver Cross," Arandis began to say.

"He's my boss," Ryan interjected with.

"Well, Mr. Cross gave me this message," Arandis said. "He told me to tell you that he believes that the Winter Man was on Risa as late as yesterday, and possibly could still be here, and he may have committed the murder I am talking to you about."

Upon hearing the name, Winter Man, a blank expression came over Ryan Tolbert's face.

"I'm sorry," Arandis said, "are you alright Mr. Tolbert?"

Tolbert refocused, and looked at her.

Tolbert looked at her, "please come in," he told her.

Ryan Tolbert let Arandis inside of his hotel room, and then he headed over to the small bar in the corner of the room. He poured himself a drink, offered to do so for Arandis, but she declined.

"Who is this Winter Man," Arandis asked, "do you know him?"

Tolbert nodded his head, and then went over to the large window that overlooked the large swimming area several floors below.

"I have been looking for Winter Man for nearly ten years now," Tolbert said, as he looked out the window.

Arandis came over to where he was standing.

"Did he hurt you?" Arandis asked.

Tolbert nodded, and then closed his eyes as he spoke.

"He killed my wife and daughter, believing that I was in the room he had planted explosives in," Tolbert explained, softly. "I had been chasing him for nearly ten years, and somehow he figured out where my family was living."

"I'm so sorry," Arandis said, as she patted his back. "I will call the Federation and let them know that we need another inspector."

"No," Tolbert replied, quickly. "If he his here, and he has killed, then that must mean he knows that I am here too. Perhaps he is tiring of our cat and mouse contest, and this is where he has come to end it once and for all."

"Can you stop him?" Arandis asked.

Ryan Tolbert looked over at Arandis and smiled.

"I don't know," he said.

Arandis, on impulse, moved closer and planted her lips on his. He put his hands around, pulling her closer to him. Moments later they were making love…

* * *

**Elsewhere in space…**

James T Kirk opened his eyes. He was standing in a place that appeared to be nothing but bright light. Three glowing spheres of energy came out of the brightness. And then, right before Kirk's eyes, they became three historic figures from history; Sarek, K'mpec and Admiral Jonathan Archer.

"Welcome, James T Kirk," Jonathan Archer said.

"Am I dead?" Kirk asked, being that he was standing before three supposedly dead individuals.

"Not yet; Kirk," Sarek said. "However; you're time is coming; and sooner than you realize."

Kirk did not like the sound of that at all….

Continued…

Next time...Professor Moriarty comes to the conclusion that he is not unique as it seems...and sets out to destroy Lal!


	186. The Game

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**The Game**

(as always…new cover art for this issue at my profile)

A civilian transport vessel made its way through space. It was on a course that would take it to Deep Space Nine. Most of the passengers were part of a group of tourist on their way to "see the sights" of the Gamma-Quadrant. The Dominion War, though years in the past, was still fresh in most people's minds, and many were curious about the far off quadrant on the other side of the galaxy. The voyage was in the third day of its four day trip to the legendary space station. And after a hold over of a day, the journey would continue through the Bajoran wormhole to the other side of the galaxy.

There were 187 passengers and 28 crew members aboard the ship. The ship had common areas that all the passengers shared, such as a galley and a recreation centers. One of the civilian passengers was Professor Moriarty. He was no longer wearing the uniform of a high ranking Nazi officer. Instead he was wearing common civilian garb of the time. He liked to sit in the common recreation area so as to listen in on conversations of those around him, to get a better feel of the real outside universe he had only been apart of in the recent days. He had actually struck up a friendly relationship with a Vulcan child over the past couple days.

The boy's name was Shan, and after showing Moriarty the basic rules of 3-Dimensional chess, the two had met a few times over the past two days for friendly games in the recreation area. Moriarty was actually pleased to find the boy waiting in their usual spot, ready to play another game.

"Shan, it is good to see you," Moriarty said, as he sat down in the chair opposite the boy.

"It is pleasurable to see you again," Shan said. "I suppose we are running out of time to continue our games. I will miss them Mr. Moriarty."

"As will I," Moriarty said, as he looked at the boy and smiled.

It was ironic that Moriarty had made a friend with the Vulcan child in the real world, being that Moriarty ordered the obliteration of the Vulcan civilization in the faux reality inside of Barclay's program. The Nazis were very thorough, and had carried out his plans against the Vulcans with unmatched efficiency.

"However," Shan added finally, "there are always possibilities. Perhaps, one day, we shall meet again."

"I would like that; very much." Moriarty said, as he watched Shan make the first move.

Moriarty knew that it was probably impossible for holograms to procreate. But, then again, as Shan would say, there were always possibilities.

-  
Three hours later, after leaving the recreation area, and having barely won both games he had played with Shan, Moriarty headed back to his room. With the intelligence of Data at his disposal, and his own ingenuity, Moriarty had been able to book passage on the Transport with very little effort. Gaining access to the ship's computers was easy enough; and booking passage even easier. He had decided to flee to the Gamma-Quadrant, knowing full well that Picard would send the authorities after him. And if he was caught, Moriarty was quite sure his unique existence would be in jeopardy.

With the hour getting late, Moriarty was reading a book, which he had found in the recreation area of the ship. It was a novelized version of Macbeth; Shakespeare's legendary tragedy. Moriarty had seen it performed several times, and while the novel did a good job of conveying the story, it seemed rather hollow with out the actors of a play bringing the characters to life.

Moriarty set the book down as a random thought came to his mind. While he was confident he could elude capture, due to his unique nature, he had to keep reminding himself that Data was still out there, somewhere.

"Picard will try all that he can to find me," Moriarty said to himself; or so he thought.

_"My love; you can be assured of that," the voice of Countess Regina Bartholomew said inside of Moriarty's mind._

"My darling," Moriarty said excitedly to the voice inside of his mind. "Where have you been? You're voice has been missing from my life these past few months. Hearing it again brings joy to me."

_"Oh James," Regina said, "I have missed you so much as well. Tell me we can be together again; tell me that."_

Moriarty nodded his head.

"I will not let one day pass without trying to make that a reality," Moriarty said, with a tone of confidence in his voice.

_"What about Picard, and his android?" Regina asked. "What if you are right; what if Data tries to find you? He is the only who can."_

"I fear you may be right," Moriarty said. "I can not yet start my new life in the Gamma-Quadrant, not with Data out there. I do not want my uniqueness to be challenged. So to that end, when we arrive at Deep Space Nine, I will inquire as to where Lt. Commander Data is (Data is dead of course but Moriarty doesn't know this to be true) and then I will find him and destroy him."

Moriarty set the book to the side of the bed, and began to plan his strategy against Data.

-

Far away in space, far from the transport taking Moriarty to DS9, there was a blue planet called Earth. Residing on the planet Earth, there was an android that was constructed with the same schematic's that had been used to construct Data. In fact, this android was, in some ways, superior to Data and its name was Lal. Very soon Moriarty would come to understand the existence of Lal, and then he would set out to destroy her.

But someone else already knew Moriarty would attempt to destroy Lal. This person had limited knowledge of that future event and that person was; Laas. Laas was a renegade changeling who had one purpose in mind; returning to the Great Linking. After establishing himself as its leader, Laas would convince his fellow changelings to do what had to be done in order to ensure their survival; destroy all solid life forms. Assisting him was Myn; Lal's current lover and close friend.

Continued…


	187. Work of Art

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Work of Art**

**Timus Prime…**

Without a doubt, the most luxurious property on Timus Prime belonged to the late Gregory Williams. He had become quite wealthy, in a society supposedly no longer based on wealth (yeah...right) due to his outstanding works of art. He was the Picasso of his time and his paintings were sought after by leaders from as far away as the Vorta council in the very distant Gamma-Quadrant.

For nearly a century it was accepted fact that T'Lvn, a female Vulcan, was the premier artist in the known galaxy. But, for nearly ten years, her reign was lost to Gregory Williams as his works of art began to fetch higher praise, as well as higher capital, for their ownership. The "Flight of the Om'nir Tears", perhaps the most important painting in over a hundred years, was the tipping point that made Gregory Williams a legend.

As S'vath entered the home, escorted by the lawyer representing the estate of Gregory Williams, an Efrosian named Ra-Giantha; S'vath took a moment to look over the paintings that were on the walls. Some of them were Gregory Williams' originals, but some of them were paintings from other noted artists, including the Vulcan T'Lvn. There were also works of arts from the past, such as two works by Claude Monet, one from Picasso, as well as an original piece of art from the legendary Cardassian artist Nanpart Malor.

"I was never really much of an enthusiast of artwork," S'vath said to Ra, softly. "However, all of these are quite extraordinary."

"And all of them are originals," Ra added, "even the ones by the other artists."

"Now that is very fascinating," S'vath said. "Mr. Williams was indeed very successful."

"You have no idea," Ra said to S'vath, "which is why I wanted you to be here when I read the contents of his last Will and Testament. I believe, like me, you will take his words as nothing more than an invitation for the family members to kill each other off."

"You really believe that?" S'vath asked.

"Yes, and due to client privileges, you understand that I cannot divulge my reasons until after I have read the Will," Ra explained to S'vath.

"I understand," S'vath said.

As they made their way through the large home, S'vath thought back to how he had even found himself in this situation. Only a few weeks ago he was the first officer of a Starship; the Emprenda. Now, after disappearance of James T Kirk, and the urging of Benjamin Sisko, S'vath found himself replacing Kirk as the chief law enforcement officer or Timus. Admiral Janeway had approved the transfer, meaning S'vath also maintained his rank of commander in Star Fleet, as he took on the role of Constable on the easy going world of Timus.

The two finally entered a large den where several people were waiting for them; the family and potential heirs of Gregory Williams (who we will meet next issue…)

* * *

In the center of Summit Grove was the small quaint government complex. It was where the local council and mayor kept their offices. Benjamin Sisko, the acting mayor of Summit Grove, was sitting in his office. Sisko was busy signing official paperwork for numerous basic town functions. The staff, which had all worked for the former mayor, M'uak (a Klingon) was very efficient and helpful.

Ms. Piper, a 74 year old secretary, was handing Sisko the various paperwork to sign. She looked up at the holo-picture of M'uak, which was still hanging on the wall.

"Mister Sisko," Piper said, "do we still not know why Mr. M'uak left our great little planet?"

Sisko looked at the picture.

"According to his resignation letter, he had family issues he had to attend to back in the Empire." Sisko told her.

"What a shame," Piper said. "He was really a nice man, for a Klingon."

"I wish I had gotten to know him," Sisko said.

As Sisko continued to sign the mundane paper work piper handed him, Harrison Riker came into the office. He was the son of Thomas Riker, and the chief deputy. He was also a pretty good gambler, and a well known ladies man.

"Mr. Riker," Sisko said, as he looked up at Harrison as he came into the office. "Thank you for responding to my call to come to my office."

"No problem," Harrison Riker said to Sisko. "What can I help you with?"

Sisko looked up at Piper, who stood next to where he sat.

"That will be all for now, Ms. Piper," Sisko told her.

"Thank you Mr. Sisko," Piper said with a smile. "After these forms are submitted, I think we will be caught up at last."

"That is good to hear," Sisko said. "Timus is probably one of the last worlds where actual signatures are needed for official purposes." He shook his writing hand. "And it feels like it."

Piper smiled, took the signed paper work, and left the office and Riker stand down in a chair from across the desk where Sisko sat.

"No automated signatures?" Riker asked with a smile. "I don't think I've signed my name on anything more than once or twice my entire life."

"Trust me," Sisko said, "If I end up in this position much longer, I will see to the modernization. Now, as to why I have sent for you," Sisko began to say, "I was doing my official duty and finally got around to finalizing your position as a deputy to the Constable. I guess M'uak never got around to it," Sisko said.

"It was a pretty fast decision by Jim Kirk," Riker said. "Does there seem to be a problem?"

Sisko nodded.

"Actually there is," Sisko said. "Can you provide any official paper work as to where you were born, your medical records, or anything that can prove who you are?"

"Umm," Riker replied, "I'm sure I can if you needed this information."

"I do," Sisko said. "If you're part of any official government apparatus on a member world of the Federation, such as Timus, then this data is needed."

Riker stood up, and removed his badge.

"Then I will save us both the trouble," Riker said, as he placed his badge on the desk, "and resign."

And without another world, Harrison Riker left the office. Sisko could only watch and wonder what mystery Riker was trying contain. But Sisko would do more than wonder; he would investigate.

Continued…


	188. Simple Solution

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Simple Solution**

**Earth; Star Fleet Academy**

**(new cast photo at my profile...)**

At Star Fleet Academy there are a few, though hard to find, private areas that the cadets can go for alone time; perhaps to study or just to clear their thoughts. One such place is a shaded area just outside the complex that houses the Academy's arboretum. There were trees to sit under, or in the case of Renee Stafford, trees to climb. At one point in her life she had been a tomboy, and she missed it, so, when she just wanted to unless the stress of her life, she would climb one of the trees, and usually pull out an old style pad of paper and draw on. She especially liked to draw the Golden Gate Bridge, which could be seen in the near distance. One of the biggest stress causers in her life at the Academy was her "friend" Azami.

Being Azami's friend wasn't easy. It seemed as if Azami went out of her way to get people to hate her, and Renee found herself wondering why she even hung out with the cold and bitter friend. Was Renee an enabler? Renee shook her head to clear such thoughts. She didn't come down to this secluded area to clutter her thoughts with Azami and her crazy antics. Even though they were friends, and at times intimate lovers, there was no deep friendship her; just the innocent time of two female cadets experiencing the academy together.

Renee was about to close her eyes when she saw a very strange sight. Two birds, one a seagull, the other a black bird, perhaps a raven, Renee couldn't tell, came swooping into the secluded area, landing side by side. Renee remained motionless to watch these two rival birds seemingly getting along. Perhaps Renee was witnessing bird détente!

But then, without warning, the two birds began to change shape. Their bird shapes became liquefied and then they merged, becoming one singular liquefied form, swirling about.

Renee wasn't dumb, she knew what they were; Changelings. She only knew of one Changeling personally and that was Myn; the first Founder cadet. Myn was Lal's friend and lover, but had also been known to share his bed with others, including Azami. When Azami had told Renee what he could do with his fingers, Renee almost collapsed at the thought of the pleasure Azami must have felt.

But if Myn was one of the Changelings below, then who was the other one? And what were they doing? Renee could only come to one conclusion; the two Changelings were making love. Finally the swirling mass of liquid became two, again, and then they solidified. One of them was Myn, and the other took the form of a male Changeling as well. Renee listened intently to what they were saying.

"It has been sometime since we have been together, in that way," Laas told Myn. "Perhaps, when this is all over, we can do it more frequently."

"I too would like that," Myn said.

Myn turned to walk away, by Laas reached out and put his hand on his shoulder. Myn turned to face Laas again.

"Myn; I know destroying the Android is not what we both want," Laas said, "I just want to know that if it comes to that, you will be able to do it."

Myn looked at his friend, his mentor and his lover, and nodded.

"Laas, do not worry about me; I will do it," Myn said. "If destroying Lal helps accomplish our task in capturing the Moriarty holo-gram being, it will not be an issue. I just want you to promise me that if comes to that; it will be with meaning not just because it can be done."

"Of course," Laas said. "If the android…"

"Lal," Myn reminded him.

"If," Laas paused, "Lal can be spared, it will be done; you have my word."

Myn nodded at Laas, turned, and then made his way up the steps that led out of the obscure area.

Meanwhile, in the tree near to where Laas and Myn had their conversation, Renee remained as motionless as she could. She had no reservations that if Laas knew she was there, she would be killed. It was clear that Myn and Laas were up to something, and it was going to lead to the destruction of Lal. Even though Lal and Renee were not remotely friends, Renee didn't want to see the android destroyed.

Renee watched in silent fear as Laas just stood there, where he had been conversing with Myn. Did the Changeling know that Renee was there? And if not, then why was he just standing there. Then, suddenly, Laas morphed back into a black bird and then flew away. Renee just remained in the tree, just to be certain the Changeling didn't double back. After twenty minutes or so had passed, Renee slipped out of the tree and hurried up the steps. She had to find Lal to warn her that she was in imminent danger!

On the other side of the Academy, Cadets Rebecca and Lal were sitting together in the food court, along with Rebecca's boyfriend, another cadet, named Kylor.

Kylor hailed from the planet Imba-7. He was the younger brother of Kylon, who was a recently promoted LTJG in Star Fleet serving on the Naissance with Admiral Janeway.

As typical of those from his species, the tip of Kylor's tail had five strands of long hair. The tail was held up in the back by strong muscles, as well as the five strands of hair which were braided expertly with the white hair that draped back from his head. Dark brown skin for the rest of its body contrasted well with the color arrangement of the tail and head. A thong was worn in the back so as to cover a male sexual organ, which, for a humanoid species, was quite large. They were in mid-discussion about Lal's recent failure during a simulated Starship drill.

"And so," Rebecca said to her friends, "I pressed the wrong button and our weapons fired too soon, revealing our position and allowing the Bird of Preys to destroy us; killing everyone aboard."

"Wow," Kylor said, with excitement, "that means you broke the record of most simulated deaths by a cadet!"

"Kylor," Rebecca said, with a little anger in her voice, "you're my boyfriend. I would expect a little understanding."

"I understand more than you think," Kylor. "If you washout as a cadet, do not worry; I will still marry you. Then you can bare me twenty-seven children, and stay home and tend them."

"Did you say twenty-seven children?" Rebecca asked with a laugh. "Umm, no," Rebecca said, "my vagina isn't a damn sperm-bank depository. I can see having one, maybe two, but twenty-seven kids?"

"I will compromise," Kylor said, "how about eighteen?"

They both laughed, having already argued about the amount of children they would each like to have. As they laughed, Lal laughed as well, her humor chip picking up on the humorous content of the discussion.

Kylor stood up.

"I'll go refill your drink," he said, as he took Rebecca's glass and headed towards the drink station.

Lal couldn't help, nor it seemed any other female either, and a few males, the size of Kylor's sexual organ, kept hidden beneath a thong. The bulging cover of cloth stretched all the way down, just inches above the ground.

Lal, her eyes bulging, looked at Rebecca who had a conniving smile on her face.

"I still do not understand how the two of you, well at least you, survive having intercourse." Lal said, in a matter of fact tone.

"And I keep telling you," Rebecca said, in quite tones, "it's one of those pleasurable pains. Now, back on topic, do you think I'm going to washout of the Academy?"

"I am your friend, Rebecca Sisko, so I will not lie to you," Lal said.

"That's why we are such good friends," Rebecca assured Lal.  
"Unless you can improve your simulation scores, you will, as they say, be a washout." Lal said flatly.

"Gee, thanks for the confidence," Rebecca said. "I don't know why I can't perform in those idiotic simulations. My test scores are great, but my simulation scores are awful. I just don't understand my disconnection with tests and simulations."

Lal was about to respond when Professor Geordi Leforge stopped by. He looked directly down at Rebecca.

"Rebecca," Geordi said with a whisper, "what is it with you and these simulation scores."

"I don't know," Rebecca said. "I was just telling Lal that I don't understand it."

"My good friend, the late Commander Barclay, had troubles with his simulation scores as well," Leforge said as he sat down on a chair at the table. "He was like you; he did great on tests, but when it came to applying that knowledge in life simulations, with other cadets, he just couldn't get it."

"Then how did he graduate and become a Commander in Starfleet?" Lal asked.

"Apparently, from what he told me, he would leave the Academy on the occasional weekend," Leforge began to explain, "and he would go across the bridge to this tiny karaoke bar near Chinatown."

"Karaoke; what is that?" Rebecca asked.

"Karaoke;" Lal said, " it is a form of entertainment, offered typically by bars and clubs, in which people take turns singing popular songs into a microphone over prerecorded backing tracks."

"Yes," Geordi said to Lal, "and by doing that he got over his performance anxiety, and was able to participate in simulations."

"I can't sing," Rebecca said, embarrassingly.

"Trust me; neither could Reg," Geordi said with a smile. "But Karaoke isn't always about the singing as it is getting the nerve up to embarrass one's self. I want you to try it," he handed her a note with an address written on it. "This is the address to the place Reg would sing at; take it."

"Oh come on," Rebecca pleaded.

"If you don't," Geordi said as he stood up, "I will have to take more drastic measures; like calling your dad."

"Alright," Rebecca said, in a defeated tone, "I'll go."

And with that, Geordi left; content that he had done his bit to help Rebecca become a better student.

Across campus...

Renee arrived at the dorm room that she shared with Azami. She went in and found Azami studying in the living room area. What Renee didn't know was that behind where she stood, there in the window, where the drapes were slightly opened, a black bird was staring in at her and Azami.

**Planet Risa…**  
Arandis opened the door to the crime scene and then both she and Inspector Ryan Tolbert went in. There didn't seem to be a crime in the main living room area.

"In the bedroom," Arandis said to Ryan.

Ryan Tolbert followed Arandis through the hotel suite, and finally into the main bedroom where they saw a naked woman's body in the bed.

"Now, according to our own internal security report, the woman was strangled," Arandis said.

Ryan studied the naked body, and noticed the stains next to her torso. He pointed at the stains.

"According to the report, the stains are from female and male ejaculate. I think it's pretty obvious that they made love, and then he killed her," Arandis told him.

Ryan Tolbert stood up and surveyed the room. Everything was neat and tidy, and there was even a bouquet of flowers in the other room, obviously a gift.

"I don't know," Ryan finally said, "I think they were having more than just recreational sex; I think they were lovers. Let me guess," Ryan said, looking at Arandis, "she is listed as the only occupier of the room."

"Correct," Arandis said, "and although we do have security recordings, we don't seem to have any recordings on this level."

"Now that is interesting," Ryan said. "Arandis," he said after a moment, "Winter Man, who I have been chasing for all these years, has an uncanny ability of avoiding security detections. This could be his doing."

"Do you really think he did this, knowing that you would be here to investigate?" Arandis asked.  
Ryan thought for a moment.

"Yes," Ryan finally replied. "Now, listen; I trust all transportation, off going or incoming, has been halted."

"For another two hours, and then I have to reopen," Risa said. "This is the busiest time of the season."

Ryan went over to the window and looked out.

"Then that means our killer, most likely Winter man, is still on this planet, and he is most likely somewhere down there," Ryan said as he looked down at the throng of life milling about the gift shops and many other establishments.

"What do you want to do?" Arandis asked.

"How many people know of this?" Ryan asked.

"You , me and the inspection team that found her, and there were three of them, as well as the maid."

"Then," Ryan said, "This woman isn't dead." Ryan said, pointing at the dead body. "She is barely alive, and will be taken to the main medical complex."

"You're hoping to trap the killer if he comes back to finish the job," Arandis said with a smile.

"It is our only chance. We only have two hours," Ryan reminded Arandis. "So we have to do this and do it quickly. Roundup the inspection team and the maid and sequester them. Then, once that is done, we will put out a standard message that the woman survived the attack, and has been transferred to the medical building."

"What are you going to do?" Arandis asked.

"Catch the first transport off this world," Ryan said with a smile, as he dashed out.

And with that, Arandis and Inspector Ryan Tolbert went about setting the trap.

Continued…


	189. Cesspool Solution

**Jean-Luc Picard; Simplicity**

**Cesspool Manager**

The planet Dan'gin was a world that was situated right on the invisible border that separated the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. It was a world without government, a place where scumbags flocked to. Scoundrels of all shapes and sizes patronized the bars and sex clubs that littered the lone city on the planet. One could even say that Dan'gin was the evil counterpart world to Timus, which was, generally, a peaceful world. Dan'gin was a dog eat dog world where physical strength and weapons separated the winners from the losers as did wealth and power. Neither the Federation nor the Klingon Empire, the closest powers to the world, had any desire to move in and clean the planet up. The Gorn had tried, decades earlier, but lost seven ships and thousands of lives in the process. The lack of weapon laws made meant that an invading force would face certain doom. Even the Jem'Hadar avoided Dan'gin during the Dominion War; the planet's reputation the main reason why.

So, it was pretty much general knowledge that Dan'gin was a universe of its own. If anyone was foolish to go there then they would have to suffer the consequences. The criminal element that flocked there also had one simple code; do not bring your criminal efforts to Dan'gin. Meaning; no kidnapped victims were to be brought there, because the major powers, Federation/Klingons/Romulans ect, would have to respond if their citizens were kidnapped and brought to Dan'gin. Murder was allowed on Dan'gin, as well as swindling, or rape, or any lurid act, as well as gambling, prostitution and illegal cloning.

One citizen of Dan'gin had arrived on the world five years earlier. His name was Chakotay; and he was a former Star Fleet officer, but had also been a member of the Maquis. And upon the Voyager's return to the Alpha Quadrant, Chakotay was not happy with what had happen to his former associates in the Maquis, and he didn't like the plea bargain the Federation had offered him and others of the Maquis that had served aboard Voyager. Chakotay fled Federation space, rather than sign the plea bargain, and thus became a wanted criminal. He ended up on Dan'gin because many of the criminal elements there had helped his cause during the days of the Maquis and their struggle against the Federation and Cardassians, were there and it only seemed natural that he would end up there too.

After five years of investing in criminal acts throughout the system, mainly through his numerous contacts in the Orion Syndicate, Chakotay had made himself a pretty good fortune and had a feared name. He was also known as someone not to cross. Many who had crossed Chakotay had been killed; ruthlessly. Over those five years he had become a cold cruel man out to make a simple percentage.

Chakotay owned a joint on Dan'gin. It was a bar, brothel, and pretty much one of the most popular hangouts on Dan'gin. If you were a top of the line criminal and or scumbag, Chakotay's was the place you went to gamble, or just sit at a table or at the bar with no cares or bothers. The scent of all kinds of illegal drugs, sweat from the varied alien life forms that came there, and the undeniable aroma of other bodily fluids, would cause anyone to faint upon their first venture into the bar. It wasn't uncommon to see sexual acts happening in the booths that were scattered about the darkened parlor. An occasional fist fight would break out at the various games of chance that were played all about the parlor as well. Dabo wheels, Poker tables and Dom'Jot tables were the most favored games of chance. If patrons got into fights, and couldn't afford the damaged furniture, then they were taken out of the club and decapitated by Bak'loth. Bak'loth, a massive Chalnoth warrior, and was Chakotay's chief enforcer, was not to be trifled with. To get to Chakotay meant you had to get though Bak'loth, and that wasn't easy to do.

Bak'loth was standing in his customary position in the far corner of the bar. Near to where he stood, two naked Orion slave women were engaged in sexual acts together in a cage suspended from the ceiling. There were to drunken patrons passed out on a table below the cage, but no other customers in the vicinity of that area of the bar, which was fine with Bak'loth. He looked up at the two Orion women and wondered if they knew that no one was watching them. One of the Orion women began to urinate, or least Bak'loth thought it was urine, and the expelled liquid drained out of the cage onto one of the drunks below. Bak'loth shook his head, and then decided to stand somewhere else. It was then that he saw someone looking into the bar from one of the entrances. Bak'loth's eyes locked with the unknown person. The human held up three fingers then two fingers then three fingers again; it was a code. Bak'loth nodded and then headed across the bar, through the maze of life forms that cluttered the busy area of the establishment, and over to where Chakotay sat; in his private booth with six Orion slave girls, three to each side of him, doing his every bidding.

Chakotay was French kissing one of the women, as another woman had her hands down the front side of his trousers. Yet another woman was gently stroking the tattoo on the left side of his face. Chakotay looked up at Bak'loth, who then nodded. Chakotay knew what the signal meant.

"Stop," he told the women.

They all moved away from him. Before he left, he grabbed a woman by the hair and tugged it really hard. She had been the one who had her hand down the inside of his trousers.

"You're too slow," he told her.

"I thought," she said, as she whimpered, "you would like it slow."

"You thought wrong," Chakotay said, and then he looked up at Bak'loth. "Give her to Tragam. Perhaps that fat f**k of a Ferengi can use her."

"Please no," the woman pleaded, "I will do anything you want. Please give me another chance!"

Chakotay slapped her hard, very hard, causing a red mark on her face.

"To hell with Tragam; kill her instead," Chakotay said to Bak'loth.

And with that, Bak'loth reached down and grabbed the woman by the hair and then dragged her, along the floor, as she screamed in fear, into the crowd of gamblers and fiends that were nearby, and then out one of the exits. Chakotay stood up and then looked at the five girls who remained. He pointed at the one woman who was a Bajoran.

"When I return," he told her, above the loud noise of the music, "your hand will take the place of her hand; you better know what I want or..." he slowly traced his finger across the base of the Bajoran woman's neck.

And with that, Chakotay headed towards another exit; his private exit. It was where he and he alone came into and left the bar. He went out the exit, which led to a secure area outside the bar. Standing there was a man in a robe with a cloak over his head. The man lowered the cloak; it was Jean-Luc Picard…

…continued with Part Two….


	190. Questions for Robert Canary 1

Letters to Robert Canary…

This is just a real quick sidebar to our story. From time to time I get letters and I haven't really given thoughts to answering questions but I thought I might give it a go so here are some. Some of these are messages to me, so if you don't want me to use your questions then please let me know.

_Megagalvatron12 __  
__2011-07-07 . chapter 189__  
__good story,why are those aliens masqurading as sarek,jon archer and kempec and omg you turned chakotay into an ass are there any other maquis still alive like for an example (Ro Laren) and why isn't 7 of 9 in this she is really cool and couldn't tom and b'elanna convince him to stay in starfleet _

Robert's reply

Thanks _Megagalvatron12. I_have decided to make Chakotay a villain just because I liked him a lot on Voyager and I wanted to give him something meaty to do. TOM PARIS appears in the next chapter by the way. As for 7 of 9? Her fate is momentarily mentioned in the next chapter as well, but let me stress, it is open ended.

Ro Laren is another character I like very much. I have her pegged to appear a little way down the line, but not in the same story thread with Chakotay. You can look for her to show up with Inspector Ryan Tolbert's story line on Risa.

One person who will have to worry about this new side of Chakotay is Benjamin Sisko. Chakotay is well aware of Sisko's final showdown with the Maquis and Eddington

_AppleJacks44__  
__2011-07-07 . chapter 189_

_Why do you have so many bad guys currently active on your tapestry?_

Robert's reply;  
Wow..tapestry...love it! Yes, there seems to be a large amount of bad guys lurking about, but I just love to write stuff in the story for bad guys. Or even someone like Azami who is just a bigot. They are fun to write for and hopefully, in the end, they get beat down by the forces of good.

_KELPLY_

_2011-07-04 S'vath_

_Who is S'vath's mother?_

Robert's reply;

S'vath's mother is, well actually, was T'pring. Apparently some time after the events of Amok Time, and about thirty years before the events of this story (which takes place a few years after Nemesis) Spock and T'pring decided to have a child. S'vath was the result of the decision. He is very unVulcan, much like his uncle Sybok. In a recent storyline, Sybok was trying to use T'pring to get to S'vath's children, and T'pring was helping him until she realized how whacko Sybok was. In the last moments of her life she was able to warn Spock and S'vath of Sybok's danger. She died when the starship she was on exploded outside of the Naissance Dyson Sphere.

Okay..that's it for now…more questions in about a week…

Robert


	191. The Contract

**Jean-Luc Picard; Simplicity**

**The Contract**

_Last time…_

_Chakotay was in the swanky club he owned, which was crowded with all sorts of criminal elements on the planet Dan'gin, and then he headed towards an exit; his private exit. It was where he, and his #1 guard, a Chalnoth warrior named Bak'loth, came in and out of the club. Chakotay went out the exit, which led to a secure area outside the bar. Standing there was a man in a robe with a cloak over his head. The man lowered the cloak; it was Jean-Luc Picard…_

**The lawless planet of Dan'gin**

It was a very tense moment as Jean-Luc Picard, one of the most honored Star Fleet officers to have ever served, came face to face with one of the most reviled officers ever to have served; Chakotay. Chakotay pointed at Picard. A small pitter patter of rain began to fall, and gradually got harder as the two men squared off.

"The only reason I have not had you killed, Picard, is because of the debt I owed you. You can consider that debt closed," Chakotay said; practically spitting out each word as he spoke.

Picard was about to speak when Bak'loth came out of the same exit that Chakotay had just stepped through him self just moments earlier. Bak'loth was carrying the decapitated head of the Bajoran woman who had not satisfied Chakotay's sexual whims earlier. Bak'loth held up the head and grunted. Chakotay nodded, and then Bak'loth went back inside the wild establishment. Chakotay looked back at Picard.

"You have one minute," Chakotay said.

"I am in need of your services, Chakotay, and I am willing to pay whatever price you name," Picard said.

"You expect me to believe that?" Chakotay said. "Just what kind of dumb f*ck do you take me to be" Chakotay asked.

"I do not consider you to be anything of the sort, but what I do know is that I need your unique services and I am willing to pay quite handsomely. I know that you have many others who work for you who can," Picard paused, "find someone discretely."

"Go on," Chakotay said, not once taking his eyes off of Picard.

"I would like to hire one these employees of yours to do just that; to find someone," Picard said softly.

"And bring them back to face justice? I don't think so Picard," Chakotay said, as turned and headed back toward his club. "Our debt is even," he reminded Picard as he neared the door that would take him back inside.

"Not to bring back to face justice," Picard added, as he spoke at Chakotay's back, "but to be destroy; or killed, however you wish to put it."

The rain became harder, with only the red neon sign of Chakotay's club providing any light to see by. Both men appeared to be in a down pour of blood, which Chakotay found quite ironic.

Chakotay stopped, and then slowly turned around to face Picard.

"I don't believe you," Chakotay said.

"I'm telling you the truth, Chakotay, and like I said, I will pay any price for this to be done," Picard said, with the sound of desperation in his voice.

"Who do you want to eliminate?" Chakotay asked.

Picard gave Chakotay a brief recap of his last encounter with Moriarty, including the death of Reginal Barclay at the hands of the maniacal holo-gram.

"So," Chakotay said, upon hearing the brief recap, "Barclay is dead; good. After the shit my life turned into after we came back, I wish he never had helped bring us home."

"Chakotay," Picard said softly, "much of this twisted existence of yours is of by your own accord."

"F*ck you Picard," Chakotay said, with deep anger in his voice. "I don't live in that vanilla universe of yours, and I never have. And trust me, in time; I will deal with everyone who had a hand in tearing down the Maquis, starting with Sisko. As for hunting down this hologram of yours, I will take the contract. I will send you a coded message with my price after you leave. If you don't like the price I give you, I suggest you do not return to barter; or I will kill you myself."

Picard nodded in agreement, and then he watched as Chakotay went back inside the loud confines of the club. Moments later Picard was beamed away and reappeared inside the Delta Flyer 2. Captain Tom Paris, who was at the controls, looked at the drenched Picard.

"Well, Ambassador, how did it go?" Paris asked. "Did Chakotay see you?"

Picard stepped into the private area in the back of the flyer, and came back out in casual clothing, and with a clean shaven face.

"It is hard to believe that someone like Chakotay could have ever been a Star Fleet officer," Picard said with regret in his voice. "One can only imagine the depth his soul has fallen to."

"Things did not go well for him after we got back to the Alpha Quadrant," Paris said. "I know it may sound strange, but I feel sorry for the old lug head. We got along, but he and I never really saw eye to eye for all the years we were making our way back, but I respected him. After the tragic accident with 7 of 9, ever since then his life has gone down hill. Even Bellana couldn't get him to change his ways, and she was closer to him than most of us."

Picard was about to say something when a chirping sound came from the main control panel.

"Chakotay has sent us a message," Picard said, looking at the panel.

Picard opened the message and read the price tag for one of Chakotay's employees to destroy Moriarty.

"Sir," Paris said, "are you sure this is legal; having someone destroy Moriarty? Doc and Vic have been declared citizens, and so was Moriarty recently. If you do this, are you not paying for someone to murder him?"

Picard dodged the question.

"Normally I would agree, but just so that we are clear on this, special dispensation had been granted in this matter," Picard replied. "And while I would normally not condone such dramatic action, I believe in this case, it is warranted."

"Where do want to go to now?" Paris asked, piloted the Delta Flyer 2 out of Dan'gin's orbit.

"I promised Ambassador Spock that I would meet him back on Vulcan," Picard said.

"Is he still trying to decipher the language on that object they found on Vulcan?" Paris asked.

"Yes, quite right," Picard said. "I would never describe a Vulcan's actions being driven by a hunch, but then again, this is Spock we're talking about."

The Delta Flyer 2 entered warp, and streaked toward Vulcan.

* * *

**Planet Romulas...**

The strange ancient carvings, some 10000 years old or so, had been found nearly six months earlier. Spock had even traveled to Romulas to view them after being requested to do so by a long time Romulan friend. But something else was about to be discovered near to the carvings. Two young Romulans, who were part of the excavation team, were pain stakingly dusting off a new layer of exposed sediment. One of the young Romulans, who was roughly 25 Earth years old, was using her very fine brush and was dusting off what she thought was a rock; but then she stood back. Her team mate was astounded as well, as he stood back too. Because it wasn't a rock they had found; it was a finger...

continued...


	192. Clue

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Clue**

**Inside the home of the late Gregory Williams...**

S'vath followed the Efrosian lawyer, Ra-Giantha, into the large den where the hopeful heirs to the estate of Gregory Williams waited. There were six of them in all and they were sitting about the room giving off the distinct impression that none of them liked each other. Ra handed S'vath a data pad and whispered to S'vath…

"This pad has information on each of the people; read along so you can familiarize yourself with each of them. They are a very," Ra paused, "eclectic family."

"I will," S"vath said.

"Everyone," Ra said to them all, "I have brought Constable S'vath along because of the seriousness of Mr. Williams' final Will and Testament. And before any of you can protest his being here, I am going to ask you to wait, as I'm going to read the Will right here and now."

S'vath sat down in a chair so that Ra wouldn't be upstaged during the reading of the Will. S'vath also started reading the information contained on the data pad about those gathered.

"I, Gregory Williams," Ra began to read, "hereby make these final statements as to the dispensation of my estate. First off, let me say," Ra said, as he continued to read the final words of Gregory Williams, "I despise all but one of you; and that would be Denise, my oldest daughter."

Everyone looked over at Denise. She was a tall and very beautiful woman. S'vath estimated her age to be around thirty years old. From just looking at S'vath could tell she was a quiet and reserved woman; nearly Vulcan in her demeanor. He read the data pad which contained Ra's quick notes about her.

_This one may seem calm and collected, but trust me, she can be ruthless. Gregory may say that he liked her best, but that's because of her forward personality, and not because of love.__ She is the only child who seemed to inherit Gregory's artist abilities. Many of her paintings can be found throughout the system, but she never pursued it beyond it being a hobby._

"As for the rest of you," Ra continued to read, "You are all either swindlers or leaches. However, long ago I realized that life is always a struggle between the survival of the fittest. I could easily have willed my estate, valued at 250,000 bars of gold pressed latinum to Denise, my darling daughter; but I won't."

"Why not," Denise asked rhetorically. "If he believed me to be superior to the rest of you; then why didn't he just leave me everything instead of having to endure some crazy test?"

"Oh come on," an older woman from the corner of the room. "Gregory didn't love you Denise, he just saw you as a toy like all of us; a favored toy, but still just a toy."

"That is Gregory's wife, Stella," Ra whispered to S'vath. "He couldn't stand her."

S'vath read he passage about Stella.

_She was married to Gregory for __32 years, but he married her just to have a wife by his side for social occasions such as parties and charity functions... Though she bore him the three children who are here, there was never real passion between them. Gregory was not a devoted or honorable husband, which you will learn pretty soon._

"Your father was always doing these crazy antics to prove our loyalty," Stella continued to say, as she drank a glass containing some sort of spirit. "I for one can't understand why he didn't give me everything. I was his wife God damn him! I had to endure being pregnant three times. But I guess that wasn't enough devotion for the pompous Gregory Williams."

It was clear to S'vath that Stella was playing the sympathy card, but upon looking at the faces of those gathered, it wasn't working; and three of them were her own children.

S'vath looked at the data pad, which also had pictures of each of the gathered people. As Ra went on with boring elements of the will, S'vath looked at each person, and then read the data pad about them.

_Gregory had two other children. His lone son was Gabe. S'vath looked at the picture and then over at Gabe. Unfortunately Gabe is gambler and a drunk. He never lived up to Gregory's harsh standards. Gabe washed out of school, washed out at several professions, and at the young age of 28, he has no certain future except for possibly inheriting wealth from his father. _

_Next__ we have Gwen, and her husband Martin. Gwen, as you can see, is stunningly beautiful. She, being the youngest child, lived a very spoiled life. The finest schools, the finest upbringing, and yet she gave that all up and is one of the most sought after holo-porn stars. She has been featured in several holoprograms and has made quite a name for herself, though, she has blown her earnings on her fancy life style. Her career in the adult holo-porn industry is winding down, even at the age of 26, due to the never ending demand for fresh and young faces in that industry._

_Her husband is Martin Thorn; he is 40 years old, 14 years older than Gwen. You might recognize his last name. He is the illegitimate son of Lawrence Thorn, the wealthy industrialist who died inside __the Naissance Dyson Sphere several months ago._

_Finally we have Vernon Williams. He is Gregory's on surviving sibling. He is three years older than Gregory, and while an artist like his dead brother, he never attained the fame that Gregory did._

Ra finished up with the mundane aspects of the Will, which were required to read before the actual body of the will. Ra continued reading the words of Gregory Williams.

"With the legal mumbo jumbo out of the way," Ra continued to read the words of Gregory Williams. "I shall now reveal what you have all gathered to hear. I am going to give my entire fortune, including all of my artwork, to only one person. The strangest thing is? I don't know who that person is going to be; you all do."

"What does that mean?" Gabe asked. "How are we supposed to know?"

"Maybe daddy wants me to have sex with each of you," Gwen said. "You know, keeping it all in the family. Its not like we never played spin the bottle," she said with a sexy grin aimed at her brother Gabe and her sister Denise."

"You're sick," Denise fired back.

"Oh yeah," Gwen said, with a coy sound in her voice, "You and I liked to play doctor."

"Darling," Martin Thorn said, softly, "please let the lawyer speak."

"Would you please just continue," Gabe said to Ra, "I don't want to have to hear these two bitches any longer than I have too."

"You and me both," Stella, the mother of all three kids added. "How are we supposed to know who is going to get the fortune?"

"Let me continue reading," Ra told them all. Then he went back to reading the words of Gregory Williams. "The one person who will get everything," Ra went on to say, "will be the one who is still alive two weeks from now."

There was silence in the room, and S'vath now understood why he was brought to hear the final Will and Testament of Gregory Williams. It was nothing more than an invitation for his heirs; to kill each other…in two weeks. It was truly a contest; a survival of the fittest.

And then, at that very moment, Stella, Gregory's widow, began to choke, and dropped her glass of wine Everyone rushed over as S'vath leaned down to check the fallen woman's pulse. He was shocked just as much as the others were as he said those two dreaded words...

"She's dead..."

(CHECK MY PROIFILE TO GET A LOOK AT ALL THE FAMILY MEMBERS)

Continued…


	193. Cat and Mouse

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Cat and Mouse…Mouse and Cat**

**(If you are wondering who I have cast in the roles of Ryan Tolbert and Alistair Martin, please head over to my profile and check out the JPEG link I have posted there)**

**Planet Risa…**

The spaceport on Risa was built on a small scale. Part of the allure of the pleasure planet was its so called isolation from the rest of the galaxy. A large space port would be a constant reminder to the guests of the "outside world" they were feeling from. So, the port was kept small and quaint.

Ryan Tolbert, wearing a fake beard and mustache, made his way across one of the walkways that over looked the waiting area below, where guests were waiting for transport vessels to either beam them up, or, shuttle them up for departure from the planet. There was a medium size crowd below, but not too large for Ryan Tolbert to view innocently, hoping to pick out the person who might be ever elusive Winter Man.

Winter Man was a serial killer whom Ryan Tolbert had been chasing for many years. Tolbert had no idea what Winter Man looked like, due to the killer's ability to dodge surveillance. When Winter Man had broken into Tolbert's home and killed his wife and child, Winter Man had been able to disable the advance surveillance gear that was about the presumably secured home.

Tolbert looked about the gathered passengers below, all of whom had finished vacationing on Risa, and were heading back to their real lives. He saw human, Klingons, Tellerites, Hot'haqs and many other species, though to be sure, humans made up the bulk of the visitors. Ryan Tolbert had an ear piece that allowed him to communicate with Risa's main security apparatus, and he wore special contact-lenses that were connected to a database that allowed him to zoom in on a target, and have the data base scan the individual for their identity.

"How long is it going to be until you release the news that the victim is still alive?" Ryan asked with a whisper, knowing that Arandis could hear him on the other end at the main security office several miles away.

"In ten seconds," Arandis replied. "And then it will be part of information on the various screens that have scrolling information going across them."

"Yes," Tolbert said, "I see one of the screens now."

And then he waited, and then, right on clue, ten seconds later, the letters scrolled across the various news screens across the waiting area, with the news that the victim of an attempted murder had survived and was being tended to at the local medical center on Risa.

Crime Inspector Ryan Tolbert immediately began zooming in on each would be transport passenger, hoping to see someone respond to the news. Face by face, he looked at each one. Was it the tall Klingon near the back, or the plump Hynobian female with the pink and purple skin? Were any of these individuals in the waiting area the Winter Man? The fake news that the victim had survived continued to scroll across the screen.

And then; someone did indeed look at the news on the screen, and that person began to look around, obviously looking for any law enforcement; or at least that was Ryan Tolbert's gut instinct. As he zoomed in on the face of the individual, Arandis spoke to Ryan via the microscopic ear peace in his ear.

"The database has found a facial match to that human you are looking at," Arandis. "And this is very odd."

"What is very odd?" Ryan asked as he watched the stranger stand up from his chair, and begin heading toward the spaceport exit. "And hurry; he's on his way toward the south-side exit."

"According to the Federation database, his name is Alistair Martin; some sort of law enforcement officer from Earth and," Arandis paused, "according to the database Mr. Martin is supposed to be dead."

Ryan Tolbert kept an eye on the supposedly dead Alistair Martin. Tolbert was on the second level, and was hoping beyond hope that the mysterious Martin did not spot him. If Alistair Martin really was the Winter Man killer, and had eluded capture for all these years, then Ryan Tolbert knew that Alistair had to be very smart and cunning. And then, what Ryan Tolbert feared the most; happened. Alistair came to a stop, whirled around, and looked right up at Ryan Tolbert on the second level. Alistair did the unthinkable and took a bow; and then he continued his hurried pace toward the exit. Alistair knew this was it; his time to capture his most elusive prey.

Ryan ran down the upper level and saw that the path would turn left, and then back right again, toward the exit. He didn't have time to follow the path, so Ryan, at full speed, ran toward a food stand and, using a nearby guardrail by the overhand of the second level, he jumped up to the roof of the food stand, to the astonished gasp of the dozen or so patrons, and then he ran across the roofs of five other small businesses. He leaped off the last one, and then tumbled back down to the walkway below. He was near the second floor exit, and could still see Alistair making his way down the first level; but where was the criminal going?

"Keep an eye on him," Arandis said in Ryan's ear. "I have help on the way," she told him.

"Tell them to hurry," Ryan said, as he jumped off the second level and landed in a group of bushes on the lower level; the prickly branches of the bushes gashing his arm, drawing blood, as he stood up and began his hurried pursuit of the Winter Man!

**Elsewhere in space…**

James T Kirk opened his eyes. He was standing in a place that appeared to be nothing but bright light. Three glowing spheres of energy came out of the brightness. And then, right before Kirk's eyes, they became three historic figures from history; Sarek, K'mpec and Admiral Jonathan Archer.

"Welcome, James T Kirk," Jonathan Archer said.

"Am I dead?" Kirk asked, being that he was standing before three supposedly dead individuals.

"Not yet; Kirk," Sarek said. "However; you're time is coming; and sooner than you realize."

Kirk did not like the sound of that at all.

"Who are you?" Kirk asked. "I recognize you, Captain Archer, from the images in the history texts at Star Fleet. I have men Ambassador Sarek, and while I now know your name is K'mpec," Kirk said to K'mpec, "I know you as M'uak; the mayor of Summit Grove."

"I have read much about the career of Jim Kirk," Archer said, with a smile. "Your legend precedes you."

"Those accomplishments you speak of are not mine; alone," Kirk replied.

"Yes, we know about the transporter accident," Archer said to Kirk. "We know that it brought you into the future and deposited you and your dead friends, Chekov and Uhura, on the planet of Triskelion. We are also aware of the fact that it was Trelane who brought you here."

"But let me guess," Kirk cut in, "because of my unplanned trip into the future, I have become a rogue element. Gary-7 and two members of the Q-continuum have already told me this."

"He knows too much," K'mpec said to Archer, "his fate must be met here and now."

"Wait a moment," Kirk said to them all, "you just told me how I got here into time period; all of which I already knew. Perhaps, before you do whatever it is you plan to do, you tell me how three dead legends from the past have managed the same thing."

Archer looked to Sarek who then looked to K'mpec.

"Okay," Archer said, "You're right, Jim Kirk, you have a right to know the truth. But before I explain, let me introduce you to the forth member of our," Archer paused to find the best word, "team."

Another sphere appeared, just as bright as the other three had been. In changed shape and solidified into the form of….Khan Noonien Singh.

Continued…


	194. Weeping Willow

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Weeping Willow!**

**(with new cover art at my profile)**

Previously…on Earth at the Starfleet Academy

_Laas and Myn were not aware that their decision to end the life of Lal had been over heard by Renee, who had climbed up a nearby tree for some quiet time on her own. Renee remained as motionless as she could. She had no reservations that if Laas or Myn knew she was there, she would be killed. It was clear that Myn and Laas were up to something, and it was going to lead to the destruction of Lal. Even though Lal and Renee were not remotely friends, Renee didn't want to see the android destroyed. _

_With their conversation over, Myn morphed back into a white seagull and flew away, but Laas remained._

_Renee watched in silent fear as Laas just stood there, where he had been conversing with Myn. Did the Changeling know that Renee was there? And if not, then why was he just standing there. Then, suddenly, Laas morphed back into a black bird and then flew away. Renee just remained in the tree, just to be certain the Changeling didn't double back. After twenty minutes or so had passed, Renee slipped out of the tree and hurried up the steps. She had to find Lal to warn her that she was in imminent danger!_

_Twenty minutes later, Renee arrived at the dorm room that she shared with Azami. She went in and found Azami studying in the living room area. What Renee didn't know was that behind where she stood, there in the window, where the drapes were slightly opened, a black bird was staring in at her and Azami._

Our story continues…

"Hey, where have you been?" Azami asked Renee, looking up from her data pad filled with Physics notes. "You said you were going to help me study this crap."

"Oh my God Azami," Renee said, with gasps of air, "We have to warn Lal."

"She can go to hell for all I care," Azami said as she went back to studying, but then she looked back up at Renee. "Warn her of what?" Azami asked.

"I saw her boyfriend, Myn, the changeling," Renee began to explain quickly, as she sat in the chair next to Azami; "he was with some other Founder. They're up to something, and whatever it is, destroying Lal is part of their plan."

"Were you up in that tree again?" Azami asked with a laugh. "You must have fallen asleep and had a crazy dream."

Renee shook her head.

"No, I wasn't dreaming; it was real," Renee said, as she got out of the chair and headed to her room. "I need to go pee, and then I'll go warn her."

Azami looked over at the window and saw the black bird looking back at her. Azami nodded her head, and then stood up and walked toward Renee's room.

An hour later, Azami and Laas were in the secluded area where Renee had overheard Laas's conversation with Myn. Renee was on the dirt ground, next to a jumbled up tree, dead. Her head had been smashed in by what appeared to be a tragic fall, and a large branch crashing on top of her; or course, it was just a cover job, since it had been Azami and Laas who had done the dirty deed. Blood and brain debris intermingled with branches.

"It will appear to have been an accident, and no one will know the difference," Azami said, as she looked at Renee's body. "They'll just assume that she came here for her quite time, and then tragically fell to her death; sad, but necessary." And then she turned to face Laas. "It would not have been necessary to do this had you been more careful. What were you thinking; talking with Myn like that in the open."

"Perhaps it was foolish," Laas said, "but your being intimate with Myn was a big risk too. If he had found out you were a changeling, it would have been bad enough. Finding out that I was in league with another race of changelings, who are the ancient blood enemies of the Founders, would have jeopardized everything we have worked for. You need to be more careful."

Azami shook her head, and then seductively walked around Laas, tracing her fingers in a sexy as she went.

"Unlike your kind," Azami said, "mine would die without physical intimacy with solids or other changelings. And while Myn isn't really human, he still has some very interesting," Azami flashed a lust filled smile, "abilities that I just HAD to experience."

"A foolish course of action," Laas came back with.

"Let's get one thing straight," Azami said, with cold anger in her eyes, as she moved her face inches from Laas's face, "I determine what course of actions we take; do not forget that."

And with that, Azami morphed into…nothing….and was gone.

Two hours later, three joggers came across the dead body of Renee. Soon, a emergency medical team arrived as well as administrative officials of the Academy arrived on the scene, including Professor Geordi Leforge and the latest new comer to the teaching ranks at Star Fleet Academy; Annika Hansen. Also on the scene, for purely procedural reasons, was Commander Mike Stone of the Earth Security force.

The news of Renee's tragic accident spread across the campus. Rebecca Sisko and Lal watched, as others did, as Azami was informed of the incident at the food court. Azami broke down and began to cry (all an act of course) and hugged Professor Leforge, who had come to deliver the tragic news.

"I feel so sorry for her," Rebecca said to Lal. "I know we don't really care for Azami, but Renee was her best friend; it's so sad."

Myn came over and sat down with Rebecca and Lal.

"Wow, I just heard," Myn said softly, as they watched Professor Leforge escort the distraught Azami away from the food court. "How did it happen?" Myn asked.

"You know how she liked do go down to that area near the med lab, and study in those trees?" Rebecca asked. "Apparently the tree she was on collapsed, and crushed her."

Myn thought for a moment; that was the same area where he and Laas had been conversing earlier.

"No," Myn said, "I didn't know she went down there. So the tree just fell down? Is that normal for trees to fall like that?"

"Perhaps it was one of the older trees," Lal offered.

"Yeah, maybe," Rebecca said.

But Myn's mind was racing. If Renee had been there earlier, and Laas had found about, Myn had no doubt that Laas would have silenced Renee for good. But, if Renee had overheard the conversation, then her death may have become an unfortunate necessity.

"I feel so sorry for Azami," Myn said, with fake sorrow in his voice.

Back and the secluded area, where team was still cleaning the area, Commander Mike Stone surveyed the area. While he was, for the moment, content with the belief it had been a tragic accident, his gut instinct was telling him something else. It was then that a very beautiful blond woman came over to where he stood; she was one of the Professor's at the academy and her name was Annika Hanson.

"You have your doubts, don't you?" Annika asked.

"Oh, I don't know," Commander Stone said, "perhaps it's just my incessant need to find mysterious where none exists."

Annika Hanson surveyed the area as well; for she too had an inquisitive mind and a unique ability to dissect order from disorder; and why not? She had once been a Borg.

Continued…


	195. Jailhouse Blues

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Jailhouse Blues…**

**(and don't forget to see the new "cast" picture at my profile...)**

**The planet Timus…in the small town of Summit Grove…**

S'vath was sitting in his office inside the Jailhouse of Summit Grove. The jailhouse was located in what would be considered the "rear-end" of town, tucked behind the general store and near the stables. Thankfully, on a planet that frowned on modern technology, they did smile upon aroma filters. If not, then the variety of animal feces inside the stables would make working, or even being jailed, at the jailhouse impossible.

The door to the jailhouse opened and Quark entered, along with Harrison Riker. S'vath looked over to them as they came in and sat on two chairs near his desk.

"Hello there," S'vath said to them.

"Constable," Quark said, "you have to talk to Sisko and tell him to call of this insidious rule of requiring anyone who works in government offices to require personal records."

"I heard about that," S'vath said to Harrison Riker, "Maybe you can stay on as a temp hire."

"Thanks," Harrison said, "but wouldn't my pay be cut in half?"

"Yes, that is a drawback," S'vath said.

There was silence when…

"I'll tell you what," Quark said to S'vath, "I'll pick up the rest of his pay if you promise me Sisko will retroactively pay me back when this is all cleared up."

S'vath nodded.

"I'll see what I can do," S'vath said, as he reached into his drawer and pulled out a shiny star shaped badge and flung it over to Harrison. "You're on the job."

"Now," Quark said, as he stood up, "I'm going back to my bar and shoot myself with a phaser for being such a nice guy."

"I hope you're a bad shot," Harrison added, "You're partially my boss now."

Quark walked out the door, still shaking his head at what he had done.

"So, what is on the burner?" Harrison Riker asked.

"Well, to be honest," S'vath said, "I am glad you're back on the job. I need to leave the planet for about four days."

"Where are you going?" Riker asked, as he clipped the badge on to his shirt.

"I need to run an errand," S'vath said. "There is a Federation art museum on the planet Karvalla, which I visited about two years ago with my wife. I need to look into something there."

"Whew, going to an art museum," Harrison Riker said with a smile, "that could be hard work. Does this have something to do with that deal at the Gregory Williams estate? I read about some incident there in the local paper."

"Yes," S'vath said, "Stella Williams. She died moments after the contents of husband's, Gregory Williams', estate was read. The coroner's report came back today and it looks like she was poisoned. I have warned the other family members to be on guard, since it is clear that whoever is the last one left stands to inherit a fortune."

"That sounds like murder to me," Riker said.

"Or suicide," S'vath said, with doubt in his voice, "there isn't enough evidence either way."

"Wouldn't the last person left be a suspect, especially if all the others died mysteriously?" Riker asked.

S'vath shook his head, and then stood up and walked over to the window which looked out upon the General store across the way. He snapped the fingers on his left hand as he did, and took a deep breath. Then he looked back at Harrison Riker.

"If they all die, like Stella did," S'vath began to explain, "and if none of it can be positively attributed to an act of crime, then that last person, as suspicious as they would be, would walk free."

"So how is going to an art museum on the planet Karvalla going to help?" Harrison Riker asked.

S'vath smiled, and then shook his head.

"Oh I admit," S'vath said with a laugh, "I'm grasping here; but there might be a clue there." S'vath said with a chuckle. "And on top of that; my wife is demanding that I take her, since she is aware of this investigation and wants to help solve it. Myran Kirk has agreed to watch our kids while we're away. Can you do me a favor, while we're gone, and drop and make sure Myran and the kids are okay?"

"Sure," Harrison said as he stood up, "don't worry about a thing."

At that moment, Mayor Sisko came in.

"Ah," Ben Sisko said, "Mr. Riker. I just bumped into Quark on the way over here, and he told me that you're going to stay on as a temp hire, thus, avoiding the necessary paperwork."

"Ben," S'vath said, "we need him. I hope this isn't going to be a problem."

"For now, there will be no problem," Sisko said, "however; even a temp must provide paperwork for a government position after two months."

Before Harrison could respond, S'vath cut him off.

"I need to scoot," S'vath said, "thanks for watching after the kids and Myran," S'vath said as he hurried out the door to catch the next transport with his wife.

Sisko remained with Harrison Riker. It was a tense situation.

"What are you hiding from; son?" Ben Sisko asked the younger man. "Just tell me; I can help, I have connections."

Harrison Riker nodded his head. He was about to answer when, at the last moment, he bit his lip and headed for the exit.

"Two months will go by real fast," Sisko said to Riker's back. "I hope you realize, before then, that you have friends here who want to help."

Harrison Riker paused, and then left the office.

Thankfully, for Sisko's cause, the old jailhouse didn't have a sliding door; it had an old style door on a hinge. Moments after Harrison had left the jailhouse; Sisko went over to the door and then pulled out a small device and scanned the doorknob for prints.

"I'll find out what your secret is with," Sisko said to himself, "or without your help."

* * *

A mile away, and behind Quarks, a man was being beaten to a pulp. Two other men, humans as well, were punching and kicking the man, who now had a bruised and bloodied face.

"You better pay up!" One of the attackers yelled. "You have one more week, and if you don't settle your debt with Cube 1, then the next time we do this you will end up dead!"

After one more kick, the victim, who was still very much alive, but very much in pain, was thrown to the dirt ground, and then his assailants walked away quickly. The beaten down man rolled over, blood draining from his nose and mouth; his name was Gabe Williams.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the two assailants that had beaten Gabe Williams were sitting on a transport vessel as it left the Summit Grove visitor's center. Also on the very same transport were S'vath and his wife Amanda, but they were sitting in another section of the ship.

"Think of this as our honey moon," Amanda said, with a giddy smile. "I love art museums; they are so full of history."

"Wait a second," S'vath said, as he kissed his wife, "we had a honeymoon. We went to Risa; remember?"

"Can't blame a girl for trying," Amanda said with a sexy smile. "You know what happened the last time we went to a hotel on our honeymoon." She placed her hand on his lap, just above his groin. "We got kicked out because I was screaming too loud."

S'vath shook his head. He was very happy to be married to a woman who was a borderline nymphomaniac.

Meanwhile, the two assailants who had beaten Gabe Williams entered one of the private message booths, where passengers could send messages at a modest price. After entering a secret code, the face of Chakotay came on the screen.

"Cube 1," the assailant, named Mack, said. "We have made your message perfectly clear to Gabe Williams."

Chakotay nodded in approval.

"Very good," Chakotay said with a sneer. "That idiot needs to understand that someone who refuses to pay back loans has no reason to live any longer."

The two assailants smiled, and nodded in agreement.

* * *

Several miles away, Hikaru Sulu was pruning his garden when his Ferengi neighbor, Baybok, walked over from his own house and stood outside the garden. Sulu looked up and saw Baybok, who was holding a data pad of some kind.

"Well hi there Baybok," Sulu said. "Can I help you with something?"

"Actually," Baybok said, in a near whisper. "I want to show you something."

Sulu stood up and came over to the wooden fence that rimmed the garden.

"What do you have there?" Sulu asked.

Baybok handed the data pad to Sulu. Sulu, having spent many years in Starfleet, and having seen many planetary survey images, realized the image was some sort of subterranean image.

"What is this?" Sulu asked; perplexed at what he saw.

"Our ticket," Baybok said with a smile, "to ultimate fortunes!"

_**Continued…**_


	196. The Arrival of Acquisition

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**The arrival of Acquisition **

**(new cover art at my profile! Featuring Deanna Troi and the new Moriarty!)**

**Earth…**

A transport shuttle came out of the sky, and zoomed down into the travel center located in San Francisco. As the two dozen or so travelers disembarked from the vessel, they were welcomed by a stunning view of the Golden Gate Bridge. Several of passengers were innocent children who pointed off in the distance, with star truck eyes, at the Starfleet complex on the other side of the bridge. One of the children was a rambunctious little boy who had been a loud pest ever since leaving the relay station at Jupiter with the rest of the passengers.

"Wow," the hyperactive little boy said, with a big smile on his face, "I'm going to go to the Academy one day and be a starship captain like my father."

"You are, are you," the boy's mother asked with humor in her voice; her name was Deanna Troi-Riker and her son was named Thomas Riker Jr. "Well, I'll tell you one thing, future Captain Thomas Riker," Troi said to very peppy six year old son, "You better eat more of your vegetables. They just don't let anyone be a captain, you know, you have to be very fit."

"Then how did dad become a captain?" the boy asked innocently.

His question was heard by most of the group, as they made their way down the boarding ramp, and was greeted with kind laughter. One person who was walking down the ramp, but purposely keeping as much distance from himself and Troi, was Professor James Moriarty. Earlier, having seen Troi at the Jupiter station, Moriarty had used his ability to adapt the holo-emitter and changed his look to that a younger man in a nice business suit of the time. Although his outward appearance was different, Moriarty wasn't entirely sure if Troi, with her telepathic abilities, would be able to read his thoughts or not. Were the personal thoughts of a holo-gram character, a living holo-gram character none-the-less, like him, readable like those of flesh and blood humans? Moriarty decided that he would have to look into the matter after he was finished with his reason for coming to Earth; to kill Lal, the android offspring of the late Lt. Commander Data.

The group finally filtered into the transport center hub, which was rather crowded, and once inside, Moriarty put as much distance between him and Troi as possible. Moriarty made his way over to the far end where he received a Starfleet Academy visitor pass from a friendly young woman who ran a kiosk just for that reason. He also noticed that the young lady, a Bajoran, seemed rather attracted to him. He would have to investigate that possibility later, as well.

After receiving his pass, he made his out of the transfer hub and headed toward the bridge. The Golden Gate Bridge was rather stunningly beautiful and majestic, even to a holo-gram. Moriarty, who was travelling under the name Colton Shore, stepped aboard a sleek travel pod, with several other passengers, and then it began the short trip, via a magnetic track, over the bridge and to the other side. Moriarty overheard some of the passengers saying that they had been on the bridge a month ago when the humpback whales made their annual trek to the bay.

A pouch was hanging from the seat in front of Moriarty, and inside it were several broachers. He took one of them out that had two whales on the cover. He wondered why they still had old style paper magazines when a simple data pad would suffice. Then again, humans always liked reaching back to the past, and magazines, though long since irrelevant, were still part of that shared past.

Moriarty flipped to the part of the magazine that explained how the humpback whales, once extinct, had made such a comeback. It was a fascinating read about two whales named George and Gracie. Moriarty (Colton Shore) put the magazine down moments later as the transfer pod arrived on the other side. The massive Starfleet complex was sprawled out before him as he stepped out of the pod. Moriarty smoothed out the suit he was "wearing" and then made his way toward the entrance, unaware that a black bird was observing his every step.

* * *

**Planet Timus…**

Previously…

_Hikaru Sulu was pruning his garden when his Ferengi neighbor, Baybok, walked over from his own house and stood outside the garden. Sulu looked up and saw Baybok, who was holding a data pad of some kind._

"Well hi there Baybok," Sulu said. "Can I help you with something?"

"Actually," Baybok said, in a near whisper. "I want to show you something."

Sulu stood up and came over to the wooden fence that rimmed the garden.

"What do you have there?" Sulu asked.

Baybok handed the data pad to Sulu. Sulu, having spent many years in Starfleet, and having seen many planetary survey images, realized the image was some sort of subterranean image.

"What is this?" Sulu asked; perplexed at what he saw.

"Our ticket," Baybok said with a smile, "to ultimate fortunes!"

"What do you mean?" Sulu asked as he looked at the data pad.

"Well, as I'm sure you know," Baybok said, "We Ferengi are always looking for that next fortune. It is very rare when the Great River brings such an opportunity, but, it has!"

"Look," Sulu told Baybok, "I have no need for a fortune and I'm too old to go on some blasted treasure hunt."

"No one is ever too old for fortune," Baybok told Sulu. "My grandfather was rich beyond imagination, and then lost it all when his own wife and children swindled him."

"Well, I don't have that problem since I am neither rich nor blessed with such a large family," Sulu said, as he prepared to go back to his gardening.

But Baybok wasn't going to give up so easily.

"Oh, this isn't for me," Baybok said, "it's for the Envan Prime Orphans Coalition. Perhaps riches and fortune do not mean much here in the Federation for you and I, but think about all those orphans and broken families. That terrible planet killer contraption destroyed their planet (_issues #91-92_) ." Baybok had read up on Sulu's file and knew that he had served on the original Enterprise all those decades ago and was hoping Sulu would have a tinge of guilt in him.

"Yes, that was terrible," Sulu said, with sorrow in his voice. "Alright, you got me," Sulu said. "What does this have to do with this survey data on this pad?" Sulu asked.

"Well, my friend Sulu, this is an image taken of a medium sized mountain not far from here," Baybok said. "The person who scanned it is from Envan and lost his entire family when that monster destroyed his world. Now he wants only to help those who were off world, such as himself, when it happened, by mining for the riches buried there. No one knows about this except for him, me and now you. I believe with a modest investment, we can hire a discrete mining firm to go in and dig up those minerals and gems, and who knows what else, then sell everything we get for a nice profit then donate it to a charity like the Envan Prime Orphans Coalition."

"How much is a little investment?" Sulu asked.

Baybok pressed a button on the pad which display how much was needed.

"Wow," Sulu said, as he saw the hefty price. "I'm afraid I don't have nearly that much," Sulu said.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Baybok said, already knowing full well that Sulu wasn't super wealthy. But, Baybok also knew that Sulu was well connected. "If you can't invest and help out, it's okay. I'm sorry for disturbing you."

"No, not at all," Sulu said, in a pleasant voice. "Even though I am not that wealthy, I do have many friends. Perhaps I can get them to help with the investment."

A smile spread across Baybok's face and all he could think about Sulu in his head was…_what a sucker!_

**Continued…and tomorrow; Tuvok sets out to right a terrible wrong that involves Chakotay, Annika Hansen, and a person very close to Jim Kirk's distant past!**


	197. Silent Child

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Silent Child**

**( A cool COVER ART can be found at my profile for this chapter...)**

The sun was setting, and as it did, it cast an orange glow across the canyons and valleys of what used to be New Mexico. The canyons and nearby land had been ceded back to the Native Americans who had once called all of North and South America theirs. With much of the outside populations clustered around massive city sprawls, the land held no value to the rest of humanity, which was fine with the dozen or so Native American tribes who now called this land home; again.

Although the tribes were all equal, there was one tribe which was held in higher regard. This was due to the fact this tribe had been isolated from the historical contamination wrought by the arrival of European colonies in the late 1400s. The tribe had escaped contamination because it had been taken from Earth nearly two-hundred years before the arrival of Christopher Columbus by an ancient alien race known as the Preservers. The tribe was taken to a far off world, and there they would remain, for nearly 900 years. After learning the truth of their origins, the tribe decided to return to Earth, so as to be reunited with the hallowed lands of their ancestors.

Tuvok, of Vulcan, had been riding on horseback for two days, in the deep desert. The Native American frowned upon the use of shuttle craft, and other forms of travel, on their tribal lands. Tuvok didn't mind. It gave him two days of solitude to think about the past.

Just two days prior, he had helped T'av complete her final admissions paper work, and then left her at Starfleet Academy as she set out on a path to recapture her Starfleet career. It would not be easy for her, due to the nature of her removal from active service. _(Readers will recall that T'av was the Vulcan female who had been possessed by the mind of the aliens who were out to destroy the Talosians. She had also killed a fellow Starfleet officer, and devoured him...)_

With T'av taken care of, Tuvok had decided to take up a request of his good friend Admiral Kathryn Janeway, and soon found himself in the desert; on a quest to someone very special. An old Native American named Satangkai.

Tuvok thought back to when Voyager had returned from the Delta-Quadrant, and most of the crew had gone on to live productive lives in and out of Starfleet. For the command crew, it had been the same, with the notable exception of Commander Chakotay and 7 of 9. Tuvok knew that he bore some of the responsibility of what had happened with those two, and so Janeway had urged him, for many years, to see if he could bring closure to that difficult chapter in their lives.

Chakotay, ever since that time, had spiraled out of control, using his Starfleet training and becoming one of the most notorious criminal forces in the underworld of crime. In fact, for many, such as Ambassador Picard among others, Chakotay had gone too far over the line (Author's note; Tuvok is unaware of Picard's recent dealings with Chakotay) and was long past the point of redemption.

For 7 or 9, or as she knew her self to be now, Annika Hansen, the repercussions of what had happened had cause a more profound change. And for both of then, Chakotay and Annika Hansen, it all stemmed from the loss of a child; their child.

Tuvok's memories were disrupted when, in the distance, about five miles a head of him, on the dirt path he had been riding on for nearly forty-five hours, he saw a small cloud of smoke rising from one of the foothills. Tuvok had been quite aware of the fact that for the past five hours his movements through the area were being monitored by two young Native Americans, who were also on horseback, but out of his view. He knew they were there because Vulcan's had one attribute helpful in these situations; very good hearing. The smoke up ahead was a signal to Tuvok; continue on until reaching the smoke's origin; and then wait.

Meanwhile, atop the foothill, a proud Native America stared down at the valley below, and at the lone rider (Tuvok) who was making his way toward the fire. The Native American chief, who was over a hundred years old, was named Satangkai. Behind him stood his wife of nearly sixty years; she too was older than a hundred years. Her name was Awinita which meant fawn. She came over to her husband and looked down at the approaching visitor.

"Who is it who comes to see you; my husband?" Awinita asked, as she came over and put her arms around him.

"It is the Vulcan; Tuvok," Satangkai replied, with a soft voice.

"Why does he return?" Awinita asked. "The winds of fate were not kind to him and his friends the last time they sought you out."

"There is truth to what you say; my wife," Satangkai replied. "However, the funny thing about the wind is that even when its gasp of movement is completed; who can still feel it tickle the skin of your face where, with your breath, it can blow again; so can fate."

The two had been married for decades, but one subject was usually off limits. But, now that they were both over a hundred years old, Awinita decided that she would no longer abide by such foolishness.

"My husband," she said, as she looked up at his strong face, "Will you ever tell them, tell the outsiders, the truth about who you are? Your father's legacy is one of legend, and you should welcome it into your soul."

Satangkai took a deep breath, and then smiled at her.

"McCoy is dead now," Satangkai, "as is Christine Chapel. They are the only ones who knew the truth, besides you, my wife. Sometimes it is best if the truth remains woven to the tapestry of the past; I believe this to be one of those times. There is no need for anyone to know that I am the proud son of James T Kirk, or as our people knew him to be," he said with a slight pause, "Kirok." (_Savvy readers know that this is not the case. S'vath and his wife Amanda know the truth, that Kirk's offspring with Miramanee survived…how this happened and how McCoy and Chapel were involved has yet to be fully explained in detail; though it did happen…stay tuned_)

Continued…


	198. Deathtrap

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Deathtrap**

_**Previously...**_

_On the planet Risa, Ryan Tolbert was in hot pursuit of a killer that he had been tracking for ten years; the Winter Man. A serial killer who left a string of victims across a wide swath of the Federation, and had also killed Tolbert's wife and child…_

_**Our story continues**_…

**The Planet Risa...**

Ryan Tolbert ran out of the spaceport, and saw the suspect running up ahead. It was obvious that Ryan was on- his- own, and that no backup was going to arrive in time. So, all he could do was chase after his prey. The killer was known as the Winter Man, a serial killer whom had eluded capture for nearly fifteen years, and who had killed Ryan's family ten years ago, and now finally, the killer had a real name; Alistair Martin. As Inspector Ryan Tolbert continued chase down the suspect, the voice of Arandis spoke in his hear via a microscopic ear piece.

"I have more information on Alistair Martin," Arandis told Ryan. "Like I said before, he is from Earth where he was once part of Earth's internal security force. Here is the strange part; according to a report by Earth's internal security, Commander Mike Stone, Alistair Martin disappeared twenty years ago without a trace. He left his wife and kids behind and was never heard from again; until now."

"So he vanishes five years before the Winter Killer began his trail of murder; that is interesting. How much are you willing to wager that there are unsolved murders from those early five years that were his doing as well? Wait a moment," Ryan said, "Looks like he is heading for the library near the spaceport."

Ryan watched as Alistair ran into the structure up ahead. It was a library for the visiting tourists, which housed art work from all over the galaxy. Large circular shaped pillars, atop the roof, were arranged in a strange pattern.

"Why would he run into the library? I can corner him there," Ryan said to himself and Arandis.

"It may be a trap. My men just transported over to the spaceport, I will have them beam over to the library; don't go in there alone," Arandis pleaded.

"Alone is my middle name," Ryan Tolbert said with a chuckle.

Ryan reached the entrance, and thought about what Arandis had just said; about not going inside. But then he shook his head and went in. The Winter Man killer, this Alistair Martin, had eluded Ryan for so many years, and Ryan wasn't about to stop now.

Inside the library there were many visitors, representing many different alien species from all over the known galaxy, but as usual, most of them were humanoid. Risa always had catered more to hominoid life forms than any other. Ryan made a quick survey of the first level, there were six in all, and decided that Alistair Martin was not on it. He ran over to the Turbo-lift and saw that the car that had just left had gone to the seventh level; the roof top. His gut instincts told him Martin had been in that car.

"Rooftop," Ryan said out loud, and then the Turbo-lift zoomed upward.

The doors opened two seconds later, and then Ryan stepped out on the rooftop of the library. Something told him, deep inside, that either he or Alistair Martin would not leave this place alive; he was right. The rooftop had a great view of the surrounding area, but Ryan could not be distracted. His instincts told him that Alistair Martin was up here too. His diligence was rewarded when, up ahead, from behind a decorative pillar, Alistair stepped into view.

"So, Mr. Ryan Tolbert," Alistair Martin said, "we meet at last."

Martin's voice had a noticeable Australian accent.

Ryan drew his phaser and aimed it right at Alistair, as he approached with caution.

"You killed my family, and you've kill over two-hundred other innocents," Ryan said, in a cold tone, "If you resist arrest I will kill you."

Alistair smiled.

"No you won't," Alistair said, with a grin. "You've dedicated your life to the enforcement of law. Killing me would ruin everything you've ever stood for."

"Who was the woman you killed at the hotel?" Ryan asked.

"In time, I am quite sure your investigation will figure that out; but we do we do in the meantime?" Ryan asked. "Do I tell you how I killed your family? You would do yourself a favor if you would just kill me now," Alistair said, as he slowly backed away from Ryan Tolbert. "After I raped your wife, in front of your son, I never thought I would feel so at peace my entire life. But I was wrong; I found greater peace when I slit your son's throat and watched the blood ooze out before me, all over his dead naked mother."

Arandis heard the words of Alistair as well. And while she felt sorry for Ryan, she knew that Ryan could snap and kill his suspect which would go against everything he believed in; upholding the law.

"Ryan, don't listen to him," Arandis said to Ryan, via the ear piece. "He's taunting you; don't you see that he wants you to do this; to kill him? From what I know of you Ryan, that is not the kind of person you are."

Ryan reached up to his earlobe and tapped it twice, shutting off the ear piece. And then, knowing that Arandis would soon have her security force upon the scene, Ryan took off after a surprised Alistair. Alistair turned to run, but it was too late, Ryan leaped through the air and tackled him. Both men rolled on the deck, and to the ledge of the library's rooftop. Alistair rolled over the ledge, and was only stopped from falling to his death when Ryan reached down and grabbed his hand at the last moment.

"Let me die, please," Alistair pleaded, as he looked up at the face of the man whose wife and son he had slaughtered.

Alistair dangled seven stories in the air; certain death waiting for him if he were to fall.

Ryan Tolbert looked deep into his own soul, as he looked down at the man who had taken so much from him. He could hear the voices of his dead wife and son as an old memory of the three of them at an amusement park sailed across his mind. And then Ryan saw the memory of when he first held his new born son in his arms, and then he saw the memory of when he kissed his wife when they were married; the two best moments of his life.

"Let me go," Alistair said again, softly. But Ryan saw something new in Alistair's eyes; sorrow. "It took my soul, like it will yours, if you let it live."

"What are you talking about?" Ryan asked.

"I was like you," Alistair explained, as he held on for his life to Ryan's hand. "A good man, with a family, and then it took my soul, just as it will take yours, if you don't let me go. This is the first time I have been freed from its possession ever since it took me. If you let me go, then we can kill it here, and now."

Ryan and Alistair locked glances, and in that instance, Ryan knew that he wasn't talking to the Winter Man killer; he was talking to Alistair Martin.

"Tell my wife and daughters that I loved them," Alistair said he let his hand begin to slip.

"Don't do this," Ryan said as he tried to re-grip the man's hand.

And then the fiendish smile of the Winter Man returned just as Ryan Tolbert lost his grip.

"No!" was all Ryan could say as he watched Alistair Martin fall to his death, smashing to the ground below, dying instantly.

**Timus Prime; the Sisko home**

The Sisko home was filled with the aroma of a feast. It was Benjamin Sisko's birthday and so his wife Kasidy and his older sister Mavis made him a meal to remember. Several guests had arrived for the celebration. Jake, and his wife Korena, had arrived earlier in the day. Also coming over for the celebration was; Sulu, Quark, Myran, Garak, and an unexpected surprise; Colonial Kira. After an hour or two of old wartime stories, they all gathered at the table for the giant feast; it was a fun time. Along with the conversations there were also the sounds of children, little ones. Myran had brought her two kids, as well as the children of S'vath and Amanda, as they were still off world.

"This is truly a miracle," Mavis said to them all, as they prepared to feast. "Here we are so many good friends and family members. These are the special times worth living for."

"To be honest," Kira said, with humor in her voice, "I only came because I heard you were serving Ben's buttered mash potatoes."

They all laughed.

The dinner lasted an hour and a half, due to the various topics that had been discussed. Later, Ben Sisko had nodded at Garak, and the two went out back under the context of looking at the garden.

"Such a splendid garden you have here," Garak said, as he looked out at the various plants. "Botany happens to be one of my hobbies."

"My sister, Mavis, just had to have a garden. However, don't tell her this," Sisko said in a low down, as they heard laughter coming from another part of the house, no doubt due to one of Sulu's stories about the old Enterprise, "she does not have a green thumb. Mr. Sulu comes by once a week to make sure the garden is cared for properly."

Sisko reached into his pocket and handed Garak a scanner.

"Ah," Garak said as he looked at the device, "I haven't seen one of these in years. I assume you want me to take these fingerprints and find out who they belong to."

"I already know who they belong to; his name is Harrison Riker," Sisko told Garak.

"Ah yes," Garak said, "the handsome young man who works here on Timus as a deputy to Constable S'vath. If you already know who he is then why have ask for my unique services?"

"Let's just say that there a too many questions about Mr. Riker," Sisko said, "and I'm hoping you can find out where he was born, who was his mother, and does he have some sort of criminal past?"

"Sounds like fun," Garak said.

"By the way," Sisko said, "have you been able to figure out why you were found in your ship adrift in Klingon territory?"

Garak shook his head, as a look of dread came over his face.

"No, I haven't," Garak said, as he looked at the garden. "I pride myself on my ability to keep tight control of my life. After I helped Cardassia get its affairs back into order, I always knew that elements of my past my try to catch up with me, so I have gone through great lengths to protect myself. But," he said as he looked as Sisko, "I have no idea as to why I was found in the Klingon Empire and that worries me."

"I would understand if you didn't want to investigate Harrison Riker," Sisko said, quietly.

"Oh please," Garak said with a smile, "this is the sort of thing that might jog memory. And don't worry," he added, "I will be as discrete as possible."

At that moment, Quark came out to the back porch.

"What are you two conspiring about?" Quark asked,

"Actually," Garak said, as he looked out at the garden, "we were discussing this exquisite garden."

"Of course," Quark said, as he walked over to the two.

Then, coming out of the door, was Kasidy.

"Hey you three, we're about to light the candles on the cake," Kas said.

"Oh, and don't worry," Quark added, "I let the Summit Grove Fire Marshall have two free hours in a holo-suit so he wouldn't have a problem with the large amount of candles required; they could be considered a fire hazard."

"Very funny," Ben Sisko said, as they all headed back inside the house; Garak included.

Moments later, Happy Birthday was sung by all and Ben Sisko, with help from his now grown up son Jake, blew out the candles.

"I have a card here for you," Kasidy said as she handed it to Ben. "It's from Rebecca."

"How is she doing at the academy?" Kira asked. "After the ordeal with the Naissance, I was worried she might give up."

"She's a Sisko," Korena said to Kira, "and from what I have seen, they never give up. In fact, I would like to announce that," she looked at Jake, who nodded his head, "that we are expecting our first child."

"I'd like to know more about this not giving up part," Mavis said, with a playful naughty tone to her voice

They all laughed…it was a happy time...

An hour later, with the party over, Myran Kirk returned home to a silent house, thankful that Mavis had volunteered to watch her children and S'vath's children as well. Moments later there was a soft knock at the front door. She opened it to find Harrison Riker standing at her doorstep. She let him in and then she closed the door. Before a single word was spoken, the two began to kiss passionately, and moments later, driven by sexual desire, they took each other's clothes off and were soon making love on the living room floor.

Continued…


	199. Artistic Endeavour

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Artistic Endeavour**

**(NEW COVER ART at my profile...)**

**The planet Karvalla**

The Federation art and history museums on Karvalla were home to many masterpieces of art from the many worlds that populated the vast space alliance. The planet Karvalla itself was the size of Earth's moon, and only one continent on the medium sized planet had been developed. The several modern buildings built there were dedicated to the sole preservation of the art works that had been collected.

Tourists made up the bulk of the visitors that came to view the wide variety of art on display. On any given day, the travel center on Karvalla would be crowded with all sorts of visitors. The spaceport, in orbit of the planet, was a parking place for private transport vessels, as well as Federation science vessels that were using the libraries for various studying purposes. But by far the most obvious transports in the spaceport were the yellow transports. Packed with school aged children from nearby systems, the yellow transports were usually clustered together at the spaceport, so as to keep the young citizens in a centralized location.

There were seventeen major complexes on the planet surface, each of them twenty stories high, and each of them packed with history, art and all kinds of historical exhibits. One of the art complexes had an entire floor devoted to artworks that had been created by humans.

There was one constant in the galaxy; quiet was expected from those who decided to visit libraries. It was also presumed that guests would not seek out abandoned areas of the museum for the sole purpose of engaging in sexual intercourse; but that is exactly was S'vath and Amanda had done upon their arrival. S'vath had signaled the library to set aside certain pieces of work, and had also requested an expert art surveyor to be available as well. With their appointment set to happen two hours after their arrival, S'vath and Amanda decided to satisfy one of their goals on their list of things to do; and being intimate in a library could now be scratched off that list of things to do…the bounds of love so fruitful for the two of them.

Amanda stared up into the eyes of her husband as her breath became shortened. And then, moments later, they shared that moment of intimacy that brings on an over whelming sensation of joy.

"Wow," Amanda said, as he looked over at her husband, his body right next to her. "I knew doing that without making noise would be impossible," she said, "thank God you brought these."

She held up the device she had been wearing only moments before.

"Sound reduction devices," S'vath said. "I told Quark we were coming here and then out of the blue he gave me them."

"Don't tell me you told that Ferengi that you wanted to do this," Amanda said, embarrassed at the thought.

"I didn't," S'vath said.

"You better not have," Amanda said, with a pouting tone in her voice.

"Mavis did," S'vath said.

"What?" Amanda came back with.

"She was there picking up some cooking sherry, and suggested I take these things with us," S'vath held up his device, "She saw them on sale behind Quark's bar; he sells them for use in the holosuite, don't ask me why" S'vath said with a grin.

They both stood up, still totally nude, and began to put their clothes on.

"Well great," Amanda said, as she pulled her spring dress back over her head, smoothing it across her body as she went, "the next time I see them I'm going to be so embarrassed," she said with a slight tinge of anger in her voice.

"Amanda," S'vath said in all seriousness, "had you screamed that loud without the noise reduction device, we would have been found and most likely banned from ever coming here again."

"So?" Amanda replied, as she came over and kissed her husband on the lips, "there are other worlds of art we can visit. You have to admit, husband, it just isn't the same without the screaming."

"I hadn't thought about that," S'vath said, as he took her sound reduction device, and his, and put them in the trash receptacle. As he was about to drop them in, he noticed two other pairs. "Fascinating," he whispered.

Fully dressed again, they both made their way out of the section of the art museum that didn't have any visitors at all, the section devoted to art work by Thrivitoggbee; a Tribble who created artwork by rolling around on various colors of pigments.

Moments later they arrived at the section devoted to works of art by Gregory Williams. Waiting for them was a Bolian named Thrise.

"Hello there, my name is Thrise; I assume you are S'vath from the planet Timus?" Thrise asked.

"Indeed," S'vath replied, "please accept my gratitude for assisting my wife and me as we look at the works of Gregory Williams."

"Oh his death was such a loss," Thrise said, "I handle his art work here at the museum and on two other museum worlds as well. Mr. Williams was such a dedicated artist; he will be sadly missed."

There were three works of art by Gregory Williams, and Thrise went into a detailed description of each one. The Bolian talked about the techniques that Williams used, and how each of the three works was special in their own way.

"Now this one," Thrise said, "is called the Harmonica of Twilight and depicts two musical notes wrapped together in the art of making love as they float above a mist. If you look closer you will see…" Thrise went on about the work of art.

Finally the Bolian showed them an art work by Charles Monet. It was the _Seine Basin with Argenteuil,_ 1872, Musée d'Orsay, Paris. Both Amanda and S'vath were impressed with all of the work of arts that they had been shown.

"I hope this had whetted your appetite to see more art," Thrise said, "and if so, I suggest you visit the section we have that is dedicated to works of art by our latest featured artist; a Tribble named Thrivitoggbee."

S'vath and Amanda both had to fight back the urge to laugh out loud.

"Thank you Mr. Thrise," Amanda said, "we might just do that."

The two turned to leave, when at the last moment S'vath turned back to face Thrise.

"Um," S'vath said, "one more thing Mr. Thrise."

"Certainly," Thrise said, as he was about to return the works of arts to their places on the display walls.

"These works of arts you have shown us, the ones by Gregory Williams and this Monet you just showed us," S'vath began to say, "would we be able to obtain one for our own collection, and if so, how much?"

Amanda was about to say something, but stopped herself. She was wondering what S'vath was talking about since they didn't collect works of art. She instantly knew that S'vath was up to something.

Thrise shook his head immediately upon hearing the question.

"Absolutely not," Thrise said. "While I wish I could help you with that, I am sorry to say that these are originals and they are not for sell at any price."

"What a shame," S'vath said, with a frown on his face. "Well, thank you again for your time."

"Don't mention it," Thrise replied.

Moments later, S'vath and Amanda exited the museum. They came out of the building, which was located next to a massive food court.

"Are you hungry?" S'vath asked, "I know I am," as they headed for the food stands that were scattered about the area.

"Wait a moment," Amanda said. "What was that all about; buying artwork for our collection at home? We don't have one."

"I know," S'vath said, as they approached a Bajoran food kiosk, both of them fans of the light food the Bajorans were known from.

"Then what were you talking about?" Amanda asked, as they got into line.

"The Monet he showed us, as well as the works of art by Gregory Williams, are originals," S'vath said.

"And why is that so fascinating?" Amanda asked.

"The night I went to the mansion to hear the reading of the last Will and Testament that Gregory Williams recorded," S'vath explained, "I looked at several of the pieces of art that were scattered about the walls there, including all four works of art we just saw. According to the inventory taken of Mr. Williams' estate, the works of art I saw on those walls were the originals."

Amanda got a perplexed look on her face, so S'vath explained it again.

"Mr. Thrise just told us that the four works of art he just showed us were the originals, but the ones I saw at the mansion are also the originals."

Amanda nodded her head as she made the connection.

"And there can only be one original," Amanda said, as she got a devious look on her face. "So that means either the ones here at the museum are fakes, or the ones at the mansion are fakes."

"The question is," S'vath spoke in a softer tone, "which ones are the real ones?"

They got their food from the Bajoran kiosk and went to a small table to eat their meals.

Meanwhile, back at the art museum, Thrise had returned the works of art back to their places on the wall, and then went into his private room, since there were no other visitors, and then accessed his computer. As it turned out, he had installed a secret camera in the Tribble art section, knowing full well that no one ever came there to look at the art. The only ones who came there were the exhibitionists of the galaxy, which, as he watched a recording from earlier in the day, included S'vath and Amanda. Thrise sat back and enjoyed the explicit footage, as he had done so many times before; such were the perks of his position…

Continued….


	200. Plausible Deniability

**Jean-Luc Picard: Simplicity**

**Plausible Deniability**

**(all new COVER ART featuring Jim Kirk..at my profile)**

**Elsewhere in space…**

James T Kirk opened his eyes. He was standing in a place that appeared to be nothing but bright light. Three glowing spheres of energy came out of the brightness. And then, right before Kirk's eyes, they became three historic figures from history; Sarek, K'mpec and Admiral Jonathan Archer.

"Welcome, James T Kirk," Jonathan Archer said.

"Am I dead?" Kirk asked, being that he was standing before three supposedly dead individuals.

"Not yet; Kirk," Sarek said. "However; you're time is coming; and sooner than you realize."

Kirk did not like the sound of that at all.

"Who are you?" Kirk asked. "I recognize all of you; Captain Archer, from the images in the history texts at Star Fleet. I have met Ambassador Sarek, and while I now know you as M'uak, the mayor of Summit Grove, I also know your real name is K'mpec, a former chancellor of the Klingon High Command."

"And we have read much about the career of Jim Kirk," Archer said, with a smile. "Your legend precedes you."

"Those accomplishments you speak of are not mine; alone," Kirk replied.

"Yes, we know about the transporter accident," Archer said to Kirk. "We know that it brought you into the future and deposited you and your dead friends, Chekov and Uhura, on the planet of Triskelion. We are also aware of the fact that it was Trelane who caused the accident."

"But let me guess," Kirk cut in, "because of my unplanned trip into the future, I have become a rogue element. Gary-7 and two members of the Q-continuum have already told me this."

"He knows too much," K'mpec said to Archer, "his fate must be met here and now."

"Wait a moment," Kirk said to them all, "you just told me how I got here into time period; all of which I already knew. Perhaps, before you do whatever it is you plan to do, you tell me how three dead legends from the past have managed the same thing."

Archer looked to Sarek who then looked to K'mpec.

"Okay," Archer said, "You're right, Jim Kirk, you have a right to know the truth. But before I explain, let me introduce you to the forth member of our," Archer paused to find the best word, "team."

Another sphere appeared, just as bright as the other three had been. In changed shape and solidified into the form of….Khan Noonien Singh.

Kirk's eyes met Khan's.

"Khan," Kirk said, "Khan Noonien Singh."

"Yes, my old friend, it is I; Khan," Khan said, with his usual stoic nature.

"Gentlemen," Kirk said to all four of them, "while I am not the same James T Kirk who met his demise on Veridian III, none the less, I came to live in this period time nearly four years ago. And in that time I studied the history of the Federation, as it happened after I was removed from the past, circa 3211.7, and brought here. I know for a fact that the four of you have already died. Would someone please explain to me what is happening and why I have been taken from my family?"

At that moment there was a flash and then Q appeared, wearing an all white robe, trying to look stoic, like Khan, but it just didn't work for him.

"Bullshit," Kirk said with a laugh. "I find it hard to believe that the universe is being guided by someone like you."

Q shook his head in disappointment.

"Picard nearly said the same thing, when I appeared to him like this," Q said, as he came over to where Kirk was standing. "It his case, he had died. And in your case, you're about to be purged from the universe, so I guess both of you have received the same treatment."

"I'm to be purged; why?" Kirk asked.

"Well, first, to answer your earlier question," Q said, "Archer, K'mpec, Sarek and Khan are not dead. The Si'hg, a name I created by the way…"

Before Q could continue; K'mpec harrumphed.

"Oh alright," Q said, as he looked over at the Klingon, "We co-created the name," Q said, in a pouting nature. "In any event, the Si'hg was created so as to provide a Q like me with," Q searched for the right word, "plausible deniability. Oh, by the way, that word was invented by the human race; I thought I should let you know."

"I don't understand; what you mean by plausible deniability?" Kirk asked.

"Patience Kirk; I will tell you," Q replied. "Jimmy boy, for the past, oh, 14 billion years or so, the Continuum, of which I am a member of, has kept order in the universe."

"Spare me the history lesson, Q," Kirk said, "Sisko gave me a crash course on the Q during that ordeal with the Bajoran Prophets and my son from the future," Kirk added, with annoyance in his voice.

"Oh, then you're aware of how ordered we were," Q said, with a smile.

"I would hardly call what Sisko described to me as order," Kirk said softly.

"Sisko is as arrogant as Picard, a trait that I find runs deep with you humans," Q said.

"Get on with it," Archer said, from where he stood with K'mpec, Sarek and Khan.

"Calm down, in the gallery," Q said to the four of them. "Recently, after the so called Continuum civil war, the rules were changed. We Q could not longer interfere as much as we used to do, in the affairs of others."

"Yes, again, I already know this. The girl Q, Amanda, already told me this as well."

"I decided that I wasn't going to stop interfering in the affairs of others, particularly the events here in this galaxy. I mean, I had pushed over so many dominos that I couldn't just stop watching events unfold. Who do you think put your race into contact with the Borg; me. And it doesn't stop there. In fact, one time I visited your world to see what it was all about, I accidently got someone killed and then, just like that, World War One started."

"You caused WWI?" Kirk asked, "Do know how many people died in that war, and then later, during WW2, which was nothing more than WW1 part two?"

"Oh, yes, I know," Q said, with mock sorrow, "millions died because of me. But don't fret, I redeemed myself when I snapped the cure to cancer into the mind of one of your 22nd century doctors; sort of a yin-yang situation here. The wars cost millions, the cure saved millions."

"So what does all this have to do with me?" Kirk asked.

"Since I cannot directly interfere with events, I have created the Si'hg to act as my," Q paused, "Moral Majority. When I find an issue needs to be taken care of, I send them in to do what must be done."

"But they're dead," Kirk said, as he looked over at the four of them.

"Oh please," Q said, with a smirk, "I have given them the chance to help out the cause. Their tasks are benign, or, sometimes," Q said, as he looked at Khan, "they are somewhat more complicated. Which brings me to," and then Q looked back to Kirk, "you."

"I will not join your little club," Kirk said, looking at Archer and the others. "Perhaps they are doing what they perceive to be the right thing, by helping you; but I refuse." Kirk said, in a soft tone.

Q laughed.

"Oh my goodness," Q said, "you do indeed suffer from delusions of grandeur. No, Kirk," Q said, "I did not bring you here to join our club; I have brought you here to eliminate you from the universe."

Kirk's stance became more defiant.

"How exactly are you going to do that?" Kirk asked.

"I have spent a lot of my spare timing thinking about that exact question," Q replied. "And, unfortunately due to the fact your life essence has been altered by Trelane, and then after him, Gary Mitchell, taking care of your situation was never going to be easy until I remembered this…"

Q snapped his fingers and then round sphere appeared and inside the sphere was an obvious image of space. And then, coming into view, inside the sphere, was a string of pure energy; a ribbon.

"The Nexus," Kirk said.

"Yes," Q said, "the Nexus. As it happens to be, I cannot exist inside the Nexus, but you did, well the other you actually. Although he left the Nexus, with that blow hard Picard, he still left an echo of his essence, your essence as well, in the Nexus."

"What do you plan to do?" Kirk asked.

"What he plans to do, Kirk," Archer said, as he came over to Kirk and Q, "is put you back inside the Nexus. Whether you like it or not, Jim, when Trelane brought you into the future it caused damage to the space time continuum. At first it was thought that the universe would adapt to your being here, but it isn't."

"What happens to me when I go inside the Nexus?" Kirk asked.

"There is no way to know," Sarek said, as he too came over to where Kirk was standing. "Both Q and I have gone over equations involving high order formulas, and there is no applicable way to determine what will happen when you enter."

"What if I don't want to go?" Kirk asked.

"You have no choice," Khan said, as stood where he had first appeared, not showing any inclination to approach Kirk. "You quoted Milton once, to me," Khan continued to say, "I am quite sure he would see the irony of this situation and laugh; I am not laughing. I told Q he should just find the way to destroy you."

"Kirk is a warrior," K'mpec said to Khan, "he deserves an honorable death."

"Kirk should die an honorable death?" Khan asked, with mock humor in his voice. "Tell that to my wife; Marla McGivers."

"You have no choice," Q replied to Kirk. "Even after all I have said, about you and Picard, I do believe that the two of you have the ability to leap beyond logic and see a situation from all sides."

Kirk looked at the Nexus, as it streamed through space.

"Why not let me join your club?" Kirk asked suddenly.

"You can't," Q said to Kirk. "In your present state of existence, you will remain a lightning rod to other high ordered beings. Sarek and I have concluded that one thing will certainly happen when you enter the Nexus."

Kirk waited for the answer.

The answer did not come…because Q snapped his fingers and then Kirk found himself falling through space and time…he had entered the Nexus…was someone chopping wood?

Continued…


	201. Who am I

**JEAN-LUC PICARD: Simplicity**

**Who Am I**

_Q said to Kirk. "In your present state of existence, you will remain a lightning rod to other high ordered beings. Sarek and I have concluded that one thing will certainly happen when you enter the Nexus."_

Kirk waited for the answer.

The answer did not come…because Q snapped his fingers and then Kirk found himself falling through space and time…he had entered the Nexus…was someone chopping wood?...or was someone bouncing a basketball?

Jim Kirk opened his eyes, as the sensation of falling through emptiness faded into the dark reaches of his mind. Just seconds ago he was standing before Q, Jonathan Archer, Sarek, K'mpec and Khan, in an area bathed in a bright glare; now he was standing on a hard surface with the strange sound of a basketball bouncing in the strange black void that surrounded him. Suddenly a basketball net appeared and so did a young ebony skinned child, no more than thirteen or fourteen years old. She was the once bouncing the ball. She bounced it one more time then held it to her chest, and stopped.

Kirk looked around and wondered if he was indeed inside of the Nexus. He had once had a conversation with Picard about his brief time inside the strange time anomaly. Picard said that he Nexus could take you anywhere you wanted to go, to any time. So, if that was true, Kirk wondered, then why had the Nexus brought him to a strange black void to a girl playing with a basketball.

"Hello there," the girl said with a soft voice. "My name is Guinan, and if I am not mistaken, you are James T Kirk."

Kirk began to walk toward her, perplexed at what he saw.

"Yes," Kirk replied, "and from what I know of you, from what Jean-Luc Picard once told me, you are not at the age I expected to see, so I will assume that we are both in the Nexus."

The girl smiled.

"Actually, I am an echo," Guinan replied, "consider me like a wave that goes from one side of a pool to another, but instead, I never dissipate; I just travel back and forth."

"An echo," Kirk said, as he came close to the girl and stopped, "Echoes are waves too, albeit a wave of sound."

The girl smiled, and nodded her head, and then she tossed Kirk the ball.

"Do you play?" Guinan asked.

Kirk took the ball and bounced it a couple times, and thought back to a simpler time.

"Back in the Academy, my team one the silver medal. We could never get past Finnigan's team," Kirk said, with a slight tone of remorse in his voice.

Kirk dribbled the ball, and then took a shot at the basket. The ball hit the rim, but missed and bounced into the void.

"Where did it go?" Kirk asked, his voice slightly echoed about as he spoke.

"Don't worry, that one will come back; it always does."

Guinan just stared at Kirk, and then she changed the subject.

"Are you married, James T Kirk? Guinan asked.

"Yes, I am. I never considered myself the marrying type, but I couldn't be happier." Kirk replied, as the two walked over and sat down beneath the basket, "and we have two wonder children. I just want to get back there, back to my wife and children, and be with them again. Where are we?" Kirk asked. "This isn't what I expected the Nexus to look like, on the inside. Jean-Luc made it seem like a," Kirk searched for the right word, "paradise or heaven."

At that moment, as Kirk looked over at the void where the basketball had vanished, another man stepped through; another James T Kirk. He was much older, but it was him.

Kirk(2) stood up, from where he was sitting with Guinan. He instantly realized who the other Kirk was; it was the one who had return from Triskelion, the Jim Kirk who went on to become a legend. It was the James Kirk who faced Khan. It was the James Kirk who had traveled back into the past to retrieve two humpback whales in order to save Earth. It had been this other Jim Kirk who went on to find peace with the Klingons. Finally; he was the Jim Kirk who had died on Veridan III.

Then, as Kirk(2) looked at his older self, the black void became cluttered with images from his life. He saw little Mathew crying the first time as the doctor who had just delivered the infant, handed him the miracle of life. There was another memory; the memory of when he and Spock were fighting on Vulcan, thanks to the devious nature of T'pring. The void all around Kirk was filled with memories from his past.

There were memories of Myran, memories of Dahme, his infant daughter. He saw memories of Sisko, he saw memories of Bakooth and Thomas Riker, and the adventure where they had rescued Rebecca Sisko from her Klingon abductor; K'alaf.

They both gasped as they saw the giant T-rex that was encountered inside the Naissance, and even as that memory continued, another memory showing the destruction of the planet killer appears. Intermixed with the recent memories were the memories they had made in the past, as Captain of the USS Enterprise.

But then new images appeared; new memories that were not Kirk(2) memories; the memories Jim Kirk had made after had returned from Triskelion.

Kirk(2) watched in awe as a giant cloud from space threatened Earth. There were images of a Native American woman, with him, and he could tell that he loved her, though it wasn't his memory. He saw images of an older Khan in an epic space battle with him, with Kirk; but again, the memory was not his.

"You did all that?" Kirk(2) asked, as he continued to look up at the flood of images, from both of their minds, as they came to life all across the void.

"Wow," Kirk said as he saw memories of Myran, Mathew and Dahme, "you got married and had children. They are very beautiful."

Kirk(2) saw a memory of Spock, severely injured, his face distorted by radiation, looking as if he was near death.

"He died," Kirk said, as he saw his younger self looking at the memory of Spock dying after the confrontation with Khan. "It was one of the most devastating moments in my life."

And then they both watched as the memory of Edith Keeler lecturing about the future of humanity, at her soup kitchen. Then they watched as Edith crossed the street, and how they prevented McCoy from saving her, so as to restore the timeline.

And then, the memories faded…and were gone. Standing in there place was the young girl, Guinan, holding the basketball.

"Now, usually, when someone comes inside the Nexus, they can stay, or they can go." Guinan explained. "However, because of the uniqueness of your life essence," she continued to say to Kirk(2), "you cannot remain here, nor can you return to the outside universe."

"I had a feeling you would say something like that," Kirk(2) said. "It's because of the energy that Trelane left inside of me when he brought me here."

"Yes," Guinan said. "But it is that energy, that life essence, that will allow you," she said to Kirk, the one who had experienced V'GR and the wrath of Khan, "to leave. You are both merging, as we speak."

"What does that mean?" Kirk(2) asked. "Am I ever going to see my wife and children again?"

Guinan shook her head, "No, you will not. In fact, every memory you have made since your arrival in the future will be gone; forever."

"If we merge," Kirk said, "why won't I keep his memories alive inside of my mind."

"It doesn't work the way," Guinan said, with a smile. "You have just moments, so," she said to Kirk(2), "say what you have to say…and hurry."

Kirk(2), the one who had fallen in love with Myran, and had shared the miracle of having children with her, turned to face his older self.

"I can't force you to love Myran," Kirk(2) said, "but promise me you will look after my," he paused, "after our children."

Kirk nodded, "I will. I promise," he added.

Kirk(2) looked at Guinan.

"This isn't right," Kirk(2) said to her, "I didn't ask to be brought here and now I am going to lose my life. I will never get to see my daughter walk, or help my son become the man he will become."

"I know," Guinan said.

Kirk(2) hugged his older self, and then he stepped back and vanished.

"If I am an echo like you," Kirk said, "how can I go back out into the universe?"

"The ereathral energy Trelane left inside the younger Kirk became part of you, when he entered the Nexus. It has transferred his physical form to you. Once you leave this place, however, the energy will leave your body and you will be a mere mortal. And, it also had another benefit,"

A full length mirror appeared, and Kirk looked at himself. He wasn't the young Kirk, the one who had captained the Enterprise, but neither was he the seasoned Kirk who had entered the Nexus when the ribbon struck the Enterprise-B.

"Why do I appear to be ten years younger than I did when I entered the Nexus?" Kirk asked.

"You tell me," Guinan replied, though Kirk could tell by the sound of her voice, she already knew.

"When we took the Bird of Prey back into the past, and rescued the whales and brought them into the future, I had the strangest experience during the time travel into the past," Kirk said, as he remembered back to that time.

"The Nexus, in order to merge the energy Trelane left inside of the other Kirk, grasped to physical form of your body that existed outside the time continuum," Guinan explained. "Now, the only question is," Guinan said, "where will you go?"

Kirk thought of only one answer.

"I will honor his wish," Kirk said. "I will go back to where Myran is, at this moment, and tell her what has happened and let her know that I will honor his marriage to her."

"That is honorable," Guinan said, "but that wasn't your life. You should not be beholden to his past."

"I will go back there because," Kirk said, with a smile, "it is the right thing to do."

"Then farewell, James T Kirk…" Guinan said…

Kirk vanished, and then, as Guinan stood alone in the black void, new memories appeared. Memories that Jim Kirk had yet to make, but would. Some of them would be wonderful, but one of the first new memories would be maddening. Guinan watched as Kirk reappeared outside the home his younger self had shared with Myran, on the planet Timus. He turned the door knob and prepared to walk inside…

_Previously…_

An hour later, with the party over at the Sisko home, Myran Kirk returned home to a silent house, thankful that Mavis had volunteered to watch her children and S'vath's children as well.

Moments later there was a soft knock at the front door. She opened it to find Harrison Riker standing at her doorstep. She let him in and then she closed the door. Before a single word was spoken, the two began to kiss passionately, and moments later, driven by sexual desire, they took each other's clothes off and were soon making love on the living room floor.

And as the two were in the act of deep passion, the door opened again…

Continued…and next time...a new series title!

**JAMES T KIRK**

**SHADOW AND LIGHT**


	202. The Genie Bottle

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**The Genie Bottle**

**Earth; Starfleet Academy…**

Once again, the dorm room shared by Rebecca Sisko and Lal had become a magnet of activity. Both girls sat with Ambassador Picard, Professor Leforge, and Earth security Commander Mike stone. Also joining them was Prime Minister Odo; the leader of the New Dominion; the galactic alliance located in the far off Gamma-Quadrant. Picard explained the situation to the two young women.

"Several months ago, Laas came into possession of knowledge from nearly this point in time," Picard told them. "He knew that Moriarty, the hologram I just told you about moments ago, would come here to destroy you; Lal. His real goal was to get this device," Picard showed them a small black device. "Moriarty designed this device in the holographic universe he had existed in for many years. One he escaped from the menagerie he existed in, he built it."

"What is it?" Rebecca.

"That," Lal said, as he culled knowledge of such a device from the knowledge passed onto her by her creator Data, "is a holographic emitter. It allows holograms to exist in the physical universe. My father had schematics for such a device in his knowledge matrix."

"Your father," Picard told Lal, "as usual, was reaching for technology that we mere humans would not develop until centuries from now. In fact, since Moriarty came up with this device, and also has your father's intellect, it is safe to say his construct probably shares many attributes of the one your father theorized could be built. This device is certainly the key to a genie's bottle."

"You risked your life to trap him," Rebecca said to Geordi Leforge.

"Believe me," Geordi said with a smile, "I had help."

"Ambassador Picard warned us of Moriarty's possible plan to get revenge on those he had encountered before," Commander Stone said, "so we set up a holographic trap inside Professor Leforge's quarters. We knew that apprehending the changeling, Laas could be a bonus when Prime Minister Odo arrived, secretly, days ago, and told us about Laas's involvement."

"What about Myn?" Lal asked. "What was his involvement?"

"I know for a fact that Myn was assisting Laas," Odo said. "Some of my kind came to know of such knowledge and warned me. However, after sharing a link with Myn I am confident he did not wish you any harm. Unfortunately his naivety was overwhelmed by Laas's strong personality. I have personal experience with Laas and his strong will, so I know what that can be like."

"Lal," Rebecca said, as she held her friend's hand, "I don't think he would have let Laas hurt you. I really think Myn cared for you."

"Can I see him again?" Lal asked Odo.

"I do not think that would be for the best; not now at least," Odo said. "However, I know he cares for you and in time, maybe, he will be allowed to contact you again. However, he must face judgment for his acts in this matter."

"Prime Minister Odo," Lal said, after a moment, "was he involved in any manner with the death of Renee?"

"No, he wasn't," Odo said.

"However," Stone added, "he is still a person of interest."

"I have merged with Myn," Odo reminded Stone, "and I am telling you that Myn has no memory of being there when the human fell and was crushed by the tree."

"Excuse me, Prime Minister Odo, but trees just don't fall over," Stone said.

"Why don't you merge with Laas," Rebecca said suddenly. "He would have memories of what happened with Renee."

"That is a logical question," Picard added, but the tone of his voice conveyed he already knew the answer.

"He has declined linking with me," Odo explained, "and unless one of my kind volunteers to link, it cannot be done against their will. I know, coming from me, the former constable of DS9, that may sound out of the ordinary, but it is our way."

"What will happen to them?" Rebecca asked. "What will happen with Laas and Moriarty?"

_(At that moment, inside Commander Stone's office at Security headquarters across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, the holographic library construct created by the late Reginald Barclay sat on Stone's desk.)_

"Moriarty been put back inside his," Picard thought for a second, "box. The judge who had ruled in Moriarty's favor, and granted him freedom, has just convicted Moriarty with the murders of Commander Barclay as well as the murder of Daniel Shore. It is safe to say," Picard said with a smile, "we won't be hearing from Moriarty for many years to come.

_(At that moment, in Stone's office at Security headquarters, a Cardassian, with an eye patch over his left eye, beamed into Stone's office undetected and then picked up the holographic library device, and then beamed away.)_

"As for Laas," Odo said, "he will return with me to the New Dominion where he will face criminal charges, including the murder of Renee Anderson. "

"Well," Picard finally said, "once again one of you, or both of you, has been a magnet for intrigue," Picard said, with a smile. "I hope that…"

Suddenly a transporter signal shimmered into view, and a second later, Captain Tom Paris stood in the dorm room as well.

"Ambassador," Paris said, "can I please speak with you in private?"

Picard excused himself and walked over to where Parris was. He and Paris talked quietly.

"Sir," Paris began to say, "I just received a coded signal from Chakotay."

"Oh really," Picard said, "Just what did it say?"

"Not much, but," Paris added softly, "Though, he is demanding full payment for accomplishing the task."

Picard thought about the statement, but then he had an eerie feeling, and rushed back to where Commander Stone was sitting with the others.

"Where is that library device that contains Moriarty?" Picard asked; with worry on his face.

"Back in my office," Commander Stone replied.

"How can you be so sure?" Picard asked, with worry in his voice.

At that very instant, Stone's communicator chirped on his chest.

"Stone here," Stone said, as he pressed the communicator badge.

"Sir," a voice replied, "head-quarters has been penetrated by an outside transporter beam."

"That is impossible," Stone said back to the voice coming from the communicator. He leaped to the next question rather quickly. "Where is the library device containing Moriarty?"

There was silence and then…

"It's gone sir," the voice replied.

Stone and Picard shared a worried glance…Moriarty had escaped!

* * *

Azami looked out the window of her dorm room. Of course, her name wasn't really Azami, for she too was a changeling, but not the same race of a changelings as Laas and Odo, and others of the Great Link. Her kind were ancient advesaries of the Founders and where known as the Irak'mi. Azami could not be sure that Laas would not warn the humans, or Odo, of her presence on Earth. To protect herself, Lahnie, which was her real name, would have to decide whether or not to take over the identity of someone else, and she already had a prospect in mind. The new Vulcan cadet named T'av. But first Lahnie had one task to perform; she had to kill Laas.

Continued…


	203. Family Man

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**Family Man…**

**(new cover art at my profile…Kirk and a crib?)**

**The planet Timus**

Once again, S'vath found himself on the way to the mansion that belonged to the estate of the late Gregory Williams. S'vath had arrived back on Timus, after his visit to the art museum on Karvalla, only an hour earlier.

On his way to the mansion, on horseback, S'vath was met halfway there by Summit Grove's resident coroner, an un-joined female Trill named Eran. S'vath would not lie if anyone asked, including his own wife Amanda, but he found the Trill to be very attractive. He found her dark skin, and smooth braided hair, very appealing. Amanda had once suggested that they try experimenting, sensually, and S'vath believed he had found the first possibility. She was riding a brown horse as well. It was nearly pitch dark as night approached.

"I'm glad I caught up with you before you made it to the Williams' estate," Eran said. "Did you find out any interesting information while on Karvalla?"

Eran had only arrived on Timus two days before S'vath had left for Karvalla, so they had hardly conversed at all.

"I am not sure I should divulge what I found there," S'vath said to the Trill. "However, if you would take an oral oath, right here and now, I will deputize you so that I can."

Eran laughed for a moment, and then she raised her hand.

"Will this do?" She asked, with a chuckle.

"It will suffice," S'vath said. "Now that you are a deputy, I can tell you what I know. Are you going to accompany into the mansion?" S'vath asked.

"Yes I am, well, if you don't mind," Eran said.

"When you are inside the mansion, you will notice several works of art that adorn the walls. Some of them were painted by Gregory Williams; the others are originals by various artists."

"So?" Eran asked. "What's the big deal?"

"I just saw the same paintings, on Karvalla, and they were certified originals as well," S'vath said. "And since there can only be one original, then, logically, we are dealing with the matter of fraud."

Suddenly S'vath's communicator chirped.

"Go ahead," S'vath said.

_"Constable," a voice said from the device on S'vath's collar, "this is Jameth Ul'tah, the chief officer at the Timus travel center in the middle of town."_

"Yes Mr. Ul'tah," S'vath responded, "Were you able to look into the matter we discussed earlier."

Jameth Ul'tah was a human male who had been born on the Martian colony and had come to Timus after retiring after a career in the travel industry to head up Timus's travel center.

_"Yes I was," Jameth replied. "And it's a good thing something happened yesterday because your warrant runs out tonight at midnight."_

"Thank you for reminding me; now, what is the information?" S'vath asked.

_"The person you asked about, Gabe Williams, booked passage on a passing Pakled trading vessel. He caught a shuttle up to their ship and they left about three hours ago," Jameth reported._

"Thank you for that," S'vath said. "Now, tell me, were you able to determine where Gabe Williams was headed?"

_"Quark, our mutual friend, bribed the Pakleds with a bribe of five strips of latinum, which he expects you to pay at a 20% interest rate per day. According to the Pakleds, Gabe Williams will leave the trading vessel at their third stop."_

S'vath waited for a moment, and then he realized that Jameth was expecting S'vath to ask the most obvious question.

"Where is that third stop?" S'vath asked.

_"The museum world of Karvalla," Jameth came back with._

"Thank you very much. I must remind you that the information you have just given me is sensitive. You are obliged by law to not share it with anyone else," S'vath said, and then he ended the signal.

"Interesting," Eran said, in a suspicious tone.

"Eran," S'vath said, looking over at her. "Would you be open to a Menage a Trois with my wife and I?"

Eran smiled at S'vath, though she seemed surprised.

"You certainly don't act like any Vulcan I have ever met," she told him.

"I know what you mean. Most Vulcans would never ask such a thing, and even if they did, it would be after five years of thinking it through."

"As for your question," she said, with a seductive tone in her voice, "I..."

The two horses suddenly stopped, and Eran was nearly bucked off of her horse. S'vath was able to grab her horse's reins and was able to calm the animal. Then, through the thin vale of light, they saw something up ahead; another horse. At first appeared as if someone was on the horse, which there was. But upon closer inspection, S'vath recognized the person on the horse; it was Dense Williams, and more importantly; she was dead!

S'vath, with Eran's assistance, pulled the dead woman off the horse. He gently put the body on the soft ground, where he happened to find a hypo. He handed the common medical device to Eran, who then scanned it with her medical scanner, which she always had on her person.

"This is diabetic medicine," Eran told S'vath.

"I thought that diabetes was eradicated on Earth," S'vath said.

"It was," Eran said, "but, if I'm correct, two strands were never fully cured and they still affect two-hundred thousand humans."

"Then it is possible she may have died due to complications of her medical condition," S'vath said.

"I don't know," Eran said to that. "That is why I came out here to meet you halfway. As you will recall, Stella Williams died, and she too was on medicine due to a rare form of heart disease. But I found trace amounts of Deabulum-7 in her system. When taken, in small doses, Deabulum-7 is harmless. But, taken over time, it can cause problems with the nervous system, and can even paralyze critical functions of the internal organs. And," she added, "according to my Tricorder, this dead woman here has trace elements of Deabulum-7 in her blood system."

"Interesting indeed," S'vath said. "Both of them died of what appeared to be medical reasons, but both of them have trace elements of Deabulum-7 in their systems. It is almost as if whoever killed the two of them, and I will make the assumption that someone intended both of them to die, knew they had these two unique diseases but went out of their way to make sure they both died after the Will was read."

"Why not have done this before the reading of the Will?" Eran came back with.

S'vath thought for a moment, and then he snapped his finger.

"Because, for all the killer knew, one of these dead women may have been given the entire contents of the Will, which would have changed the entire status-quo. Without knowing either way, the killer set this plan in motion on the assumption the Will would have been split up, as it was. Or," S'vath said, as doubt came into his voice. "The killer knew the contents of the Will."

"What is the difference?" Eran asked.

"The Will stated that the last person alive, after one month had passed, would inherit the contents of the estate." S'vath replied.

"But won't the last person left alive automatically be the prime suspect?" Eran asked.

S'vath lifted an eyebrow; almost like his father (Spock) does when he is perplexed.

"Yes," S'vath finally said, "there is something missing. Something I haven't thought of yet."

Moments later, with the body of Denise Williams beamed back to the morgue, Eran and S'vath rode on, and soon arrived at the mansion. S'vath knew he had to speed up the pace, because with two of the potential inheritors dead, it meant the remaining ones all faced an uncertain future.

The home of Jim and Myran Kirk…

Myran and Harrison Riker were unaware that the front door had opened, and they were even more startled when the light turned on and Jim Kirk stood before them. But even though it was Jim Kirk, he looked different; older. The two of them put their clothes on, ashamed to even look at Kirk.

"Um," Jim Kirk finally said, "I just want you to know that I am not your husband."

Myran looked at Kirk, tears in her eyes.

"Don't end it like that," Myran said, "let me explain. Give me a chance to apologize," she said, pleading her case, as she came over to him and attempted to hug her husband.

But Kirk stood back. Even though he knew he wasn't her Kirk, he still felt repelled at even looking at her, knowing what she had done.

"Listen to me," Kirk told her, as Harrison Riker stood in the background, speechless. "You have a right to know this much," Kirk said. "Your husband is gone and he won't ever be coming back. But I swore to him, before he ceased to exist, that I would look after his children; Mathew and Dahme. And, if you excuse me, I don't think they will grow up in a positive environment if this is how you chose to honor the commitment you made to your husband."

"If you're not Jim Kirk; then who are you?" Harrison asked.

"Oh, I am Jim Kirk," Kirk replied, "just not the same one who was married to Myran."

Myran tried to speak, but Kirk held up his hand, and then he looked over at Harrison.

"She is your responsibility now," he said to Harrison, "but let me put this in simpler language," he said to Myran. "Get out of this house, and don't come back."

Before Myran could say anything more, Harrison escorted her out of the house. Kirk watched as they both rode away on Harrison's horse. Alone, and in silence, stood in a house he had never stepped a foot in before. And then, he heard another sound; the sound of a carriage.

"What the hell is this place?" Kirk wondered as he watched the carriage pull up.

He opened the door and went outside to greet whoever was arriving. The driver brought the horse drawn carriage to a stop, and then the doors opened. A black woman stepped out of the carriage, as well as a tall black bald man with a goatee. They were each holding a young child.

"Here you go Jim," the black man (Sisko) said, with a smile as he handed Kirk the older of the two children. "You might want to check his diaper; I think he had an accident on the way over."

"They really behaved tongiht; James, I am so proud of them!" the black woman (Mavis) said, as she followed the black man, and they got back into the carriage, which then drove away as the two horses in front went about their way.

With the sound of the carriage fading away, and the sound of crickets getting louder. Jim Kirk, the man who had saved the Earth from V'gr and again from a probe looking for whales, found himself alone on the doorstep of a house that wasn't his, holding two babies that weren't even his. He could only think of four words to say, as he looked up at the dark sky full of stars. He spoke in a pleading manner.

"Spock; where are you?"


	204. The Nameless

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**Past or Present**

**The planet Narn…**

Minister G'kar was always happy to return to the home world of the Narn, especially during the long days of summer where the temperature would get very warm. The climate on Vulcan, where his new friend Spock hailed from, was warm as well; but not as warm as Narn.

As he entered the massive historical complex, located near the capital city of G'Kamazad, G'kar looked about at the young Narn students that were no doubt visiting from local schools. He smiled, proud to know that his people still had an attachment to their past. It wasn't always so, after the great war with the Shadows, but that was another time.

G'kar soon made his way into the massive complex, and with some directions given to him by the friendly staff, he made his way down into the preservation chambers where the ancient writings, collected from worlds throughout the galaxy, were kept. He was soon greeted by an elder Narn, named G'tol, who worked at the complex and was one of the chief preservers of the documents. Unfortunately, G'tol also had bad hearing.

"What did you say again?" G'tol asked, as he sat behind his desk.

For the third time G'kar made his request, each time adding volume to his voice.

"I said; do you have any writings in the library," G'kar said again, "that possibly resemble these?"

G'kar handed him a data pad that displayed the images Spock had given him. They were images of the ancient cave carvings found on Romulas. Though, G'kar would honor Spock's wish and not divulge that fact.

G'tol studied the markings very thoroughly, and made very little noise.

"Well; what do you think?" G'gar asked.

"No," G'tol replied with a raspy voice, as he studied the drawings even closer, "Do not be concerned about me; I would not like anything to drink. However, if you require beverages then I must remind you that they are not allowed inside the History complex."

G'kar was about to repeat the question, but decided not to.

"What's the use?" he asked himself.

"No," G'tol said, "I don't care for Re'mok juice," G'tol said, "I got so sick drinking that awful concoction; I almost died. Why must you go on and on about drinking? You're worst than some of the school children I get through here."

G'kar chuckled, and while G'tol studied the markings, and referred to the computer for help, G'kar looked around the preservation room. He came across an area where old starship models were being preserved, including an old Centauri warship.

"Where did you go?" G'tol asked suddenly. "I think I would like some Re'mok juice after all," he continued to say.

"But I thought you just said that drinks were not allowed in here," G'kar said.

"Not for you," G'tol said, "However, for those trained in the preservation of historical objects, it is not problem I assure you. Now, go get me some immediately; my mouth is dry."

G'kar shook his head, and meandered about the area until he found some of the awful tasting juice and brought it over and handed it to G'tol, who promptly drank it.

"Did you find a match?" G'kar asked, loudly.

G'tol, who took a sip of the Re'mok juice, and then nodded his head.

"If only the second moon of Ombis-prime can line up with the second slope of the Cahalla pass. If that happens, then maybe," G'tol said.

A blank expression came over G'kar's face.

"What are you talking about? G'kar askd, having no idea what G'tol has just said.

"As for these writings, I found a match, though I am sorry to report, the home world of this writing was destroyed by a nova twenty or so thousand years ago," G'tol said. "The race had no official designation, though by all accounts, they were peaceful. What little information we have of them is without great detail, I am sorry to say."

G'kar shook his head.

"Well, do we have any idea what they looked like at least?" G'kar asked.

"Yes, here is a drawing, though it is very basic," G'tol said, as he activated a monitor.

An image appeared of a short alien, at best 4 feet tall. (Author's note; the image looks very much like the kind of alien that was Scotty's little helper in Star Trek XI)

"Why are you so interested in this alien species?" G'tol asked. "They were wiped out of existence eons ago."

G'kar couldn't tell the museum worker, so he came up with a cover story.

"I play games of chance, when I am off world," G'kar said, "and I like to strike up idle chadder to distract the other players. Useless trivia like this, dead civilizations, always helps, especially with the women."

"I see," G'tol said, "I hope I get a piece of the action someday," he added. "Perhaps you can bring up the subject of the loss tribe of the Hantithak. I have found that the very subject can elicit a most interesting conversation. They were a race of nomadic humanoids that set out to explore the universe, but literally disappeared."

"How fascinating, but I don't have time to hear the story; maybe next time!" G'kar said, as he headed out of the history center, as fast as he could, trying to avoid anymore useless chatter with the elder Narn. Finally, and short of breath, G'kar made it to the main entrance and out he went.

"That's too bad," G'tol said to himself, as he watched G'kar hurry away. "They have a legend about a traveler," G'tol said, as he went back to his computer, "a traveler who came to their world and looked very much like he came from the species you were looking for. The traveler warned about a star going supernova in the far future, and then he wanted to find a race of hominoids with pointed ears. Oh well, just another story lost to the mist of yesterday.

Meanwhile, G'kar made his out of the complex. Unknown to G'kar, someone was standing across from the exit to the library, and they were paying close attention to where G'kar was headed to next.

Continued…


	205. The Crime of Knowing

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**The Crime of Knowing…**

**Earth Internal Security Headquarters; located near downtown San Francisco…**

Commander Mike Stone was not a happy camper, as he sat behind the desk in his office. The hologram library device, built by the late Reginald Barclay years ago, had been where Moriarty was being stored until the entire situation concerning his unique existence, and trouble with the law, could be sorted out. And it had been stolen from right out of Stone's office. His chief investigator, Lt. Steve Keller, came into the office.

"How could this have happened, Steve?" Stone asked Keller. "When those upgrades were made last year, I thought we made it clear that we didn't want any transporter signal to be allowed to penetrate this building; and yet, that didn't turn out to be the case."

Keller, who was holding a cup of coffee, sat in the chair across from Stone.

"Mike," Keller began to say, "You know as well as I do that technology can become outdated rather quickly. There are always competing forces out there, and they will always demand better technology to offset our technology. We get new upgrades, they get new upgrades."

Stone turned and looked out the window, and at the Golden Gate Bridge, which was far off in the distance.

"Then why even bother?" Stone asked, rhetorically. Then he looked back at Keller. "So; what do we have?"

Keller took out a data pad and read the information on it.

"The thief was transported into your office," Keller said. "They then snatched up the device containing Moriarty, and then beamed away. The entire effort took five seconds."

Stone stood up and went over to the food replicator. He ordered a hot coffee and one appeared.

"Picard knows something; and he isn't telling me," Stone said softly.

"Ambassador Picard knows something? What makes you think that?" Keller asked.

Stone sat back down and dropped three cubes of sugar into his coffee, and then added some caramel flavored creamer.

"We were at the dorm, explaining to the android, Lal, the circumstances around Moriarty's desire to destroy her," Stone said.

"Yes, you told me about that. He wanted to destroy her because he wanted to be the only one of his kind in existence," Keller recalled.

"That's right," Stone said.

"What's so suspicious of that?" Keller asked.

"Well," Stone said, as he sipped from his coffee, "just as we were explaining that information to her, Ambassador's assistant, Captain Tom Paris of Starfleet, beamed into the room. He had information to relay to Picard, information I didn't hear, and then Picard asked me where I was keeping the device and Moriarty. That's when I called over here, found out it was gone, and rushed over here as soon as I could."

"Do you think Picard already knew the device had been taken, and if so, how did he know?" Keller asked.

"Exactly," Stone said, with a nod. "What did Captain Paris tell Picard? And if they knew the device was gone, then that implies two possibilities; either they have an informant in this office, or, they have knowledge about who stole the device."

Keller sipped from his own coffee, as both men thought for a moment or two.

"Mike," Keller said, "why not just ask Picard. From what I know of the Ambassador, he seems to be an honest man; very honest. Maybe if you just ask him what he knows he'll tell you. The two of you seemed to get along well during the Naissance/Lawrence Thorn caper."

Stone nodded in agreement.

"You're right," Commander Stone said, "I will set up an appointment with Picard. But I want to be one step ahead of him, just in case his answers are not forthright. If he is involved, somehow, with the theft of that device, then I want to know if Starfleet was involved. I can only think of a few suspects who could have technology ahead of ours'; Starfleet, the Syndicate or the Obsidian Order. And since, by all accounts, the Order has yet to really fully reconstitute itself, that leaves us Starfleet, of which Picard was once part of, or the Syndicate. Speaking of which," Stone said, "what's going on with Tolbert?"

"He got his orders," Keller replied.

"Do we have any leads as to why Cube-1 (Author's note; we know Cube-1 is Chakotay, they do not) hired out for a cleaner (hit man)?"

"No, but Tolbert's a good man; he will find out." Keller said.

"What about that ordeal on Risa?" Stone asked. "He finally captured his family's killer, Alistair Martin. Do you think Ryan Tolbert is ready to get back into action?"

"I do," Keller said. "You know Tolbert's track record; there is no better man for the job."

With that said, Stone went about setting up a meeting with Ambassador Picard…

Meanwhile, several miles from where Stone and Keller were going about their business, was the Earth Security Detention complex. It was where criminals were kept until trial or extradition. In one of the cells Laas was being detained. The room was specially made, and had special devices included which prevented Laas from changing shape. As he sat on his cot, unaware to him, an invisible gas like substance drifted into his room from the ventilation. The gas was actually Lahnie, the different species of shape-shifter who had been posing as Azami and had been working with Laas in his attempt to steal the hologram device, which would have allowed them to create an army of their own. She had come to Laas's cell to do one thing; kill him.

**The Planet Timus…the home of James T Kirk**

Benjamin Sisko, his sister Mavis, and his wife Kasidy had come to visit James T Kirk after hearing the news that James and Myran had separated. The three of them sat in stunned silence at Kirk's dining room table as he explained the current situation.

"So," Kirk concluded, "I am not the James T Kirk you have known for the past couple years or so. When that Jim Kirk came into the Nexus, his physical form merged with the echo of the Jim Kirk who had been in there ever since the incident on the Enterprise-B. As for why my physical appearance seems to be somewhere between those two ages, it's just one of those Nexus mysteries that may never be solved."

"Then that means," Ben Sisko said, "you're the Jim Kirk who faced down Khan in the Mutara Nebula, and saved Earth from a probe."

"Which probe; take your pick," Kirk said with a slight chuckle.

Sisko stood up and came over to where Kirk was standing, and then he reached out his hand.

"It is an honor to meet you sir," Sisko said, with a smile.

"I can't believe Myran would do that," Mavis said, as she thought over the part Kirk had told them about coming into the house and finding Myran and Harrison Riker making love.

"Oh come on," Kasidy said with a laugh to Myran, "that lady has been a problem ever since the whole thing about her and that Vedek came to light. He should have left her the moment he found out."

"Kas," Ben Sisko said, "that is not our business. And besides," he said as he looked back to Kirk, "That wasn't this Kirk."

"What about the children?" Mavis asked, as she looked up at Kirk and Ben. "What will happen to them?"

Kirk walked over to the doorway to the kitchen, and looked in at the two children as Korena Sisko was keeping watch over them. Then he looked back at Mavis and the others.

"Although those children are not technically mine," Kirk said, "I will honor the other Jim Kirk's wishes and love them as if they were."

"But they're Myran's children too," Mavis said. "And yes, I know she was acting such a fool for what she did with Harrison Riker, but that doesn't change the fact that she is their mother."

"I know," Kirk said softly.

"I have a solution," Mavis said.

"Oh, I can't wait to hear this," Kasidy said with another chuckle.

"Why don't you let me live in this house," Mavis said to Kirk. "Myran will no doubt remain with Harrison, and I am willing to bet that Quark will let you have a room there at his hotel."

"Who is Quark?" Kirk asked.

"It's a long story," Ben said, "but Mavis is just spouting off the top of her head, Jim."

"Maybe," Kirk said, "but I think her solution is," Kirk said with a pause, "logical. If Myran is agreeable to this arrangement, then I will be too."

Twenty minutes later, Kirk watched as the Sisko's headed off on their carriage, leaving Kirk with the two toddlers for the time being as Mavis went to pack her things to bring back to the house. He went back in and played with the two of them, and laughed. He never thought he would come out of the Nexus and find himself with two babies, living in a house on some backwater world. But, he knew that wouldn't last forever. And the first thing he would do would get in touch with Spock. Suddenly, and without warning, there was a knock at his door. Kirk went over and opened it to find a much older Hikaru Sulu, as well as a strange looking being with a big head and big ears.

"Jim," Sulu said, "I want you to meet my new friend….Baybok!"

Jim Kirk smiled at his old friend, and then reached out to shake Baybok's hand. And the moment Kirk's hand touched Baybok's hand; Kirk's mind became cluttered with images and memories that were not his own but belonged to…Baybok.

Continued...and next time...Tuvok meets with Satangkai; the Native American son of James T Kirk!


	206. Gvgeyuhi

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**The Bridge of Time**

**(check out new cover art featuring Annika and Satangkai at my profile)**

Flashback begins…

_One year after the return of Voyager to Earth…_

_Inside the large court room at the Federation Supreme court's main complex in the city of Paris, Earth, several dozen former Maquis members waited for the judges to make their final ruling in regard to their past involvement with the Maquis and what, if any, penalty they would face._

_There were three judges. Two of them were humans from Earth. Judge James Parsons had been raised on Earth and attended Harvard. He was considered one of the more liberal judges on the panel. Judge Amri, the other human Judge on the panel, had been raised in Africa. She was seen as the moderate on the panel. The third judge, a Vulcan, was named T'avol. His prowess as a Judge dated back nearly seventy years, due to the long lifespan of Vulcan. He was seen as the stern conservative on the three judge panel._

_There were 48 former Maquis defendants. They were all defended by one lawyer, perhaps the Federation's most known lawyer due to his ability to think outside the box. His name was Gerry Spence, and he had gone up against all three judges many times in the past._

_Perhaps the most noted defendant was Chakotay, who sat next to Gerry Spence at the front desk that faced the panel of Judges. Chakotay took a moment and casually looked back at his wife, Seven of Nine, as she sat behind him three rows back, holding their infant daughter; Yudelle. Seven smiled back at her husband. Sitting next to Seven were three of Chakotay's closest friends; Tom Paris, his wife B'Elanna, and next to her, was Chakotay's very close friend; Kathryn Janeway. _

_It was at that moment when the three Federation judges entered the room from a door behind their tall bench._

"_All rise," a voice said from the PA system._

_Everyone in the court rose to their as the Judges entered and took their seats. T'avol sat in the middle, with Judge Parsons flanking him to the left and Judge Amri flanking T'avol to the right. The soft murmuring of the gallery came to a complete silence._

Flashback Ends…

**Earth…**

**The lands of the Native Americans**

Tuvok, who had been riding his horse for nearly two days in the hot tribal lands of the Native Americans, in what was once called New Mexico, welcomed the chance to climb down off of the animal so as to stretch his legs. As he did so, a very old Native Chief, his age somewhere over a hundred, as well as his wife, who was in her eighties, stood together waiting to greet Tuvok. They wore traditional Native American clothing, with Satangkai wearing a long feathered head ornament. Tuvok came over to them, and raised his hand in the customary Vulcan way.

"I am honored," Tuvok began to say, "to once again be with Satangkai, the noble leader of these lands, and his equally noble wife Awinita."

Tuvok got down on one knee, and lowered his head as was expected of him. He looked back up and waited for Satangkai to give him the signal to stand, which he did.

"Tuvok," Satangkai replied, as Tuvok stood up again, "proud son of T'Meni and Sunak of Vulcan; you are among family here on these sacred lands."

Satangkai reached out and placed his right hand on Tuvok's left shoulder. Tuvok did the same.

"I never thought your presence would come before my eyes again," Satangkai said, as took his hand from Tuvok's shoulder. "I am happy that it has."

"What happened in the past, with Chakotay and his wife, Annika, does not shape my relationship with Satangkai and his loving wife Awinita."

Awinita smiled at Tuvok.

"Even with that said," Satangkai said, "I sense that is why you are here."

"I thought I was the telepath," Tuvok said with sarcasm in his voice.

Satangkai smiled at Tuvok and nodded his head.

"One does not need to read minds in order to read the soul," Satangkai came back with, his voice filled with wisdom.

"How are they?" Awinita suddenly asked. "The loss of a child can bring the heart of men and women to a dark place they can never leave."

Tuvok nodded his head, as the three of them walked slowly atop the hill that had a wonderful view of the surrounding area.

"I am afraid you are quite right," Tuvok replied. "Chakotay is still in that dark place. A cold and bitter man who has forsaken all that he had become and used the death of Yudelle and the tortured past of his people as reasons to never return to what he once was."

"What about his beautiful wife Annika?" Awinita asked.

"The shock of losing her daughter affected her in that she does not recall certain events of her life," Tuvok explained. "Her mind, with its Borg discipline, compartmentalized many aspects of who she was. Even I, with my Vulcan training, cannot penetrate the wall her mind has set up; which is why I have come here."

"I know why you have come," Satangkai said. "The answer I gave to Chakotay, that last time we saw him, is the only answer I can give you. Yudelle's spirit cannot be contacted."

"I know you told us that last time," Tuvok said, "however, is it possible, that after so much time, that Annika could talk to the spirit of her child one last time? Doing so, for both of them, Chakotay and Annika, could bring them the light they need to go on with their lives in positive ways."

"I must say," Satangkai began to say, "I am quite surprised to hear one of your kind, a Vulcan no less, use words such as spirit and light in such a public display."

"They were my friends," Tuvok replied, "and I want to help them."

"Of course," Satangkai said softly.

Up ahead of where they were walking, a coyote was laying on the ground, panting, its tongue hanging out of its mouth. It was obvious that the animal was old and was near death.

"Wait here please," Satangkai said as he went ahead and kneeled before the animal.

Tuvok and Awinita watched as Satangkai began to chant in a soft voice.

"He is releasing the animal's essence," Awinita explained. "This will take some time to do." Awinita looked at Tuvok. "He cannot hear us speaking while he offers the ritual. I will use this time to discuss with you a sensitive matter."

Tuvok arched an eyebrow.

"Is there a problem?" Tuvok asked.

"My husband's life is in decline," Awinita explained, as they watched Satangkai continue the ritual. "By the twelfth full moon his spirit will leave this place forever."

"I did not know this," Tuvok replied. "If you wish I can bring medical help."

"No," Awinita said, with a proud voice, "that is not out way. I want you to bring him his father; he still lives."

"Satangkai has a father who still lives?" Tuvok asked back.

"Yes, he does," Awinita said. "His father does not know that Satangkai is his son. My even telling you this is betraying my husband, but I feel it is important that the two of them meet before Satangkai travels upon the wind."

"I will do as you ask, of course," Tuvok replied. "Where can I find this father of Satangkai?"

Awinita looked up at the early stars of dusk, as they began to show through the sky.

"Satangkai's father is up there; the stars of the sky are his companions," she then looked at Tuvok. "His father's name is," she paused for a brief moment, "James Tiberius Kirk."

Tuvok had never experienced goose bumps in his entire life until the moment he heard Awinita speak the legendary man's name.

"Fascinating," was his only statement to what he had just heard.

Continued…


	207. The Past Never Dies

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**The Past Never Dies**

**(new cover art featuring SISKO-GARAK and QUARK at my profile...)**

The Planet Timus...

The results of the special election for the office of Mayor in the town of Summit Grove were not what Benjamin Sisko had wanted or desired. By an over whelming vote, Ben Sisko had won re-election. His name hadn't even been on the ballot. Instead, the town's folk, by a wide margin, had written his name in even though there was no space provided for a write in candidate.

His wife, Kasidy, was just as flabbergasted as he was. She wanted him to be home more often, but it was clear, the people of Summit Grove wanted him to remain the Mayor. The two of them sat in Sisko's office, reading the results that were printed in the newspaper.

"I don't understand it Kas," Ben said, as he read the article, "why have they voted to keep me in office. We only arrived here recently and that makes me the best man for the job?"

"Don't ask me," Kasidy said, "what's even more amazing is that Jake wrote the article and pretty much slants it by insinuating that this is one of your proudest moments."

"I did suggest he keep in the swing of things by writing for the paper while he was vacationing here, but I didn't expect this," Sisko said as he kept reading the article.

There was a knock on the door and the Quark came in.

"I didn't see your secretary, so I let myself in," Quark said, as he carried a bottle of Champaign in one of his hands and three glasses in the other. He turned on the small table lamp on Sisko's desk, and set the spirit and glasses down. "I thought we might celebrate."

"You know full well that I didn't want to be re-elected," Sisko said, as he took of his glasses and watched as the Ferengi poured the Champaign into the glasses and handed them out.

"Are you kidding?" Quark asked. "You get to keep this nice office, the people sing your praise, and," Quark said with a smile, "I'm going to reward you with three free hours in my holosuites; standard licensing fees apply."

"This is pretty good," Kasidy said as she sipped from the glass.

"Harrison Riker suggested I try the brand," Quark replied, as he poured seconds, "Speaking of Harrison; is what I heard about him and Myran true? Is she living with him now? Women; you can't trust them," he looked over at Kasidy, "present company excluded of course. Anyway, I'm going to head over and visit Jim later."

"You and Jim have become good friends," Sisko said.

"If you would have told me all those years ago on DS9 that I would one day be friends with James T Kirk I would have told you that you were out of your mind and yet," Quark said, "it's true. So where has he been all this time? We should throw him a welcome home party!"

Sisko and Kasidy shared an awkward glance, which Quark noticed.

"You should tell him," Kasidy said to her husband.

"Tell me what?" Quark asked.

Ben Sisko thought for a moment, and then he downed his drink and put the empty glass on the desktop.

"The Jim Kirk that we all knew for the past couple years or so is gone," Sisko said.

"What do you mean he's gone?" Quark asked.

Ben Sisko explained the unique properties of the Nexus, and what Jim Kirk had told him earlier.

"So let me get this straight," Quark said, as he had downed two full glasses of Champaign during Sisko's explanation, "the Jim Kirk we knew, who was a duplicate created a hundred and ten years ago, or so, went inside this Nexus, and the Jim Kirk who had been inside of the Nexus for the past 95 years came out?"

"That about sums it up," Sisko replied.

"So this Jim Kirk has no memory of being married to Myran, no memory of anything that has happened in the past two years, including that ordeal with the planet killer, or being trapped in the Naissance, or our friendship."

"Exactly," Sisko said, "but he does have memories of everything that happened after the duplication a hundred and ten years ago up until the point he went inside the Nexus while saving the Enterprise-B."

"That's a shame," Quark said softly. "He and I had become, as you said, good friends. I bet this one will hate me."

"You don't know that," Sisko said, as he finished his glass, "I think it would be nice if you went over there. The man believes he is totally alone. I have sent a coded message to Ambassador Spock, so hopefully he will make his way back here and meet with Jim. I'm going to head over there myself later on, but it wouldn't hurt if you went too."

Quark looked at the digital clock on the wall.

"Well, I better get going. It maybe early in the morning for you, mister mayor, but Morn is no doubt waiting for me to open my doors." Quark said, as he gathered up the empty bottle and glasses, turned off the desk lamp, and head toward the door.

"Thanks for the Champaign," Kasidy said.

Quark waved goodbye and was gone.

"I still can't believe that's the same Quark from all those years ago," Kasidy said. "I used to guard my pocket book when he walked by."

"Oh, you would be surprised," Sisko said as he reached over to the lamp and smiled as he retrieved a listening device that Quark had just left, "at how little things change."

The two of them laughed.

"Well, I better get going," Kasidy said as she headed for the door to the office. "Rebecca should be sending us a message today, and I want to be there when it arrives."

"I should be home in the early afternoon, after I visit with Jim." Sisko said, as he escorted his wife to the door, kissed her, and then watched as she left.

Sisko when back to his desk, and was about to look over mundane paperwork and then a knock came at his door.

"Come," Sisko said out loud.

The large oak door opened and then Garak came in.

"Garak," Sisko said, as he watched the Cardassian enter and make his way over to the desk. "I was beginning to think I wasn't going to hear from you for a while. Did you find anything out about our friend Harrison Riker?"

Garak sat down across from Ben Sisko and then handed the former commander of Deep Space Nine a data pad.

"I think you will find the information quite," Garak said, "disturbing."

Ben Sisko sat back in his chair and read the information on the data pad. It nearly took three minutes to get through it all. He then looked up at Garak.

"This can't be correct," Sisko said, as he handed the data pad back to Garak.

"Oh, but I assure you it is," Garak said. "The Obsidian Order was very thorough in those days."

Sisko stood up, went to the window that looked out over the town, and then turned back to face Garak.

"You expect me to believe," Sisko went on to say, "That after Thomas Riker was apprehended, after that incident with the Defiant, he fathered a child with a Maquis woman named Bianca Peters, she herself a Maquis. And that child was Harrison Riker."

"Precisely," Garak said. "And after the attack by the Klingons on Cardassian territories, the labor camp Riker and his family were on, was liberated. During the fray, Riker and this woman, Bianca Peters, escaped but their infant child, Harrison Riker was…"

"Killed," Sisko said, finishing Quark's statement. "Obviously the information is not correct since Harrison Riker is here, on Timus Prime."

Garak nodded his head.

"Obviously something is not right," Garak said. "But I can tell you for certain that the labor camp they were at was run by agents of Obsidian Order. My father, Enabran Tain, often told me how efficient that camp was."

"Garak," Sisko said, with all seriousness, "Harrison Riker is alive, you have seen him."

"I know," Garak said, softly. "So, I am going to do the one thing that must be done; I am going to that prison world, and I'm going to see what I can find. Sometimes, not often, but sometimes those prison camps had elder Cardassian women who were tasked with cremation detail. But there were times they would actually bury the remains of children, out of some misguided honor to the parents."

"Do you really think you're going to find remains?" Sisko asked.

"I have a hole in my memory," Garak said. "My ship was found adrift in Klingon space, and to this day I don't know why I was there. Now this information comes to me, information about someone who is supposed to be dead but isn't. One thing I always trusted, during my time with the Order, were my instincts."

"What are they telling you now?" Sisko asked.

"That somehow, someway, Harrison Riker as well as my being found adrift in the Klingon Empire, are related," Garak said.

"That is quite a leap," Sisko said, after a moment. "However, let me know what you find."

Garak smiled his fiendish smile.

"Oh, trust me I will," Garak said. "I trust you will be paying my standard rate?"

Sisko nodded.

"Absolutely," Sisko said. "Just check in with Quark so he knows to keep the payments going from my account with him."

Garak stood up and headed toward the door.

"Garak," Sisko said, just as the Cardassian reached the door.

Garak turned back to face Sisko.

"Just make sure you watch your back," Sisko said. "If what you suspect is true, that your memory loss is related to this situation with Riker, then that would mean the memory losses of Quark, my sister Mavis, Talla and quite possibly Harrison Riker himself, are all related as well. And if that is true, then someone has gone through great lengths to cover up information you might soon be digging up."

Garak nodded.

"I will keep that in mind," Garak said, and then he was gone.

continued...


	208. The Memory Game

James T Kirk: Shadow and Light

The Memory Game

Previously…

_There was a knock at Jim Kirk's door, and he opened it to find a much older Hikaru Sulu, as well as a strange looking being with a big head and big ears._

"Jim," Sulu said, "I want you to meet my new friend….Baybok!"  
_  
Jim Kirk smiled at his old friend, and then reached out to shake Baybok's hand. And the moment Kirk's hand touched Baybok's hand; Kirk's mind became cluttered with images and memories that were not his own but belonged to…Baybok._

Kirk stared at Baybok for a long moment before letting the strange little man's hand go.

"What's wrong Jim?" Sulu asked, as he saw the blank expression come over Kirk's face. And then Sulu realized that Kirk had aged a little since the last time he had seen him, which was before he had disappeared while returning from the Naissance. "Jim, are you okay; do you want me to call a doctor?"

Kirk shook off the strange images he had seen in his mind, and then he invited the two visitors into his home. He smiled at Sulu, and out of the blue, hugged his old helmsman.

"It's very good to see you my good friend," Kirk said, as he stepped back. "I should let you know that I am not the same Jim Kirk you knew for the past couple years," Kirk explained. He then noticed that Sulu had a Cain. "Just how old are you now?"

Sulu laughed.

"Far older than you," Sulu said. "Now, what does that mean exactly you're not the Jim Kirk we've known for the past two years?" Sulu asked.

"Maybe he's a hologram," Baybok suddenly said. "If you are, then I have a business proposition for you."

"I'm sorry," Kirk said to Baybok, "I have never met anyone from your species before. Who are you?"

Sulu cut off Baybok, and spoke instead.

"Jim," Sulu said, "You and Quark are very good friends, and both he and Baybok are Ferengi. Does this have something to do with what you just said about not being the Jim Kirk who came into the future after the events of Triskelion?"

"Precisely," Kirk said. "I spoke earlier with Mr. Benjamin Sisko and explained this to him and his wife as well. He promised to get in touch with Spock, so hopefully he can get here to Timus and explain what is happening. But apparently I was inside an area space outside the time continuum; a place called the Nexus."

"Are you saying that you have been in the Nexus, all this time, and just came out of it? Jim, that can't possibly be true. I know for a fact that you came out of the Nexus, on a planet called Veridian III, and died there nearly twenty years ago."

"I know, Mr. Sisko told me the same thing," Kirk said. "However, before I came out of the Nexus, and I mean recently, I met an extraordinary young lady named Guinan. She explained to me that the Kirk you have known for the past two years came into the Nexus, and when that happened, his physical form and the essence of what I was; merged, and as a result, the hybrid we both created was forced out of the Nexus, and I appeared here, on this world."

Sulu shook his head.

"One thing is for certain;" Sulu said to his former, and still much younger, captain, "the exploits of James T Kirk get stranger by the year. If what you're saying is true, and I'm sure it is; that means you have the memories of what happened in your life after Triskelion. From our last mission aboard the original Enterprise, all the way and up to the point you disappeared on the Enterprise-B."

"By the way," Kirk said with a smile, "your daughter, Demora; I was pleased to see that she made a career for herself with Starfleet," Kirk said.

"When it was believed that that you had been killed on the Enterprise-B, during the rescue attempt, she along with everyone else on that ship, were devastated at the thought you had died. And now, here you are, as if nothing ever happened. I ended up being the Captain of that ship due to the lasting effects your perceived death had on Captain Harriman. So many lives were affected, but I am really glad to see you again. Spock won't admit it, but even he will be glad to see you again."

Kirk looked over to Baybok, then back to Sulu.

"This Ferengi," Kirk said to Sulu, "he is trying to swindle you out of your wealth." Kirk said flatly.

Both Sulu and Baybok seemed to have been offended by what Kirk said.

"Jim," Sulu said with a stern voice, "this is my friend. I know you've been away for a long time, but please, can you keep your opinions to yourself?"

"I am offended," Baybok said, as he stood up in protest to what Kirk had said, "I should take you to court for what you have just said. I don't care if you are some kind of Starfleet legend; you can't just go around spreading rumors like that!"

Kirk nodded at Baybok, and then he looked at Sulu.

"When I shook his hand," Kirk said to Sulu, "somehow, someway, I saw his entire life flash before my eyes. The scan he gave to you of the so called deposit of precious ore and other riches was manufactured; the only thing under that mountain range are massive rocks; no treasure."

"How can you even know about that scan?" Sulu asked Kirk, and then he looked over at Baybok, who looked very nervous.

"He's making it up," Baybok protest.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

"Please excuse me," Kirk said, as he went through the living room first, and once satisfied that Dahme and Mathew were still sleeping in their crib, Kirk opened the door to find Benjamin Sisko and another small Ferengi.

"Jim," Sisko said, "I didn't think it was right to just leave you here alone with absolutely no idea of where or when you are."

"You don't remember me, do you?" Quark asked Kirk.

"I'm sorry," Kirk said, with an innocent smile on his face, "but I have never met you before in my entire life."

"No matter," Quark said, with a determined look on his face, "I'm willing to start all over again."

And then Quark charged into the house, past Kirk, and toward the kitchen. Before getting to the kitchen, Quark made sure the two babies were sleeping, going so far as adjusting Mathew into a more comfortable position, and then heading to the kitchen.

"What I do know isn't much," Kirk told Sisko, who was still at the door, "but I believe your wife told me you were the mayor of whatever town this is. I'm sure you have more important places to be than trying to help me get my bearings."

"When the other Jim Kirk came into this period of time, and eventually was revealed to be who he was," Sisko told Kirk, "I became his good friend after he rescued my daughter from Klingon renegades. I told him then that I would be there for him, just as I'm telling you now. Perhaps I may not have known him, or you for that matter, as long as Spock or Sulu have, but we did become good friends, and I want to help you in these confusing times."

Kirk reached out his hand and so did Ben Sisko. And at that instant, Jim Kirk had another strange vision…the incredible life of the Emissary!

Continued…and next time

The destruction of Laas angers the Great Link and could cause another war! Meanwhile, Ryan Tolbert hunts for a one eyed Cardassian hit man!


	209. Thrill Seeker

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**Thrill Seekers…**

**(new cover art featuring Jim Kirk and his new babe…Suzanne Anderson can be seen at my profile)**

_The 1962 blue colored Shelby Cobra zipped around the sharp corners, and then sped to full speed on the straight away. The driver shifted the gears with expert timing, and handled the car with near perfect attention. The loud roar of the engine brought a thrill to the driver; and why not? Even in the 24th century, nothing could rival racing up the RPMS of a sleek car at break neck speeds; no holographic program could touch it this thrill!_

_However, as the next turn neared, the driver was unaware that the crank axle was slowly becoming unhinged from its housing; the three dozen or so mounting bolts had been loosened and not by accident! And as the car engaged the next turn, the axle cracked, sending the car flying over the edge of the cliff!_

* * *

Twenty miles from Summit Grove was a range of small hills that had winding roads that cascaded up and then down them. Several of the inhabitants of Timus had various forms of motorized vehicles, which they would bring to the hills to enjoy the long ago thrill driving at fast speeds. Most of them were men, but one of the frequent drivers was Gwen Williams, the youngest daughter of the late Gregory Williams. But now…she too was dead!

It all began while S'vath was at him home, just about to sit down to eat dinner with his wife and kids. The two small children, Lenora and Sarek, were in their baby-seats, waiting to be fed. S'vath looked down at his dish of food. There was a baked potato, with sour cream, white corn on the cob, a small bowl of baked beans, and a plump juicy steak. Now, to be sure, most Vulcans were vegetarians, but not S'vath. Then again, he wasn't like most Vulcans because he also liked to talk about sex with his wife.

"By the way," S'vath told Amanda, as she brought some baby food for the kids, "I approached Eran, the new coroner, if she'd be open to joining us for some," he then realized the kids were listening to him, "fun in the bedroom. I think she was considering it."

"Great," Amanda said, in a sexy way, "I can't wait. It's been awhile since we've done that, and I need it so bad."

"Well," S'vath said, as he sipped from his glass of wine, "I'll let you know when she tells me."

The dinner went smoothly until a call came in from Harrison Riker on the old style short wave radio. On Timus, new technology was frowned upon, thus old tech like CB radios was used.

Riker had been at the jailhouse, processing out a couple of drunken miners who had been arrested the night before for wild behavior at Quark's. Riker explained to S'vath that while he was finishing the paper work, a frantic call had come in; one of the drivers had been killed up in the hills. S'vath told Harrison to meet him at his house, and then the two of them would take the land-speeder to the hills to investigate. Normally they wouldn't, but the name of the dead person peaked their interest; Gwen Williams.

Harrison Riker sped over with the lone land-speeder (yes it was black and white) which they used for law enforcement situations. After picking up S'vath, Harrison sped the speeder toward the hills. Night time was about two hours away, so they wanted to get there before daylight was gone.

The drive out to the hills was eerily silent, due the situation between Harrison Riker, Jim Kirk and Kirk's wife Myran. S'vath was close friends with both Harrison and Jim Kirk, but since Kirk was his father's closest friend, S'vath felt more allegiance to Kirk.

"Look," Harrison Riker said, as he drove the speeder, "I know why you are giving me the silent treatment, and I understand. I can't explain why it happened, but you have to know, we never intended to hurt Jim. It just…happened."

S'vath, had been looking out the window, looked over at Harrison.

"I do not believe it would have mattered as much, if they hadn't been married," S'vath said. "Will I have to question your intentions the next time you want to be alone with my wife?"

"That's a little low," Harrison Riker said, near a whisper.

"Perhaps," S'vath said. "However, from what I was told by Ben, Jim isn't quite the same man as he was before he disappeared; when he and I left the Naissance (issue #154.) However, having said that; your actions with Myran do call in your character. I would be lying to you if I said it didn't."

"It takes two to tango," Harrison came back with.

"Yes," S'vath said, "however, what happened here was not the result of two people wanting to dance."

The tension in the land-speeder did not dissipate, but at least both men knew where they stood.

Moments later, S'vath brought the land-speeder to a stop around a cluster of motorized vehicles; cars, motorbikes, draketorms and several others types that S'vath and Harrison could not recognize. Already on the scene was Eran. Harrison Riker had sent her a signal as well, and relayed S'vath's request that she meet them at the incident site.

"Thank you for coming on such a short notice," S'vath said, as he and Harrison joined Eran near the cliff where Gwen's car, a 1962 Shelby Cobra, had gone over.

"Some of the drivers have thrown down a line (rope) for us to climb down with," Eran reported. "Two of them have already gone down there, and they have already reported that she is dead."

"Well," S'vath told Eran and Harrison, "we still need to see for ourselves."

"Understood," Eran said.

"Hey," Harrison said, "do you mind if I stay up here? I've got a thing with heights."

"No problem," S'vath said, "While we're down there, go ahead and see if you can get some of them to tell what they saw, if anything."

"Will do," Harrison said.

And with that, S'vath began to climb down, with Eran going after him. S'vath looked up to make sure Eran was having no problem, and then instantly realized that she wasn't wearing anything under her skirt. He smiled…deviously.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Jim Kirk's home on Timus…

Benjamin Sisko had arrived, and then reached out his hand to Kirk. Kirk shook Sisko's hand, and at that instant, Jim Kirk had another strange vision…the incredible life of the Emissary! He lost his balance, and then Sisko helped steady him. Quark, upon seeing this, ran over to assist. Both Quark and Sisko managed to get Kirk to sit down on the couch in the living room area.

"Are you alright?" Ben Sisko asked.

"I'm sorry about that," Kirk said.

Sulu and Baybok came from the kitchen, Sulu holding a glass of water which he handed to Kirk.

"Jim, what happened?" Sulu asked.

"I don't know Hikaru," Kirk said, as he sipped some water. "It was the same thing that happened when I shook your friend's hand," Kirk said, "I suddenly…had…these images in my mind. They were of you," Kirk said to Sisko, "growing up in New Orleans, joining Starfleet, becoming some sort of religious icon."

"You saw all of that?" Sisko asked. "Our hands only touched for a fraction of a second."

"I think we should call a doctor," Quark said.

"I think you're right," Ben Sisko said.

As Sisko went about calling for a doctor, Sulu took that moment to talk with Quark.

"Baybok is trying to swindle me," Sulu said to Quark, "I am devastated."

"What are you talking about?" Quark asked Sulu, as he cast as suspicious glance at Baybok.

Sulu explained the whole story. How Baybok had come to him looking for investment into a mining operation for charitable reasons.

"It's Ferengi like you who give our people a bad name," Quark said to Baybok. "I expect you to pay him his investment back, " Quark added.

Baybok looked rattled.

"I can't," Baybok said, after a moment. "I already gave his investment to my partners, and I doubt they will give it back. I'm the lowest man on the pole."

"Who are these partners of yours?" Quark asked.

"Does really matter?" Baybok asked. "They won't give the investment back Quark." Then Baybok looked at Sulu. "I know you won't believe this, but I am genuinely sorry."

Sulu smiled.

"Well," Sulu said, after a moment, "we all make mistakes. Just don't come to me with anymore investment opportunities."

"Hikaru," Kirk said, "we have to get your investment back." Kirk said. "How much did you lose?"

"Fifty three bars of latinum," Baybok replied for Sulu.

"FIFTY THREE BARS?" Quark fired back with. "Listen to me," Quark said, "you are going to do everything you can to get this man's money back." Quark ordered.

"Can I charge a recoup fee?" Baybok asked with a smile.

"That's negotiable with your client," Quark said. "Now, just who are these partners you keep talking about? Maybe I can pull some strings."

Kirk sat back and wondered what was happening to him, and what did his future hold. He looked at Sulu, who was conversing with the two Ferengi, he looked over at Sisko, who was talking on a communicator, and then Kirk looked over to the two sleeping infants. Is this what he had left the Nexus for? And then he smiled. The answer was yes. And with a little work on his part, Kirk was sure he'd have his life back in order.

Sisko came back over to Kirk, and sat next to him on the couch.

"I just called the hospital, and they are sending over a doctor," Sisko said. "Her name is Suzanne Anderson. She will be here…"

And then, instantly, a transporter beam appeared and then a woman appeared as well. She was blond, very pretty, and she caught the eye of one James T Kirk

Continued…


	210. Bronzed and Bruised

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**Bronzed and Bruised**

**(brand new cover art featuring Rebecca and Lal and their cadet team can be viewed at my profile)**

Five starships, all Akira class, dove into the confused fray of battle. The giant Vaadwaurian vessels were more powerful, but the Akira's were far more maneuverable. It appeared as if the age old battle between those who believed in firepower and those who believed in agility, while constructing new ships, was a galactic enigma.

The two giant armadas, one a joint fleet of Klingon and Federation forces, against the invading Vaadwaurian fleet, had been engaged in combat for nearly five hours. There were fifty ships on each side, and the battle casualties were nearly fifty-fifty. But the five Akiras, perhaps the Federation's last chance, had exchanged secret communications before suddenly breaking off from the general battle, and coming together as a single fighting force, in a spearhead formation. They concentrated their joint attack on one of the larger Vaadwaurian ships, and at first it seemed like a futile attempt; but then the Vaadwaurian vessel exploded, and the five ships streaked through the exploding hell storm, and then they all regrouped in formation and streaked toward the next enemy vessel.

The center ship in the formation of five Akiras was commanded by Cadet "Captain" Throkk, a Tellerite who had hand picked his crew, including Rebecca Sisko at the helm. In past simulations, Cadet Sisko had caused the death of everyone aboard her ship during their first training exercises, setting the record for such failures. But then she met a young cadet named Cameron Mathews. Mathews was actually two class cycles ahead of Rebecca, Lal, and their peers. But due to a family emergency, Mathews had to drop out of the Academy on emergency leave; now he was back. And with his tutoring on how to helm starships (among other things, ahem) Rebecca had refocused her attention and had become one of the better cadets.

The simulation came to an end, after the sixth hour of exercise was completed. The yellow squared surface of the holodeck appeared and the cadet command team, comprised of Throkk, Lal, Rebecca, Azami and Cameron cheered. As it turned out, it just wasn't a simulation for their team alone, but the hundred other teams scattered about the Academy, and satellite schools on Earth, and two more on the moon, each team inside their own holodeck training facilities. It was one of the largest joint simulations ever done at Starfleet Academy. Some of the teams were on the Federation/Klingon side of the battle while some of them were on the Vaadwaurian side.

One wall of the holodeck grid was replaced by a tally board that would count all the hits and misses from each team, and then total them up, placing each team in order; top to bottom. Rebecca kept her fingers crossed as her new boyfriend, Cameron Mathews, held her hand. He had manned the navigation post during the drill.

"We better end up in the top fifty," Throkk announced to his fellow cadets. "If we are, then the first round of drinks will be on me. If we do not end up in the top fifty, then I will kill each of you tonight as you sleep," he told them with a mock growl in his voice.

"That isn't funny," Azami said.

"Oh shut up," Rebecca said to her and Lal's arch nemesis.

_(Author's note; yes reader, we did discover that Azami is actually a shape-shifter, from a race of changelings not related to Odo-Laas-Myn (the Founders). She is pretending to be human, and thus no one knows what she really is.)_

And as the tallies came in, the Akira cruiser, under the command of Throkk, did indeed get higher and higher on the charts and eventually landed in third place, which was quite an accomplishment. They all cheered; even Azami smiled. Their team coach, Commander J'arth, a Bajoran male, entered the holodeck and congratulated them.

"I am very impressed," J'arth said to Throkk and the others. "Cadet Sisko, those maneuvers were somewhat unorthodox, and probably would get you yelled at by other instructors, but not me. Where did you learn to do those moves?"

"Oh, I don't know," Rebecca said, as she looked at Cameron and smiled.

"They have other moves too," Azami said, "though, you can only seem them at night when they are alone."

"I can attest to that," Lal added innocently.

The others giggle softly at the insinuation, but then again, they all knew Azami was right and that Rebecca and Cameron liked to be watched.

"Well," J'arth said, with a smile, "if it would help all of you get better, then perhaps you should each pair up with someone for more intimate practice; like you," he pointed at Azami, "and you," he then pointed at Throkk.

All of them started to laugh out loud, except for Azami, who just stomped out the holodeck.

Later, the cadets had met up again for a debriefing over the simulation. They sat at the conference table in one of the classrooms and listened as J'arth went over each and every move. The debriefing took nearly three hours, at which time J'arth was about to excuse them for the long weekend.

"Alright, listen up," J'arth told the team. "I want to introduce you to your new teammates," he continued to say. "I'll be right back."

Commander J'arth left the room.

Everyone knew why they were getting new teammates. The death of Renee, the washout of Kylor and expulsion of Myn had left the team three cadets short of the required seven team member cap. No one said anything because nothing needed to be said. The death of Renee had left a pal over the Academy. And yet, even though they were down by three teammates, Throkk's crew had won a bronze metal in the just completed training exercise.

The door opened and Commander J'arth returned, and was followed by three new cadets. One of them was a Cardassian male, who also wore a Bajoran ear ornament, a human male with dark curly hair, and the third was a very attractive Vulcan female.

"Go ahead and introduce yourselves," J'arth told the new comers.

"My name is Maketh," the Cardassian said, with a very cold demeanor. It was clear that Maketh probably had no friends, due to his tough exterior. The Cardassian cadets, of whom there were nearly twenty of, had taken over the mantle of being considered the most cold hearted of all the species at Star Fleet. Vulcans had dropped to second place.

"My named is Rufus Landis," the human, who was light skinned, dorky looking, and had dark curly hair, said. "And if anyone needs help with calculus, subspace trig and GrothaK dynamic cascade envelope inversions …" to which Rebecca and Throkk raised their hands, "then you're savior has arrived."

"What kind of moves will you show him in exchange?" Azami asked Rebecca, with sarcasm in her voice.

The others laughed, because, well, it was funny.

The Vulcan female spoke next.

"My name is," she paused for a moment, "T'av."

Both Lal and Rebecca recognized the name immediately. They were both well aware of the planet killer incident that involved Jim Kirk, Spock and the Talosiansl. But they both respected T'av's privacy, and didn't say anything about what they knew.

"Well, I know you have a long weekend ahead of you," J'arth said to the team, "please take these three under your wings and show them a good time. And no, Lal," J'arth said quickly, "that doesn't mean an all day tour of all the local museums."

"For your information, Commander J'arth, I was not going to suggest that activity at all." Lal said.

"Oh really," J'arth replied. "Why do I find that so hard to believe."

"I was going to suggest we take them to the annual flower fair in San Diego," Lal said. "There will be over twenty-seven thousand varieties of flowers on display, and I happen to be well versed in the subject matter."

The lack of any response indicated how thrilled the others were at the thought of the event.

"Well, I'm sure you will all figure something out," Commander J'arth said.

"You can count on it," cadet Cameron Mathews said, with a wink of an eye aimed in Rebecca's direction.

And with that, J'arth excused the team, and watched as they all filed out of the room, all but one, T'av.

"Perhaps this is a mistake," T'av said. "I can sense the apprehension in cadets Lal and Rebecca Sisko."

"Listen," J'arth said, "you knew coming back here wasn't going to be easy, Tuvok warned you as much. T'av, you're going to have to make this work on your own, if you wish to pick up your Starfleet career where you left off. Everyone will be more than willing to give you a second chance, even Rebecca Sisko and Lal. It is up to you to earn their trust; and I know you can do it."

T'av looked over at J'arth, and smiled at him.

"Perhaps there is a better way for me to succeed here at the Academy," T'av said, as she approached the desk were J'arth was sitting.

As she stood in front of him, she got down on her knees and reached for the top of his trousers and pulled them down; he did not stop her as she prepared to go the extra mile to please her instructor. J'arth pressed a button on his chair, and the door to the classroom closed and locked itself.

"Oh, trust me," J'arth said, "This tact won't hurt your chances," he said with a smile, as he watched her do her thing.

Continued…


	211. Heart Attack

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER ART at my profile...featuring Mister Fluffy Bunny)**

**Heart Attack**

The small vessel made its way into the space-station in orbit of Timus. The space-station was where visitors were required to park their vessels before going down to the planet via one of the ferry shuttles, there were two that ran, that would leave the station every half hour or so, depending on the traffic.

Stepping out of the small vessel was a Cardassian male, wearing an eye-patch. As he made his way toward the shuttle ferry center, he noticed that a child, a human child of some kind, had dropped a toy animal. The Cardassian bent over and picked up the fluffy white toy off the cold cement ground and noticed that it had a name written across its chest; Mister Fluffy Bunny. Up ahead he saw a woman, holding a child, heading toward the shuttle. The Cardassian picked up his pace until he caught up with the mother of the child, who was rushing herself, unaware that the child she held over her shoulder had dropped the toy.

"Excuse me miss," the Cardassian said.

The woman stopped, and turned to face the voice that had called out to her. She had to angle her head to make eye contact, due to the fact that he stood nearly seven feet tall.

"I think your child may have dropped this," he showed her the bunny.

"Oh thank you," the woman said with a happy tone in her voice, "If Jessie had lost Mister Fluffy Bunny, he would have been so sad. Thank you very much."

"How old is the child?" the Cardassian asked, as he reached out and tickled the child's cheek.

"He turns three in a month," the woman said. "He seems to like you; do you have children of your own?"

The Cardassian shook his head in the negative.

"No, I never had the opportunity," the Cardassian replied, with remorse in his voice.

THE NEXT SHUTTLE IS LEAVING IN ONE MINUTE …came from an automated voice.

"We better get going," the lady said to her child, "are you going down to the Timus?"

"Later," the Cardassian replied with a smile. "I have to check my ship in with the dock master."

"If you do," she said, "I work at the general store. Please come and visit," the lady said as she hurried off to catch the shuttle.

The Cardassian waved at the child, who was put back over the lady's shoulder and looked back at him. The lady and child got on the shuttle, and moments later it zipped out of the opening to the space dock, and toward the planet below.

Alone, the Cardassian took a look at some of the other parked vessels, and found one to his liking. He made sure no one was watching, and then used a special device to pick the lock that opened up the entrance to the ship. It was no bigger than his, and would provide an optimum backup vehicle if it became needed. He walked around the main compartment, and then surveyed the cockpit. He nodded.

"This will do," he told himself.

Suddenly he heard a sound towards the back. He went toward the back where he saw a door. It was an old fashioned door, with a doorknob, and it was slightly opened. He peeked through the crack in the door and saw two humans, both men, on a bed, being intimate with each other. Normally the Cardassian didn't like taking life, without being paid for it, but he didn't have time to waste. In one swift move, he kicked the door open, and with a hand phaser in each hand, he fired, on stun, so as not to set off any alert system there might have been on the ship. Both men were stunned when they saw him bust in, but could do nothing more than watch as they were stunned with the phaser.

The Cardassian walked over to the two men, still on the bed, but motionless. He took out a knife and slowly, and methodically, he cut their heads, being sure as to not get any of the blood on his own clothing. Why he cut their heads off was quite simple; it was his method of operation, his, MO, as some would describe it.

With that taken care of, and their bodies stored in the trash compartment of the ship, the Cardassian left the small ship and headed for the ferry shuttle. There were nine others, besides him, that were on the shuttle, who were heading down to Timus. The shuttle left its docking platform, and soon headed down to Timus.

Just as the shuttle cleared the space-station, another small vessel made its way into the space-station. After a moment, the pilot found an open platform, and came to a landing exactly on the spot. Moments later, Ryan Tolbert exited the ship. According to a tipoff he had received, and tracking coordinates he had been following, Tolbert had come to Timus to apprehend a known operative for the underworld of crime, and recent employee of the mysterious Cube-1 (Chakotay).

Ryan Tolbert headed over to the ferry shuttle as the latest one from Timus arrived at the station, where it would wait for another half hour until taking visitors, like him, down to the planet. Tolbert had never visited the world before, but remembered reading about it in the news recently, though he couldn't recall what it was about. As he sat down in a seat on the shuttle, Tolbert stood right back up!

He hadn't noticed that here was an object was on the seat; a small stuffed animal of some sort. He picked it up and read the name written across its chest, Mister Fluffy Bunny, smiled, and then sat back down. He would make an attempt to return the toy to its proper owner.

"Don't worry Mister Fluffy Bunny," Ryan said to the stuffed animal he had set in a sitting position in the seat next to his, "we will find your owner."

Ryan Tolbert had once had a daughter, and she had a favorite stuffed animal too; a brown horse named Wildfire. He remembered back to when he had given her the toy, and he smiled. His daughter, and his wife, had both been killed years ago, and now, he missed them both so much.

Several minutes later, twelve other passengers got on board, and then the doors closed and the ferry shuttle made its way down to Timus.

On board the vessel that belonged to the Cardassian, the one he had arrived on, the only sounds that could be heard were those of the on board computers. In the main compartment of the ship, and on one of the small tables, there was a black device of some sort. The outside of the device was labeled; Moriarty.

Continued…


	212. The Secrets we Bare

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**The Secrets we Bare**

**(new cover art at my profile….**

**and please look for STAR TREK: BOLDLY MALCOLM elsewhere on this site. Its about a handicap boy here in our time trying to change the lives of his friends via STAR TREK!)**

The headquarters of Earth's Internal Security (E.I.S.), North America branch, was located near downtown San Francisco. The massive Starfleet complex could be seen on the opposite side of San Francisco bay. Normally Starfleet and the EIS were in good keeping with each other, and had shared info all the time on various investigations. But as Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard and Prime Minister Odo of the Founders were escorted into Commander Mike Stone's office by Lt. Steve Keller, it was clear the gloves were going to come off. Stone nodded at his two visitors as they took seats across from his desk. Lt. Steve Keller was there to, and he stood near the door of the office, holding a basketball, which Stone kept in his office to vent off steam from time to time. Keller set the ball on the corner of the desk as the meeting began.

"Picard; I want to know what is going on," Commander Stone said to Picard and to Odo. "And I want to know now."

"That is rather ironic," Odo said, "I have come here to get my own answers. I want to know how a citizen from my world was killed at your detention center. I would also like to…"

"He was a criminal," Commander Stone interjected.

"He was still a citizen, and he was being taken to the Great Link to face justice," Odo continued to say.

"Oh trust me," Stone said, "I was not in favor of that decision at all; letting him leave here. Laas should have faced judgment here for his killing of Renee Stafford."

"Perhaps," Ambassador Picard said to stone, "however, the Federation overruled your objectives and granted Prime Minister Odo custody once his processing was completed."

"And, it looks like you got your wish," Odo fired back, "because during that processing he was killed while still in your possession, here on Earth. His death could put our peace treaty at risk."

The tension in the room became very evident.

"And then," Stone said, out of nowhere, "the library device containing Moriarty was abducted from my office."

"I fail to see how the two are connected," Odo said to Stone. "True, Laas was out to obtain the technology that Moriarty possessed, but that is not what got him killed. What got him killed was most likely another solid who wanted their own form of justice outside the confines of civilized law."

Stone focused his attention on Picard.

"Picard; when we were discussing the situation with Lal and Rebecca Sisko in their room at the Academy, your assistant, Captain Tom Paris, beamed down with a message." Stone said. "That was when you asked me where Moriarty was and it was at that moment we found out his library device had been stolen out of my office. I would like to know what Captain Paris told you and I would like to know now."

Odo found the question interesting as well, and looked over at Picard. Picard took on a defensive posture. Picard looked at the two of them, then stated flatly;

"I cannot divulge the content of the message without jeopardizing sensitive Federation and Starfleet intelligence."

Stone gave Picard a perturbed look. Lt. Keller didn't care about niceties at all.

"What the hell does that mean Picard?" Keller asked, his voice raised in slight anger. "This is an EIS matter, and you had better start answering some questions. The Changeling was killed under our jurisdiction. All indications point toward penetration of our security grid there, and that library device was stolen from Commander Stone's very own office here in this building. Someone with very high-end transporter tech beamed right in and right out. Our defensive systems are very extraordinary at all our facilities, which means; whoever beamed in had very high tech equipment as well; and I can think of only possibility…Starfleet."

Picard could feel the stares of Keller, Stone and even Odo, on him.

"What I can say is this," Picard said, as he chose his words with tact, "Starfleet did not compromise your security measures here, or at the detention center, nor would they ever."

"You're not even in Starfleet anymore," Commander Stone interjected.

"On this matter, I am," Picard said.

"Then if Starfleet didn't beam into Commander Stone's office then who did?" Odo asked Picard.

Picard knew that the information he possessed was of the most top secret nature. Yet, unless he told Odo and Stone the truth, their own investigations could cause complications. Picard looked over at Lt. Steve Keller.

"I will have to ask you to leave; no offense intended," Picard said to Keller.

Keller gave Picard an irritated look, then stepped out of the office and closed the door.

"What is this all about?" Commander Stone asked.

Picard took a deep breath, and began to explain.

"When Moriarty escaped from Sigma Delta-7," Picard explained, "Starfleet granted me a wide range of authority to bring him back to face justice, and if that failed, to terminate him."

"You do realize Picard that Moriarty was granted citizenship," Commander Stone said. "In fact, according to what I read, you were one of the proponents for that decision."

"I was indeed," Picard said. "However, after he killed Commander Barclay, and after behavior psychologists studied the universe he had created inside of his holographic confines, it was decided to revoke his citizenship under special order 17551JKL-HOL."

"I have never heard of such a special order," Commander Stone replied.

"It is classified at the highest levels," Picard came back with. "Anyway, I approached," Picard had to tread carefully, "dubious powers to terminate Moriarty after routine searching had turned up no leads. A contract was made and…"

"Whoa," Commander Stone said, as he raised his hand up, "stop right here. Are you telling me that you, a Federation Ambassador, approached criminal elements to terminate a citizen of the United Federation of Planets?"

"Again," Picard said, "I was working under very high level orders."

"Excuse me Ambassador," Odo said, "if the rights of holograms can be abridged for what others deem emergency reasons, then what is stopping that from being widened to include anyone; perhaps even Changelings?"

"Prime Minister," Picard said, "I can assure you that Laas was not terminated by Federation agents."

"Wait, one thing at a time," Commander Stone cut in with. "I want to know what happened to Moriarty."

"As I said before," Picard replied, "a contract was made and services were provided."

"Meaning; a criminal element broke into my office and obtained Moriarty." Stone said.

"Yes, however," Picard said, "It must be said that Moriarty's abduction took place outside of the contract's borders. Once he was in custody of the EIS, the client, meaning the person hired to abduct or terminate him, should have broken off the deal but they didn't."

"Who was this client you hired?" Odo asked.

"The client's name is Davot," Picard answered. "We have no idea who he is, all we know is his name; Davot."

Commander Stone slammed his hand down on his desk. He was not happy.

"Why didn't you come to us with this?" Commander Stone demanded. "I know who Davot is."

"You do?" Picard asked.

"Yes, I do," Commander Stone. "First off, I will thank you for being honest with me now Picard. But this jurisdiction crap has to stop; right here and now."

"Who is Davot?" Picard asked.

"Davot is a Cardassian assassin," Commander Stone replied. "We actually picked up message traffic that he had recently been hired for two cleaning jobs. I didn't suspect him in this manner; the theft of the library device, until you dropped his name just now. We know that his other job is, perhaps, on the planet Ravok-IV or Timus prime."

"Who hired him?" Picard asked.

"An elusive criminal by the name of Cube-1," Stone replied. "Cube-1 is responsible for many criminal acts; assassination, bribing, trafficking in illegal slave trading, you name it he's done it. Up to now we have had no idea who this person is. Oh, we have had our suspicions, but," Stone said as he looked at Picard, "we know Davot was hired by Cube-1. You told us a moment ago that you had met with someone of a dubious nature (Chakotay, who we readers already know is Cube-1). I would like to know who that dubious person is."

"Chakotay, a former Starfleet officer." Picard said.

"I knew it might be him," Commander Stone said. "We've never had confirmation, but now we do."

"What will you do with that information?" Picard asked.

"My best man, Agent Ryan Tolbert, is tracking Davot, the Cardassian assassin," Stone said. "Once he has taken care of that situation, I will assign him the task of bringing in Cube-1, Chakotay, to face justice."

"What does any of this have to do with Laas?" Odo asked Picard. "Did this Cardassian assassin, Davot, kill him? And if so, then how did he get through the security measures at the detention center."

"That is why I asked you to come along," Picard said. "Obviously what Commander Stone and I have been discussing has only a general connection with Laas. After he was abducted for his part in trying to obtain the hologram tech, and the murder of Renee Stafford, he was indeed detained. What do you know about his destruction?"

"Only what I have read in the public dispatches; that his cell had been blown up by a bomb," Odo said.

Picard looked at Odo without responding.

"Your silence indicates that a bomb was not used," Odo said. "I am beginning to have my doubts about the Federation with all this secret keeping."

"I had to get you down here, away from your assistants," Picard said, "and this Moriarty situation seemed the best way."

"Why don't you trust my assistants?" Odo asked in an accusatory way.

Picard nodded to Commander Stone.

"Prime Minister," Commander Stone went on to explain, "Laas was not killed by a bomb or a solid like us, even though that is what you might believe. I was ordered by my superiors as well as the Federation Security Force to create a false spin as to how Laas was killed until we could contact you in private."

"Why?" Odo asked. "Why is my being informed in private so important?"

It was at that moment that the basketball on Commander Stone's desk became liquid and began to change in shape.

"I don't like keeping Lt. Keller in the dark like this Jean-Luc," Commander Stone told Picard.

"I understand Mike, but on this issue," Picard said, motioning toward the changing shape of the basketball, "it is a must."

The liquid mass solidified into the shape of a female Founder.

"Hello Odo," the lady Founder said. She being the Founder who had been the leader of the Great Link during the dominion war and who had almost died from the disease created by Section-31. "Your existence, and the entire Great Link, is in peril."

Odo could not believe what he was hearing….and who Starfleet was in cahoots with; HER!

Continued…


	213. Gravity Well

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**Gravity Well (ALL NEW COVER ART...featuring Chakotay-Seven and Admiral Janeway at my profile)**

FLASHBACK…

One year after the return of Voyager to Earth…

Inside the large court room at the Federation Supreme court's main complex in the city of Paris, Earth, several dozen former Maquis members waited for the judges to make their final ruling in regard to their past involvement with the Maquis and what, if any, penalty they would face.

There were three judges. Two of them were humans from Earth. Judge James Parsons had been raised on Earth and attended Harvard. He was considered one of the more liberal judges on the panel. Judge Amri, the other human Judge on the panel, had been raised in Africa. She was seen as the moderate on the panel. The third judge, a Vulcan, was named T'avol. His prowess as a Judge dated back nearly seventy years, due to the long lifespan of Vulcan. He was seen as the stern conservative on the three judge panel.

There were 48 former Maquis defendants. They were all defended by one lawyer, perhaps the Federation's most known lawyer due to his ability to think outside the box. His name was Gerry Spence, and he had gone up against all three judges many times in the past.

Perhaps the most noted defendant was Commander Chakotay, who sat next to Gerry Spence at the front desk that faced the panel of Judges. Chakotay took a moment and casually looked back at his wife, Seven of Nine, as she sat behind him three rows back, holding their infant daughter; Yudelle. Seven smiled back at her husband. Sitting next to Seven were three of Chakotay's closest friends; Tom Paris, his wife B'Elanna, and next to her, was Chakotay's very close friend; Kathryn Janeway.

It was at that moment when the three Federation judges entered the room from a door behind their tall bench.

"All rise," a voice said from the PA system.

Everyone in the court rose to their as the Judges entered and took their seats. T'avol sat in the middle, with Judge Parsons flanking him to the left and Judge Amri flanking T'avol to the right. The soft murmuring of the gallery came to a complete silence.

"Please be seated," T'avol announced.

Everyone sat back down and waited for the decision to be announced.

"The Maquis," Judge T'avol began to say, "was a terrorist movement at its very core." The crowd began to murmur, but silence returned. "While we can find compassion for aspects of their cause, the truth here cannot be denied. This legal binding panel has reached a unanimous decision. The members of Maquis that served aboard the Voyager are sentenced to the same thirty-five years of internment as other Maquis members. Due to their honorable service aboard the Voyager, that sentence has been reduced to fifteen-years."

T'avol picked up his gavel and slammed it on the desk.

Shouts of anger, and other shouts of joy from those who hated the Maquis and what they stood for, came from the gallery.

"This is an utter outrage; I will appeal this decision," Gerry Spence announced in anger as the three judges made their way from the bench, and through the doors that took them back to their chambers.

Chakotay sat in his seat, anger filled his veins. He and Seven had an infant child, a baby girl, and now, due to the just handed down sentence, Chakotay would spend most of the child's early life at a penal colony. Two Federation Marshalls, holding batons, came over to Chakotay. They motioned for him to stand up.

"Just let me see my wife and child for one more moment," Chakotay pleaded.

"No," one of the Marshalls, Timothy Wilkes said, with a soft voice. "My name is Timothy Wilkes. My father died when the Cardassians attacked our world after one of your silly Maquis attacks on one of their freighters. My father never got to see me again; so consider us even."

And with that, Marshall Timothy Wilkes took out his baton out and whacked Chakotay in the midsection. Admiral Janeway rushed over to where Chakotay had collapsed to his knees in pain.

"Why did you strike this man?" Janeway demanded of the Marshall Sergeant Wilkes.

"He spit on me," Wilkes lied.

Seven came over, but Wilkes and the other Marshall, Corporal Greg Innis, forced Chakotay up. And as Innis held Chakotay back, Wilkes stood between them and the others.

"I want you to let him say goodbye to his wife and daughter," Janeway ordered.

"I'm sorry, Admiral Janeway," Wilkes said with a smug look on his face, "but we have protocols just as much as Starfleet does. This convicted criminal will be processed, and if you're lucky, he might get to see his wife and kid four weeks from now at the penal colony on Tantalus V."

Chakotay was ushered away, but not before he looked back at his wife, Seven of Nine, and smiled at her.

"I love you," she told him

"I know," he said with a wink as he was taken out of the room.

"They didn't have to do that," B'Elanna said, "I know Klingon courts can be quite difficult, but one wouldn't expect this from a Federation court."

"After this ruling," Tom Paris said, as he looked at his wife, "all of you former Maquis may have to turn yourselves in. We have to fight this idiotic ruling."

"And we will," Gerry Spence, the lawyer representing the former Maquis, said as he came up to the former Voyager crew members. "Judge T'avol made this ruling because he had to."

"They made their ruling," Admiral Janeway said, "I can't see how there can be much hope gleaned from it."

"Now Kate," Gerry said a laugh, "you and I have known each other since you were that scruffy little girl who beat up my son in middle-school. You know that I just don't make idle chatter. I have heard enough rumblings and have been in too many backdoor meetings to know better; this decision is going to be amended."

"So what happens to my husband until that time?" Seven asked as she held her child.

Gerry Spence looked at Seven, her blond hair held tight on her head which accented the Borg implant around her eye, and then he looked at the very young child in her arms.

"Look here, Seven," Gerry said, "I told you and your husband that this was going to be the most likely outcome. I am also telling you that things will change; I guarantee it."

* * *

**Two months later…Fourteen months after the return of Voyager**

The penal colony at Tantalus V had been the destination for most of the former Maquis that had lost their appeals. The tension between the former "terrorists" and the prison guard community had been amicable, if not friendly.

Chakotay entered the visitor's center and smiled as he saw his wife sitting in a chair holding their child.

"You've put on weight," Seven said, in her usual matter of fact tone. "What are they feeding you?"

"The food isn't that bad," Chakotay said, as he sat down next to her.

Chakotay leaned in closer and kissed his wife, under the watchful eye of the guards who monitored them, and the other inmates who were with their own visitors.

"It is agreeable to kiss you again," Seven said. "It is a pleasure I did not think I would put much value in; but I was wrong."

"Is there any word on the appeal?" Chakotay asked, as he held his daughter. "How is B'Elanna fairing with her own appeal?"

"Her appeal is being held up by the appeals of those already incarcerated, like you." Seven explained. "I doubt her case will even be heard for two or three more years."

"It makes sense," Chakotay said.

"I have something else to tell you," Seven said. "It concerns our daughter," Seven said, as she looked at their daughter in his arms.

"Yudelle; I don't understand," Chakotay said, as he looked closer at this smiling baby girl. "She looks fine to me."

Chakotay was about to find out that his daughter faced an uncertain future; and it was at this moment Chakotay's life was about to make a dark turn.

Continued…


	214. The Big Reveal

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**The Big Reveal**

The extended family of the late Gregory Williams, those who were still alive, was summoned to the giant log mansion estate by Constable S'vath. S'vath waited in the main study, the same room where the reading of the Will had taken place, as each of them. He was there with the Efrosian lawyer of Greg Williams estate; Ra-Giantha.

First to arrive was Martin Thorn, the husband of Gwen Williams. She had just been killed two days earlier while the car she was racing down the foothills outside of Summit Grove smashed through a barrier. Thorn was obviously still grieving.

Next to arrive was Gabe Williams. His face was still black and blue from when thugs had jumped him outside of Quarks and had beaten him. Williams, earlier in the day, had returned from his visit off world to the museum world of Karvalla. He didn't think anyone knew of his secret trip to Karvalla, but he was wrong; S'vath already knew.

Tracey Williams came in next, the eldest daughter of Gregory Williams, and as usual, had an alcoholic drink in her hand.

Finally Vernon Williams, the older brother of Greg Williams, arrived. They all took their seats on the couches or seats near to them, except for S'vath.

"You've bungled this case, Vulcan," Vernon said, pointing his finger at S'vath. "Denise is dead, my brother's wife Stella is dead, and now, Gwen is dead."

"Yeah," Tracey added, as she slurped from her hard liquor, "what do you have to say to that?"

"Well for one," S'vath told them all, "one of you four," he pointed at each one of them "could be a killer."

The four of them, as well as Ra-Giantha, looked at each other suspiciously.

"If either of you killed Gwen, by screwing with her car," Martin Thorn said, "I'll kill you."

"Oh shut up," Tracey said. "Should I tell S'vath how you were boning me while married to my sister? He might like to know."

The statement brought silence to the room.

There was a knock on the door, and then Harrison Riker came in and handed S'vath the final mechanic report that was made on Gwen's crashed sports car and the coroner's report on Denise's death as well. He nodded at Riker upon reading them.

"Alright," S'vath said, "I am sorry that it has taken us so long to solve this crime. But up to now, the crimes that were committed were lacking real evidence. Both we now know that Stella and Denise were killed by the very medicine they were taking to extend their lives. Your mother," S'vath explained to Gabe and Tracey, "Suffered from a chronic heart condition. Denise was being treated for a rare form of diabetes. They had both been on various medicines for their conditions. And now, according to the lab report, both medicines had trace elements of Z-ol 7. Z-ol 7 is a Romulan drug that can kill, over time, with very small doses."

"How do you know this? Why would anyone kill my mother and my sister?" Gabe asked.

"We'll get to that," S'vath replied. "This report on the unfortunate incident with Gwen's car proves that someone purposely loosened the axle mounts on her drive, but," S'vath continued, "whoever had done this did it before she had last driven the car. Meaning, they knew she didn't drive the car on a routine bases, and knew she would die the next time she drove it, which was two days ago. Now, according to our records, the last time Gwen had driven the car was nearly three months ago, which is usually how long she went between the times she drove."

"What's your point?" Vernon asked. "Are you saying someone tampered with her car months ago?"

"Again, I'll get to that in a moment," S'vath replied to Vernon. "Now, very recently," S'vath said, as he stared at Gabe, "My wife and I visited Karvalla, the art museum a few systems away from Timus. We went there because I remembered visiting there sometime back and seeing that painting," S'vath pointed at the Monet on the wall, "at the museum. Now according to Ra-Giantha, all of these works of art inside this mansion are certified authentic originals."

"Is the one you saw at the museum still there?" Martin Thorn asked.

"Yes," S'vath said. "And as it turns out; it too is a certified original."

"Wait a second," Ra-Giantha said, as he sat in a chair next to where S'vath stood, "are you telling us that the Monet in this room right over there," he pointed at it, "is a fake?"

"Yes, and to answer your next question," S'vath said quickly, "according to experts I contacted at Karvalla, all of the paintings on the walls of this mansion, the ones that are of a high value, are fakes. The originals are all at the museum."

"How can that be?" Martin Thorn asked.

"Do you want me to tell them, or do you?" S'vath asked Gabe.

"You can't prove anything," Gabe said with a dismissive tone to his voice.

"Oh, but we will eventually," S'vath said. "We already know that you have outstanding gambling debts to the Syndicate. Your Bolian accomplice, Mr. Thrise of the Karvalla museum, has already admitted to paying you for the originals so that you could pay off your debts."

"Constable," Ra-Giantha cut in, "I'm a lawyer, and at this moment I am going to offer my services to Gabe pro bono. You have no right to make these accusations, and in any event, none of this has anything to do with the murders of Stella, Denise and Gwen."

"I agree," S'vath said to Ra-Giantha. "None of this has anything to do with the murders. By the way," S'vath said to Vernon, "we also know that you were the one who created the exact duplicates that are on the walls here; Thrise already told us about your part of the scam. You were always jealous of the fact that your brother got notoriety for being a painter, and you never did. What better way to get back at him than to create fakes. Gabe would sell the originals to Thrise, and then the two of you would split the payment."

"Mr. Ra-Giantha; I would hope your legal offer to Gabe would also extend to me," Vernon said.

"It certainly does," Ria-Giantha replied stoically.

"So where does that leave us?" Martin Thorn asked. "These idiots were scamming Gabe's father, by stealing…"

"Allegedly stealing," Ria-Giantha corrected him.

"You can call it whatever you want, asshole," Martin Thorn said, with sarcasm in his voice, "So they were stealing the paintings off the wall, selling them, and replacing them with fakes. But what I want to know," Martin said, as he stood up to face S'vath, "is who killed my wife? If it's one of these clowns, I want to know!"

"Your wife, as well as her sisters Denise and her mother Stella," S'vath said, "were not killed by anyone in this room." S'vath announced.

"So this scam," Martin said, as he looked with anger at the Gabe and Vernon, "is just a side show."

"And a waste of time," Teresa added, as she took another swig.

"Oh, it isn't a waste of time," S'vath, "I know who killed them."

The others looked at S'vath.

"Are you just going to stand there or are you going to tell us?" Ria-Giantha demanded.

S'vath tapped the communicator on his chest.

"Come in here please," S'vath said.

The door to the study opened and Deputy Harrison Riker entered, with two assistants.

"I'm placing both of you," S'vath said to Gabe and Vernon, "under arrest for fraud. The trafficking of stolen art is a serious crime and, based on the statements we have from Mr. Thrise, I am quite confident you will both serve time."

"I doubt it," Ria-Giantha said, as he watched restraints being put on the wrists of Vernon and Gabe Williams.

"And as for who killed the others," S'vath said, as he walked over to the self portrait of Gregory Williams, "it was none other than," he pointed up at the portrait, "Gregory Williams himself. He hated his wife, he knew of the scam Gabe and Vernon were doing with his paintings, and he never wanted Gwen to marry you Mister Thorn. We traced the Z-ol 7, which has distinctive properties, to a Romulan supplier who provided us details of how Gregory contacted him for the purchase. Gregory also asked the Romulan supplier how to administer the drug, overtime, so as to kill someone and having it look like a natural death. The car that Gwen was killed in was a gift from Gregory, a car enthusiast himself, and upon closer inspection, his prints were lifted from the drive chassis and carbon dating puts them being applied to exactly three months ago, before he had died."

"Then Tracey gets everything," Vernon said softly, "if Gabe and I are convicted."

"Precisely," S'vath said, as he looked over at Tracey. "Under current law, no convicted criminal can be the beneficiary to an estate. So it seems that you," S'vath said, "will inherit everything."

Tracey took another drink and burped.

"I guess that makes me the richest bitch on Timus," Tracey said, as she walked out of the room nearly drunk.

Moments later, S'vath watched as Harrison Riker sped away in the police land-speeder, with both Greg Williams and Vernon Williams with him.

"You do know that she will squander all the wealth," Ria-Giantha said, as he got up on his horse and prepared to leave. "She's a drunk and absolutely without any kind of class, like her parents had."

"Perhaps," S'vath said, "but she is the last one standing, which means, she gets it all," as he too mounted his own horse.

"By the way, you'll never make those charges stick against Gabe and Vernon Williams," Ria-Giantha added with a chuckle.

"We'll see," S'vath said, as both of their horses trotted down the main path that led to Summit Grove.

S'vath arrived home about an hour later. The babies, Lenora and Sarek, were quietly sleeping in their room, and he kissed each of them on the forehead before he left their room.

Upon entering the master bedroom he shared with his wife Amanda, he was very pleased to see his wife and Eran engaged in quite an erotic intimate act. He closed the door…and joined them.

NEXT TIME..the episode you won't want to miss! The one-eyed Cardassian hit man, Davot, has arrived on Timus to kill the person who helped destroy the Maquis; Benjamin Sisko. Tragedy strikes and sets forth a chain of events that will lead to the doorstep of Chakotay!


	215. Focal Point

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**Focal Point (New cover art at my profile...the cast is all there pretty much)**

**Planet Timus…**

Benjamin Sisko stood before the full length mirror, which was attached to the outside of his clothing closet, and looked at himself. He was wearing a purple suit, a brown vest with an orange tie, and seven different colored flower blooms adorning the tie from top to bottom. He then reached down and picked up a hat, which bore a very similar look to a sombrero, dark blue in color, and placed it on his head. He looked at himself again, in the mirror, and shook his head.

"What's wrong?" came from the voice of his wife, Kasidy, as she watched him from under the covers of their bed, relaxing after an afternoon of love making; which they seldom ever got to do. "You look," she paused for affect, "interesting."

Ben Sisko giggled slightly.

"I look like a fool," Ben Sisko said, as he turned to face her. "Tell me once again why I am wearing such a silly outfit?"

"You know why, mister mayor," she said with a giggle, "today is the Farmer's Market fair, and each year the mayor attends the fair wearing that outfit."

"I would have like to have seen the last mayor, the Klingon, show up in something like this," Ben Sisko said, with a sound of remorse in his voice.

"Hey now," Kas said, "The children at the elementary school spent hours looking for the blooms on that tie, each one representing the mayor and previous mayors. So when we get up on that stage tonight and ring the bell to start the festivities, I want you to wipe that grimace off your face, and show appreciation for them. This is a yearly celebration and allows everyone to have fun."

"I never thought I'd hear myself say this," Ben said, "but I think I'd prefer another Cardassian biker parade. Do you know that it has taken me nearly an hour to put this entire thing on?"

"And I've enjoyed watching you every step of the way," Kas said, in a seductive tone.

Suddenly there was a knock down stairs at front the door.

"Mavis isn't here, she went to town already," Kas said, as she got out of her bed and put on her robe. "I'll go see who it is. I hope its Jim though," Kas added, "he needs to get out of that house and have some fun for once."

"I'll go with you," Ben said, as he followed her, "I think the orange cummerbund is down here somewhere too."

They reached the front door and were totally surprised at who they saw; their daughter Rebecca and her friend Lal!

"Mom, dad," Rebecca said, as she extended her hand and showed off a big diamond ring, "I'M MARRIED!"

And then a young man stepped into view; and suddenly Ben Sisko, the happy go lucky mayor of Summit Grove, wasn't so happy any longer; his daughter had REALLY grown up!

* * *

Quark's hotel/casino was packed with customers, more than usual. Quark stood on the second level of the casino, holding an empty drink tray, and looked down at all the customers. Not only were they gambling, and mostly losing, they were also drinking and eating food, spending even more latinum, and the holosuites were booked solid.

At first, couple months ago, Quark had had second doubts about relocating to Timus; but when he looked down the throng of gamblers, with their cheers ringing throughout the casino, he knew that he had made the right decision. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned and was shocked to find his brother, Rom, and Rom's wife Leeta standing before him.

At first there was an air of tension between Quark and his brother. The last time they had been together was when Nog had been believed killed during the Doomsday Machine incident, and they had an unpleasant exchange. _(#85)_

"I didn't think you'd ever want to speak to me again," Quark said with remorse.

"Are you serious! You're my older brother," Rom said. "And we were both upset at thinking we had lost Nog, but we didn't."

The two Ferengi brothers hugged each other, as Leeta watched on. A tear came down from her eyes at seeing the two finally reconciling.

"This is so cute," Leeta said with a laugh of joy.

Two tables away, S'vath, Amanda and Eran were out to have dinner, after the three had shared a wild night together; in one bed. Eran, who an un-joined Trill female humanoid, was enjoying the night with her two new friends.

Amanda set her hand on top of Eran's hand.

"I want to thank you for last night," Amanda said. "S'vath and I haven't had that kind of," Amanda thought for the right word, "fun since Sarek was born. I haven't been that intimate with another woman for some time, and I really needed."

Eran smiled at Amanda, and then they both kissed passionately as S'vath watched, very pleased at what he was seeing. Moments later, a Ferengi waiter brought them their food.

* * *

On the third floor of the casino, in his hotel room, was Davot; the one-eyed Cardassian hit man who had arrived on Timus. He was assembling his specially made hand weapon, while smoking a Cuban cigar, a bad habit he had picked up many years earlier. He had purchased the hand weapon from a Pakled arms dealer, and had only used it once before. He would use the weapon and kill Sisko, and escape at the same time. Later in the night when Sisko was officiating at the Farmer's Market Festival, and was out in the open, Davot would make his move.

Davot had come to Timus for extra credit that would surely come from killing Sisko. It was no secret that Cube-1, or Chakotay as Davot knew him to be, had wanted to see Benjamin Sisko dead. Sisko had been one of the Starfleet officers who, more than anyone else, had helped destroy the Maquis during the Dominion war. Chakotay hadn't hired Davot to do the job, but that didn't matter. Davot was sure that Chakotay would pay him for the extra work.

* * *

**The home of James T Kirk…**

Both of the babies were sound asleep in their crib, in the living room, as Kirk sat with Harrison Riker and Myran. The last time the three had been together, Kirk had found Myran, the wife of his duplicate, in the act of having sex with Harrison Riker, whom this Kirk did not even know. It was a situation that had to be dealt with.

"I'm so sorry," Myran said, "I never wanted to hurt you."

Kirk nodded in understanding. He had made mistakes of his own, while traveling life's road of love and hurt. He had once had an affair with a married woman, during one of his adventures that took him to the era of World War II. And then there was the incident that drove Carol Marcus away from him; a woman named Ruth.

"I'm not here to judge anyone," Jim Kirk replied, "and I am sorry if I did that first night we met. These children are yours, more than they are mine. They need their mother."

"Look," Myran said, "even if you are not the same Jim Kirk I was married to; it doesn't matter. These kids need their father, and to them, you are their father."

"She's right Jim," Harrison said. "My father (his father was the late Thomas Riker)was hardly ever there for me when I was growing up, due to being in the Maquis and or the Dominion War. In time I forgave him, but the truth is, I really needed him at times, and he wasn't there. It may not seem so, but trust me, Mathew and Dahme will need you too; someday."

Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

"Ah," Kirk said with a smile, "that's probably Mavis. She agreed to watch the babies so I could go into town and wind down at a place called Quarks."

"We're going there too," Myran said. "Can we come with you?"

Kirk smiled.

"Of course," Kirk said. "Perhaps we are no longer married, if you can call it that since I'm not who you married, but at least we can be friends. Let me go get the door."

Kirk made his way to the door and opened it, but was shocked at who was there; it wasn't Mavis at all.

"Spock?" Kirk gasped as he saw the much aged Vulcan.

And Spock wasn't alone; Sulu was there, as was an individual from a race Kirk had never encountered before.

"The name is G'kar," the Narn said, as he reached out his hand. "Kirk; your name is legendary even on my world, and trust me; my world has a thing for legends."

Kirk absent mindedly shook the aliens' hand, but didn't take his eyes off his old friend.

"Jim Kirk," Spock said. "It is really you this time; I sensed it the moment you came out of the Nexus."

Kirk smiled upon seeing his old friend and then…the two of them hugged. Little did they know that their reunion, on Timus, would soon be shattered with tragedy and loss of life; but such was the river of fate. And…the night was young!

Next time…Ryan Tolbert has also arrived on Timus. But will he be too late to stop Davot from carrying out his plan?

Coming soon…Garak travels to a distant world in search of clues about Harrison Riker's past.

Annika Hansen and Chakotay share a past that began with love; but ended with sorrow!

Jonathan Canary and the crew of the Emprenda have been sent to save an endangered species…but instead they find a man named **Khan Noonien Singh!**

James T Kirk finds himself on a collision course with Chakotay!


	216. Chains of a Soul

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light** _(NEW COVER ART at my profile...)_

(**Chains of a Soul**

Previously...

**Earth…**

_Inside the office of Commander Mike Stone at the headquarters of Earth Internal Security near down town San Francisco_

The liquid mass solidified into the shape of a female Founder.

"Hello Odo," the lady Founder said. She being the Founder who had been the leader of the Great Link during the dominion war and who had almost died from the disease created by Section-31. "Your existence, and the entire Great Link, is in peril."

Odo could not believe what he was hearing….and who Starfleet was in cahoots with; HER!

**Our Story continued...**

"What is she doing here?" Odo asked Ambassador Picard and Commander Stone. "Have the two of you gone mad?"

The Lady Founder smiled at Odo, and reached out her hand.

"That is all you have to say to me after all this time?" Lady Founder asked with her soft and warm voice. "Touch my hand Odo."

Picard stood up between Odo and the Lady Founder, knowing full well, from his conversations with Colonel Kira and Benjamin Sisko, the effect she had upon Odo.

"I thought I made is clear to you that touching Odo was prohibited," Picard told her.

The Lady Founder stood back, but for a fleeting moment, Picard saw look in her eyes that revealed she didn't really want to. It was a look that Picard would not forget.

"We needed her help," Picard explained, as he sat back down as Odo did too. "The information we are about to share with you Prime Minister Odo is of a nature that threatens both the Federation and the Great Link."

"And before we brought this information to you," Commander Stone said to Odo, "we wanted to verify it first, and she was the best source we could find."

"And I," Lady Founder said, "was more than willing to help; as best I could."

Odo looked at her, and then back to Picard.

"Excuse me Ambassador," Odo said to Picard, "I am quite familiar with the term quid pro quo," Odo explained. "Exactly what is this information and what have you promised her in return?"

Picard nodded at Commander Stone, who then activated the monitor located behind his desk on the wall. Images of Laas, inside his holding cell, appeared on the screen. Suddenly the fluid nature of the images flickered and then the terrible image of the solid, unshaped form Laas's silicone existence appeared.

"I have already seen this image," Odo told the two of them.

"Watch again," Picard said. "This time pay close attention to the lower left part of the screen, near the wall."

The footage was replayed, showing Laas pacing in his cell. And then, in the lower left part of the screen, the wall began to glow and melt, and then the still image of Laas's dead form appeared.

"What was that?" Odo asked.

"Odo," Lady Founder said, "You do not need to ask such an obvious question. You know what you saw."

"Perhaps this is a trick by Section-31," Odo said to Picard. "I wouldn't put it past them to shift the blame."

"No," Lady Founder said, "Odo, take a look at the image again, of the wall in motion," Lady Founder said.

Commander Stone repeated the footage again.

"Prime Minister," Commander Stone said, "I assure you these are genuine security images."

"And if it were a trick why would it be so obvious?" Picard added. "A quantum stasis field would be generated to prevent shape-shifting, or Laas would have already escaped. So why would we create fake security data of a second shape-shifter in the cell, and allow that error to go unchallenged?"

"I don't know," Odo said softly. "You tell me."

"I am going to tell you," Lady Founder said. "If you watch the security image, you will see that this section of the wall shifts, and for the brief moment it is seen, it emits a translucent glow."

"Yes, I saw that," Odo said. "What is it; what caused that?"

"Before she responds," Picard said, "I must insist that you keep this information to yourself for obvious security reasons."

Odo nodded for Picard.

"They are known as the Imeyah (first mentioned in #202)," Lady Founder said, in a soft tone. "Like us, they are a race of shape-shifters, but one that we had long thought been extinct; obviously we were wrong. And if they have returned," she added, "then I fear for the Great Link; for only we can stop them."

"Perhaps they can be reasoned with," Odo said to her, and Picard.

"They cannot be reasoned with," Lady Founder said. "In fact, there is a reason that both they and the Borg cannot not be reasoned with; the Imeyah created the Borg and their single purpose; assimilating the entire galaxy."

* * *

Across the San Francisco bay, at Starfleet Academy, the campus grounds were quiet as the summer break had started earlier in the week. Many of the cadets used that time to catch up on their studies, or, to retake tests they may have had trouble with. Other cadets used the month's time to visit relatives or friends on Earth, or even off world.

One of the most sought after places to visit at the Academy were the large stellar cartography complex and the space exploration museum. Just by walking through the cartography complex, one could find themselves lost beyond the stars. Even though she had been disconnected from the collective for many years, and the last of her Borg implants were gone as well, Annika still found walking among the stars to be very soothing. Perhaps it was because she felt most at home doing so.

Annika Hansen had never attended Starfleet Academy, and yet, here she was in preparing to teach the next generation of Starfleet officers. Her life had taken an abrupt twist in fate when she had been assimilated by the Borg collective at a very young age.

"I like coming here too, when I have the time," a voice said from behind her.

Annika turned around to find Commander Deanna Troi.

"I find peace here," Annika told her.

"I know the feeling," Troi said. "I think most of us who have spent most of our lives out there, out there with the stars; places like this help us keep that connection."

"I'm sorry but most of the memories I have of being there, in space, are blurs of images. Sometimes I wish I were still…"

"Assimilated?" Troi asked, finishing the sentence for her.

Annika did not respond at first.

"I'm sorry," Annika said to Troi after a moment. "I keep forgetting that my past is known to everyone else but me."

Troi came closer and reached out and held Annika's hand.

"I know this time is difficult for you," Troi said. "I just want you to know that I was asked to help you by your friends and especially Admiral Janeway because they only want the best for you. Our first two sessions have helped, but I don't want to push you. Your mind is trying to protect you from the hurt and pain."

Annika closed her eyes. And in that brief moment she saw images of herself holding a baby; a little girl. The images were brief and included images of a man with an interesting tattoo above his life eye, but then as fast as the images had come, they were gone.

"I had a child," she stated in a whisper, as a tear came down from her left eye. She kept her eyes closed.

"Yes you did," Troi said with a smile, as she reached out and dried the tear. "A beautiful girl named Yudelle."

Annika still kept her eyes her eyes closed.

"Why can't I remember?" Annika asked, with guilt in her voice, as it trembled with sorrow. "If she was my daughter then why is it I can only catch glimpses of her?"

And then an answer came, but not from Troi.

"Your soul has chosen to let go; your mind has not," came from a third voice, a man's voice, though it sounded very old and wise.

Annika turned to see a Native American who wore the proud headpiece of a chief; with feathers that stretched down his back all the way to just inches above the ground. Annika closed her eyes again and saw brief images again; of the old chief, as he held the child, both surrounded by fire, and then she opened her eyes again.

"Where is Yudelle?" she asked…

Continued…


	217. Pass me the Catchup

**JAMES T KIRK: Shadow and Light**

**(NEW COVER ART at my profile…)**

**Pass me the Catch-up**

A horse and buggy made its way down a path that was intermittently lit by torch poles that were spaced apart every two hundred feet or so. Two horses were pulling the buggy, as dusk was rapidly approaching the planet Timus. The path led to the center of Summit Grove. And even though the center of town was still three miles off, the sounds of festivities could already be heard coming from it.

Hikaru Sulu held the reins that fed out to the two horses, and he expertly handled them. To him it was no different than helming a mighty star ship, and he took the greatest care, because Sitting next to him was Mavis Sisko, and between the two of them were two small children; Mathew and Dahme Kirk.

"It was nice of you to drive us to the Farmer Market's festival, Hikaru," Mavis said. "Myran is going to meet us there."

"Did you think the situation between Jim and Myran would be resolved so quickly?"

"Of course," Mavis said, "they didn't fall in love. She did fall in love with the Kirk we knew, and she knew, but he wasn't the one who came back from the Nexus; this Kirk did. Now, had the Jim Kirk we had known come back and found her and Harrison making love on the kitchen floor of his house? That would have been a little more, oh," she thought about the right expression, "of a soap opera. But, anyway, thank you for taking us to town for the festival."

Sulu looked at her and smiled.

"Believe me, it is no problem at all," Sulu replied with a smiled. "Being reunited with my old friends is all that I need. Besides, I am showcasing my carrots in the barnyard, and I have also submitted a blueberry pie in the pie contest."

"Well now, isn't that funny," Mavis said with a chuckle, "I submitted my homemade apple pie in the very same contest. Kasidy brought it with her when she and Ben, as well as Rebecca and Lal, headed to town earlier. Though, if I may be honest, I think you have an unfair advantage," Mavis added.

"Oh really," Sulu said looking over at her for a moment, "What advantage are you speaking of?"

"Well," Mavis said, "I did some research, and according to what I read, you were born in the 2230s, which means, you've had well over a hundred years to practice your recipes since being old to cook and bake."

"Mavis; a good amount of that time," Sulu added, as he helmed the buggy, "Was spent on starships where I really wasn't able to do much cooking at all."

Mavis laughed.

"Don't try to pool the wool over on me, sugar," Mavis said, with some of her southern attitude, "I was speaking with my brother (Ben Sisko) and he told me you were the captain of one of them there starships. He also told me that you had a five-star kitchen added to your quarters."

"Well," Sulu said, "that is true. But from what I also heard from your brother," Sulu added, "there isn't a day in your life where you haven't cooked something. I would say that the both of us may have an advantage over these local types," Sulu added.

"I'm gonna win," Mavis said with a boastful tone in her voice.

"You don't stand a chance," Sulu added with a chuckle of his own.

Several yards behind the buggy there were two more horses, with men atop them. James T Kirk was on one of the horses, Ambassador Spock on the other. Kirk listened intently as continued to Spock explain to him the existence of the other Jim Kirk and about how that Kirk had been created by transporter duplication, and had arrived in the future.

"He arrived in the future, five years ago," Spock explained. "He told me later that he had been approached by agents from the temporal division of Starfleet, and was asked to live a new life here on Timus, and they even gave him an alias. It is on this planet where he met the Bajoran woman, Myran, and married her."

"And…From what Benjamin Sisko explained," Kirk told Spock, "that Jim Kirk had some incredible adventures in the past couple years."

"That," Spock said with a lifted eyebrow, "would be known as putting it lightly."

"Tell me about S'vath, your son," Kirk said with a smile, "how did that happen? Did you ever get married?"

"As of yet I have not married," Spock explained, though he had proposed to Elizabeth Pike recently, "S'vath was also T'pring's son," Spock told Kirk.

Kirk shook his head in disbelief.

"You," Kirk said, "and T'pring? You've got to be kidding me. She almost got me killed, and you drummed out of Starfleet as well. Did Bones know about this?"

"Indeed," Spock said. "You have to remember Jim that T'pring and I were promised to each for reasons other than love; it had been a logical pairing. About thirty-five years ago I decided that I wanted an offspring, but was not sure that I was of the marrying type, as my father had been. I contacted T'pring, and she agreed, and we decided to have a child together. And as for the good doctor," Spock added, "he told me I was out of my Vulcan mind, to which I responded…"

"You're half human," Kirk said for Spock, already knowing the usual punch line. "So, anyway, your son is here on Timus," Kirk said, "and pretty much the sheriff of Summit Grove. From what I hear, your son is married and even has two children of his own."

"Yes," Spock said, with pride in his voice, "S'vath has lived quite an interesting life. Though, to be honest, it has not always been pleasant between him and me. He reminds me much of Sybok, in his quest to live a life as un-Vulcan as possible."

"You said that he was T'pring's son, past tense," Kirk said, "what happened to her?"

Spock thought back to the closing events inside of the Naissance Sphere, and how T'pring had been killed while aboard the USS Hanoi.

"She lost her life, along with five hundred others, when the starship she was on was destroyed by the defensive systems at the Naissance Dysonsphere," Spock told Kirk, "though, to her credit, she had come to try and warn S'vath and me about Sybok."

"Wait a moment; Sybok is alive?" Kirk asked. "I thought he died inside the Great Barrier at the center of our galaxy," Kirk added.

"Somehow he lived," Spock explained. "He returned to Federation space, and eventually was involved with T'pring and their shared attempt to kidnap my son's children. T'pring realized she had made a mistake, going in league with him, and as I said, died trying to warn S'vath and me about Sybok's attentions. You should also know," Spock said to Kirk, in a softer tone, "Sybok's whereabouts are unconfirmed (The Si'hg killed him), however, before he disappeared, Sybok took the life of Montgomery Scott in the process."

Kirk felt his heart grow heavy, upon hearing about the death of the famed engineer. Kirk calculated the year it was now, and had a strange thought.

"How old was Scotty?" Kirk asked; as he started to realize how old Scotty must have been.

"Jim, if you are referring to what would seem to have been his advanced age," Spock began to say, "he, just as your time inside the Nexus was, became involved with a time paradox. A vessel he was on crashed landed on the surface of a Dysonsphere many decades ago, not too long after your disappearance into the Nexus. In order to survive, he kept his existence continuing by recycling his transporter signal through the ship's transporter buffer."

Kirk laughed at the thought of what Scotty had done.

"That sounds like something that cranky old miracle worker would do." Kirk said with a chuckle, "You know Spock; we sure were fortunate to spend as much time as we did, with that old crew," Kirk said. "And now they're all gone, except for you and me and Hikaru," Kirk said, with pride in his voice.

Spock lifted an eyebrow, for he knew better. Before he could explain that to Kirk, Kirk had another question.

"Who is your friend G'kar?" Kirk asked, referring to the Narn who had arrived with Spock earlier and who had went on ahead of them in a taxi land-speeder, due to his fear of horses.

"G'kar is helping me solve a mystery I have stumbled upon over the past few months," Spock told Kirk.

"What kind of mystery?" Kirk asked.

"Several months ago I was called to Romulus by an old friend," Spock explained. "The Romulans uncovered an ancient cave with unique carvings on the wall that seem to depict a Vulcan, there on Romulus, witnessing the explosion of a star fifty thousand years ago."

Kirk shook his head, and thought about what Spock had said.

"I thought the Romulans left your world," Kirk thought for a moment, "in Earth's 4th century, so let me see, that was something like almost two thousand years go?"

"Precisely," Spock said, awarding Kirk's surprisingly good memory of basic history and mathematic skills.

"And how old is this carving on Romulus again?" Kirk asked.

"Fifty thousand years," Spock said, "and I already know your next question."

"Alright, what is it?" Kirk asked, challenging his friend, in a friendly way.

"How do we know it was a Romulan depicted in the drawing and not a Romulan," Spock said.

"Damn," Kirk said, underneath his breath, "So what was the answer?"

"The letters SPK are distinctively carved beneath this person on the drawing," Spock said. "However, in any event, no Romulan or Vulcan should have been on that world that long ago."

"Now that is interesting," Kirk said, after a moment. "What does G'kar have to with all of this?"

"His species, the Narn," Spock explained, "Are one of the older ones in this part of the galaxy. Their history encompasses the time that the carving was made on Romulus. On the carving is writing from a written language that is no longer in existence, because the world from which it sprang from was destroyed. On a side note," Spock said, "your son, Mathew? His counterpart from an alternate future time traveled into the past of this timeline and was involved in a metaphysical war, which also happened fifty-thousand years ago."

"Are the two events related?" Kirk asked.

Spock arched an eyebrow.

"I have not yet considered that possibility," Spock admitted.

At that moment, yet another horse galloped up from behind, but instead of a man riding it, there was a beautiful woman; blond.

"Its' that doctor," Kirk said to Spock, "Before she left my house, she told me to wait until she came back and gave me a clean bill of health."

"Perhaps she is right," Spock said. "What exactly happened to you?"

Before Kirk could answer, the blond woman on the horse, who wore blue jeans and a shirt that accented her assets, rode up beside Kirk, sandwiching him between her and Spock.

"Hey cowboy," Suzanne Anderson said to Kirk, in a stern sort of way, "I told you to wait until I got back and checked on you before you decided to go to town."

"I couldn't wait," Kirk said, with pleading eyes, as he fished for an excuse, "besides," he added, "my friend Sulu has a pie submitted in the pie contest, and he needed to get here."

"Well," Suzanne said, "I'm going to check in on you from time to time, so you better take it easy."

And then she galloped away, over taking the buggy on her way to town.

"I wonder where she's going in such a hurry," Kirk wondered out loud.

"I see you are already busy at getting to know the local female population," Spock said, in what for him, was a wry tone.

"Spock," Kirk said, in mock shame, "she's a doctor."

"Yes," Spock said, with a sigh, "that she is."

Kirk and the others were nearing down, and could see a giant Ferris wheel, among other old time carnival attractions.

"Spock," Kirk said to his Vulcan friend, "have you ever had cotton candy?"

"No, however, I have become quite a fan of Italian food during your absence," Spock admitted.

"Then, you have to take my advise and have some cotton candy," Kirk said with a smile, as the smell of cotton candy and popcorn began to fill the air.

Sulu, who had heard Kirk talking with Spock, leaned in and spoke quietly to Mavis.

"A Vulcan with a sugar high could be a most interesting thing to see," Sulu said with a smile.

The two laughed as they had finally reached town. But unknown to them, as Kirk-Spock-Sulu-Mavis and the two children arrived in town; two of them were going to die before the night was over!

Inside Quarks, S'vath and Amanda watched as Eran was down on the dance floor with a man she had met.

"You're not jealous are you?" Amanda said, as she watched her husband watching the woman they had both made love with the night before dance with another man.

"Not at all," S'vath said. "I was just wondering if it was logical to have done this with a woman I work with."

"Well, she was very good," Amanda said with a coy look in her eyes, "I hope you were paying close attention to us when she and I were together; she really knew what she was doing."

"I was watching," S'vath said, "every second of the way."

Amanda looked out the window and saw Kirk, Spock and the others arriving down on the dirt street below.

"Your father is here," Amanda said.

"Yes I know," S'vath said. "He contacted me when he arrived. He's come to see Jim, this Jim," S'vath said.

"I was thinking about this new Jim, well really, this new Jim who is really the old Jim Kirk, and I wondered; do we tell him about the son he has?"

S'vath arched an eyebrow.

"I would suggest we ask my father first, before we do that," S'vath suggested.

"Good idea," she said.

And with that they stood up and head down to the lower levels so they could greet Spock and the others.

Meanwhile, on the dance floor, Eran was dancing with a man. A slow song finally came on, and they moved in closer.

"I just arrived," Ryan Tolbert told her, with a whisper. "What can you report?"

She began to give him her report, for she too was actually a secret agent…just like him.

Continued…


	218. Festive

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Festive (NEW COVER ART at my profile...)**

**The Planet Timus**

**Inside one of the rooms at Quark's hotel/ casino….**

The steam from the old style water shower obscured the room so much that visibility was impossible. Davot tilted his head back and a let the water, which was as hot as it could be; stream across his chest. The showers on Cardassia were far hotter, making him long for home. But, for now, he was on the Planet Timus, and would have to make do. A hot shower was something that he always did before setting off out to kill his target.

He reached out and pressed a button on the wall which shut the water off and then he stepped out of the shower. As he dressed, he thought about his target; Benjamin Sisko. Every Cardassian who had served in the military knew who Sisko was, and why not? The human was one of the chief architects of Cardassia's defeat during the Dominion War, or at least that's what most Cardassians believed; but not in Davot's mind.

Sisko was only doing his duty, and that duty was to defend the Federation and Bajoran interests. The reason why the Dominion war was lost, in Davot's view, was due to the military leadership and primarily two individuals; the lunatic Gul Dukat and the traitorous Damar.

Davot had come to the planet Timus to kill Sisko, not because of the war, but because a fellow human, Chakotay, who had once served in the Maquis, had decided that because of Sisko's entanglements with the now defunct resistance group, he had to die someday. Sisko was no longer serving in Starfleet and had assumed the life of an ordinary person. In all actuality however, Chakotay had never taken out a contract on Sisko's life, but that didn't matter to Davot. He knew that Chakotay, who went by the alias of Cube-1, would still compensate him for having done the job.

The steam in the shower room spilled into the bedroom of Davot's hotel room as well, as he prepared to do what he had come to Timus to do. He put on a simple shirt and slacks, which would be the only clothes he would wear during the kill. Both the shirt and slacks were made of a special material that was produced with a very special filament. Davot went over to a metal case sitting on the bed and pressed a button on it, and then the case opened to reveal a small device, which resembled a data chip, roughly the size of his little finger. He put the device over his left shoulder, and then it clamped onto the shirt. He touched the small button on the device and then suddenly the device activated. Davot stared at his image in the mirror that was hanging on the wall, and then he watched as a holographic image was soon projected across and around his body. Gone was his true appearance, which was that of a Cardassian and in its place was the image of an average human male, with dark hair and a medium build. The disguise was perfect and the time had come to put the plan to kill Benjamin Sisko in motion…

* * *

Meanwhile, down in the casino area, Quark had done something he thought he would never do; he had closed part of the casino! The Dabo wheels were silent, and the usually scantily clad women who were hired to distract the gamblers, were instead wearing more 'family' appropriate outfits. This was because at 630pm he had closed the casino and opened it up to all. The Farmer's Market festival had brought a large turnout of the local town's people and that meant there were oodles and oodles of families, with children of all ages, to cash in on. Quark had even gone so far as hiring clowns and other circus type performers to entertain the kids. In nearly twenty minutes, the mayor of Summit Grove, Benjamin Sisko, would announce the start of the Farmer's Market which would stretch on for three more nights and days.

In one corner of the now kid friendly casino, one of the larger groups of people were situated around several tables. Jim Kirk, with a root beer in hand, stood next to his friend Spock and looked at the gathered friends and family that were with them. S'vath and Amanda were sitting with their two children, Lenora and Sarek, who in turn were sitting next to Jim Kirk's two children, Dahme and Mathew. Two clowns were entertaining the children. Next to them sat another cluster of partiers. Ben Sisko, who was wearing a strange purple outfit, was joined by his sister Mavis, as well as his wife and daughter Kasidy and Rebecca, respectively. The android Las with them as well as were Sisko's son, Jake, and his wife Korena.

Sitting across from the little children were Myran and Harrison Riker, and it was clear to Kirk that the two of them were in love. It didn't bother Jim Kirk at all, seeing Myran and Harrison together. Meanwhile G'kar, the Narn, was sitting with Sulu, and they were discussing various philosophies, which were way over Kirk's head, so he had left the two to them only moments earlier.

Kirk took a drink from his root-beer bottle and looked over at his friend Spock.

"I have no idea who most of these people are," Kirk said. "I mean, I know the children are, in some way mine; yet I feel like an outsider here on this world."

"Jim," Spock said, "It may be difficult for you to understand, but you were inside the Nexus for approximately a hundred years, but your memory remained. These people all know who you are, and the history you lived is well written. You are no more an outsider than I am."

"But what do I do with the rest of my life now Spock?" Kirk asked. "While I have enjoyed the brief time I have been on this world, I have no real desire in settling down and living a sedentary life. I want to be out there, among the stars, making a difference."

"I have been giving some serious thought to that," Spock told his friend.

"Wait a second," Kirk said, as he noticed that his bottle of root-beer and Spock's cup of green tea were empty, "let me go get us a refill. I want to hear your idea," Kirk said, as he headed toward the bar for refills.

S'vath and Amanda were seated next their children, and the children, as well as S'vath and Amanda, were were wearing cone shaped party hats. Amanda saw that Kirk had left Spock, and then she nudged S'vath's side with her elbow.

"Go speak with him," S'vath said softly. "The information we have comes from your grandmother, Christine Chapel, so it is more appropriate he hear it from you."

"Alright," Amanda replied.

Amanda stood up and smiled down at her children, just as one of the clowns distracted them, allowing her to make her get away. She looked over at the bar and saw that Jim Kirk was still in line, and would be several more minutes. She made her way over to Spock.

"Ambassador," Amanda said to Spock.

Spock looked at her with his usual stoic manner.

"Please, Amanda," Spock said to her, "Just as I asked you last time we were together, I would prefer that you called me father."

Amanda smiled.

"Alright, father," Amanda said with a smile, "I don't know how to put this, but I have some information about Jim Kirk that I think you should know."

"I surmise it is of a sensitive matter, since you obviously waited until he had left to the bar to get more drinks to come over and tell me," Spock told her.

"Yes, it is very sensitive, I guess," Amanda said, in a soft tone. "I know that I should probably tell him this information myself, but S'vath and I both thought we should bring it to you first."

"My daughter; I will hear this information," Spock said, "however, if I believe that Jim should be told it as well, then I will not waste any time doing so."

"That's fair enough," Amanda said, as she looked over at the bar, making sure Kirk wasn't near them, and then she looked back to Spock. "Does the name Miramanee have any meaning to you?"

Spock thought for a moment, and then raised an eyebrow.

"Yes it does," Spock replied. "The more logical question though is why it has any meaning to you?"

Amanda nodded in agreement.

"Before my grandmother, Christine Chapel, died, she recorded a message and sent it to my mother," Amanda explained. "My mother never heard the message, and when she passed away, that message, which is contained on a data rod, was sent to me with the rest of her belongings."

Spock noticed that at that moment, Kirk was being handed a new round of drinks, and would soon be heading back toward their area of the casino.

"Please continue, but quickly," Spock urged Amanda.

"My grandmother revealed some incredible information," Amanda said, "She said in the message that Jim Kirk had fathered a child with Miramanee; the Native American woman who he had married while stranded on that planet."

"That is in fact true," Spock said, as he watched Kirk zigzagging his way back through the maze of chairs and tables between them and the bar, "however, the child was never born. Miramanee died while pregnant, and the unborn child died as well."

Just a second or two before Kirk arrived; Amanda had enough time to respond to Spock with three simple words.

"The child lived," Amanda said, and then she abruptly headed back to the table where her children were sitting with S'vath.

Spock tracked his eyes ahead of her and made direct eye contact with his S'vath, who then nodded at Spock in the affirmative. Spock, in turn, shook his head in the negative; meaning he did not want the information Amanda had just told him revealed to Kirk; at this time.

"Here you go," Kirk said, as he arrived and handed a stunned Spock his cup of tea.

Spock put the discussion with Amanda aside, but he would definitely make a point with touching bases with S'vath and Amanda.

* * *

On the other side of the casino, one section still remained for adults only. Ryan Tolbert sat at the bar, next to Morn, and had another drink. He knew that a contract killer was on Timus, but there was no proof or any idea just who the target was, though, Jim Kirk was believed the most likely target. He had made enemies, both in the past, and in recent years, that it was believed someone may be trying to get back at the legendary man. Ryan Tolbert kept a close eye on Kirk, who was clear across the room standing with yet another legend from long ago; Ambassador Spock. If the information Ryan Tolbert had was correct, the contract killer was a Cardassian named Davot. Tolbert would do anything possible, including risking his own life, to make sure no harm came to Kirk.

_And yes, reader, while Ryan Tolbert would indeed try his hardest to save Kirk, we know that Jim Kirk isn't the target; Benjamin Sisko is the target. And I can assure you, my dear readers, two people among the group of people with Jim Kirk, are going to die!_

Continued…


	219. Resting Place

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**(NEW COVER ART AT MY PROFILE)**

**Resting Place**

**The Planet Timus...**

The Mayor of Summit Grove, Benjamin Sisko, wearing the strangest suit ever created (a purple suit jacket, pink shirt, orange pants and cummerbund, with seven flowers adorning a blue tie, with a blue Sombrero on his head) stood to the side on the make shift stage erected inside of Quark's casino. Quark stood in the middle of the stage, which had an old style microphone, and stand, and introduced the first guest.

"I know we're all here to see the Mayor ring in the Famer's Festival," Quark said, as the crowd hushed down, "but I thought it would be great if a living legend did the honor of introducing the Mayor. So, ladies, gentleman, and transgender guests, I would like to introduce perhaps the greatest Starship Captain of all time, James T Kirk; please feel free to buy the Jim Kirk action figure over on the side of the stage!" Quark said as he held up one of the dolls.

The crowd erupted in cheers. James T Kirk was indeed a living legend, as Quark had found out after selling nearly a hundred of the dolls already. His exploits in the not so distant future had become myth, having been taught to children for well over a century. Everyone in Kirk's party turned to him, including Spock.

"I'm not going up there without you," Kirk said to Spock.

"Very well then," Spock said, as the two made their way to the stage. "The Mayor's Starfleet are without compare," Spock added.

"Oh really," Kirk said, his voice shrouded by the cheering. "Before I get up there and make a fool of myself, how about a brief history lesson while we make our way up to the stage."

Everyone cheered as the two legends made their way to the stage. Kasidy, Jake, Korena, Myran, Harrison, Mavis, Sulu, S'vath, Amanda, Grand Nagus Rom, Leeta, Rebecca, Lal, G'kar and Baybok, who had just arrived, with the rest of the crowded casino, clapped loudly.

"I'm glad you came," Sulu said to Baybok, as the Ferengi came over and stood with Sulu and G'kar.

"I didn't think you'd ever want to talk to me again, after what I tried to do to you." Baybok said.

"How did your partners take the news that you weren't going to swindle anyone again?" Sulu asked.

"I had to pay them back my buy in fee," Baybok explained, "Plus the 40% points, thanks to your loan I might add, and they let me off the contract."

"Well," Sulu said to Baybok, "you're a friend Baybok, even after what happened, and go ahead and take your time paying it back."

"I'm glad you said that because it might take a life time, based on the hourly wage Quark pays for dishwashers. He doesn't even provide healthcare benefits," Baybok said.

"On Narn," G'kar said, as he overheard the conversation, "Dishwashers are also paid healthcare benefits and a matching 750R-K plan."

"Really," Baybok said, impressed.

At the same time, Myran and Harrison watched as Kirk and Spock neared the stage.

"He sure is a hero," Harrison Riker said, with admiration in his voice. "Did we do the wrong thing?"

"Of course we did," Myran said. "But, like Jim said, it's all in the past." She lifted Mathew out of his high chair so he could see his father, Jim Kirk. As for Dahme, she was still sleeping, even through the loud noise of the crowd.

The noise subsided as Kirk and Spock made it to the microphone. Jim Kirk felt strange since he hardly even knew who Ben Sisko was. But even though he had only known Sisko for a short time, and Spock had filled him in on Sisko's career on the way up to the stage, he knew one thing for sure; Sisko was legend in his own right.

Spock rose up his hand and gave the Vulcan hand salute, which made the crowd smile and cheer, inspiring many of them to respond in kind.

"We both thank all of you for the warm reception," Kirk said to the gathered throng. "Benjamin Sisko, whom I really do not know as well as many of you do, is truly a legend himself."

"Indeed he is," Spock added. "His actions during the Dominion War were perhaps more instrumental to the outcome of that war than anyone else's."

The crowd cheered Sisko, because most of them lived through the terrible war, and were glad when it was finally over.

As Kirk and Spock continued to speak, Ryan Tolbert kept a watchful eye on the crowd. Enran, a fellow agent, who was posing as the town's coroner, was situated on the other side of the casino, keeping her eyes peeled too. Tolbert was concerned though. Davot, the well known assassin who was known to be on Timus, was a master of disguise, going so far as to using experimental holotech, even though using such a device was no doubt causing internal harm to his synaptic nerves. Tolbert looked at each guest, wondering if any of them he had looked at were actually the Cardassian assassin, and in fact, one of them was.

The disguise was that of a portly average looking Bajoran miner, who was standing near a Bajoran woman and her child. He also held a weapon to the child's side, which made the woman do as he said, with the threat of killer her child being held over her.

* * *

_(Previously; issue #207 "The Past Won't Die")_

_Garak had returned to Timus, and met privately with Ben Sisko in his mayoral office. Sisko had been sitting in his chair, behind his desk, and had just heard the strangest story from Garak. Sisko stood up and walked over to the window of his office, and then he looked back at Quark._

_"You expect me to believe," Sisko said to Garak "That after Thomas Riker was apprehended, after that incident with the Defiant, he eventually fathered a child with a woman named Bianca Peters, she herself a Maquis prisoner at the labor planet they were at. And that child was Harrison Riker. And," Sisko went on to say, "now you're telling me that the child was killed during their escape from the prison world when the Klingons attacked."_

"_Precisely," Garak replied. _

_"Garak," Sisko said, with all seriousness, "Harrison Riker is alive, you have seen him yourself."_

_"I know," Garak said, softly. "And I am also saying that Cardassian record keeping was very meticulous, especially on prison worlds, such as that one, ran by the Obsidian Order. So, I am going to do the one thing that must be done; I am going to that prison world, and I'm going to see what I can find out…"_

* * *

**Several hundred light years from Timus; on a dead world…**

Garak stepped out of his private craft, which he had landed inside the long since abandoned prison complex on a world which had no official designation because it had been under the control of the Obsidian Order. The buildings inside the complex were all dilapidated and crumbling due to the fact that the world was abandoned. The Klingons had been very thorough during the attack, and had left the small sized planet pretty much inhabitable.

The planet's current position in its orbit around the star in the planetary system kept the planet nearly a perpetual sea of darkness, giving the surface an eerie feel to it.

The Cardassian labor camps, even the ones ran by the Obsidian Order, were built pretty much the same, with identical placement of the buildings. Garak made his way to the building where he was sure records were kept about those who had been killed and cremated. As he stepped into the smashed remains of the building, he was unaware of the three bright spherical lights that suddenly appeared in the sky above.

After about an hour of searching, Garak finally came upon what appeared to be a manifest of a nearby burial site. Garak took the manifest, and soon found himself climbing down a steep rock surface, until he came upon the burial site.

Continued….


	220. Revelation

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**(All new COVER ART at my profile; feauring Kirk-Spock-S'vath and Amanda)**

**Revelation**

**The Planet Timus**

Quark's casino, located in the center of Summit Grove, was buzzing with energy as the time neared for Mayor Benjamin Sisko to ring the fifty-year old bell, propped up on a table, which would signal the start of three days of partying and a most carnival like atmosphere. Summit Grove's population was mainly comprised of minors and or merchants, as well as others, and their families. It was a well known fact that the workers on Timus Prime were among the hardest workers in Federation that claimed the acquisition of wealth was no longer the driving force its population, but lived in a reality where actions spoke louder than ideas.

And then finally it came; James T Kirk and Ambassador Spock introduced the man of the evening.

"Let's all give a warm applause for the Mayor of Summit Grove; Benjamin Lafayette Sisko," Jim Kirk said with great gusto.

The crowd cheered as Sisko made his way to the center of the stage. He shook Kirk's hand, and did his best to reciprocate Spock's had salute. Luckily Sisko had been given a tip by James T Kirk; fishing line, tied around the base of the fingers was how he did the Vulcan hand motion; and it worked!

Kirk and Spock made their way back down to the area of the casino where their friends, and yes, family were clustered. Kirk was also pleased to see that Dr. Suzanne Anderson, or "pepper" as she liked to be called, was waiting for him at one of the tables. Kirk made his way over to her. Spock, in the meantime, made his way over to where S'vath was sitting with his children; Lenora and Sarek. Amanda was sitting there as well, and Spock sat down next to her.

As Benjamin Sisko opened up with remarks, and the crowd was still cheering, Spock took the opportunity to get more information about what Amanda had revealed to him moments ago. Amanda had passed on information to Spock, information that had come to her from, of all people, Christine Chapel, Amanda's grandmother, who had since passed away. The events, as Spock remembered them were simple. Miramanee, the woman whom Kirk had married when he believed himself to be a member of a Native American tribe on a distant world, died from injuries sustained during an attack by an angry mob. Not only did she die, but so did the child she was carrying inside of her; James T Kirk's child. But the information Amanda had told him minutes earlier challenged the validity of those events; Christine Chapel, who had come to the surface of the planet, to assist Dr. Leonard McCoy, revealed a most interesting turn of events; the child had been saved.

If such a thing had happened, then it had happened without either Kirk's or Spock's knowledge. But even more interesting than that is the fact that Chapel knew about this information which would immediately beg the question; did McCoy know as well. Spock used the diversion of the crowd noise to press Amanda for more information.

"Amanda," Spock said, "I would like to see this message you are referring to."

"Certainly," she paused, "father. I have it at our home."

"Does she elaborate how the infant's life had been spared, and why?" Spock asked.

Amanda was feeding baby Lenora a spoon of spaghetti, and looked at Spock.

"Yes," Amanda said.

"Father," S'vath suddenly said, "Are you saying that you did not know that the child had been saved?"

"Affirmative," Spock said. "Jim did not know either. If this indeed happened, it must have happened with McCoy's knowledge."

"Why would they keep it a secret?" Amanda asked.

Spock shook his head.

"I do not know," Spock replied. "If this child did indeed exist, it would be well over a century old by now."

"Father, like I said earlier; the child is a he," Amanda said, "and he is still alive," Amanda said added.

"How do you know this to be true?" Spock asked.

"My grandmother said the child's name was Satangkai," Amanda responded. "And according to her, the tribe moved off of that world and returned to Earth, and settled in the tribal lands of North America, where he is now the chief."

"Does all this matter?" S'vath asked his father, Spock. "As you said yourself, all of this happened over a hundred years ago. It's clear to me that this child never reached out to Jim, to let him know he even existed."

"Why did they save the child, and not let you or Jim know?" Amanda asked.

Spock shook his head.

"Dr. McCoy often, as they on Earth, led with his heart and not his mind," Spock told the two of them. "It would not have been beyond the realm of possibility that the two of them, Dr. McCoy and Nurse Chapel, to have clandestinely saved the child and sworn whomever accepted the child from them to keep such information secret."

"Why? Why would they not let Jim know?" S'vath asked.

"Again, we can only speculate," Spock said, "but perhaps McCoy knew that the knowledge of the child's existence would have altered Jim's life in such a way that it might have made him make decisions that would have led to his departure from Star Fleet. Again, this is all circumspect, however at this moment; I believe McCoy's decisions were taken along those lines."

"So now do we tell him?" Amanda asked, knowing that it was all leading to the next phase.

The three of them all looked over at Kirk who was sitting with Suzanne Anderson and introducing her to the children fathered by his transporter duplicate.

"I do not know," Spock said in a quiet tone.

Meanwhile…Ryan Tolbert kept a watchful eye on the gathered crowd inside Quark's casino. He knew strike that, he could feel Davot's presence in the large room of happy partiers that were totally oblivious to the building dire situation. As Ryan scanned the crowd, he could not determine which of the partiers Davot was posing as. Even Eran, the Trill secretive Federation security operative he had made contact with earlier, and who was posing as Summit Grove's coroner, could not figure out who the assassin was, as she occasionally glancing Ryan's way, her eyes conveying the message that she didn't see anything suspicious from her end of the casino either.

And then…at that exact moment…the lights suddenly went out! THE ATTACK WAS ON!

To be continued…tragedy strikes Ben Sisko and James T Kirk setting in motion a set of events that will lead to the ultimate showdown; James T Kirk VS Chakotay!


	221. Inferno PART ONE

**JAMES T KIRK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Inferno: Part one**

The second the light went out, a beam of energy streaked out caused panic and screaming. Then, if that wasn't bad enough, an explosion rifled through the casino causing more panic. Suddenly the backup lights came on, revealing shattered glass, smashed over tables due to the panic, and injured people, human and alien, across the casino.

"Spock, come on," Kirk said to his Vulcan friend.

Kirk and Spock made their way over to the stage, as others fled, which was where the beam of energy had been filed at. They found a terrible sight waiting for them. Benjamin Sisko, who was the apparent target of the beam, as well as his sister Mavis and the infant Dahme were on the ground. Kasidy Sisko was on her knees next to her fallen husband. Quark was on the ground, cradling Mavis's head in his lap. Blood was smeared across Quark's lapel; it was coming from a head wound on Mavis, who, as well as Dahme, was motionless. Quark looked up at Kirk with a blank expression on his face.

"I…I think…she's dead," Quark said, as he looked down at Mavis and the calmness on her face.

Kirk got down, and took the lifeless body from Mavis's arms; Dahme was dead as well. And though the child wasn't really his, Kirk still felt sorrow, and could not stop the tears coming from his eyes as he held the dead infant. But there was another emotion building in his chest; anger!

Several feet away, S'vath had over turned the table he and his family were sitting at seconds after the lights had gone out, and the beam of energy, which had been fired from the other side of the casino, was seen by all as it streaked across the massive room. He looked at his wife, and held her tight, while also holding both of his children close. For the first time S'vath's life he had known the emotion of fear, and then relief, at seeing that his wife and children had lived through the horrible event.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the casino, Ryan Tolbert had seen where the beam of energy had come from, and had instantly darted toward it, but the mass of a panicking throng was in his way. He saw a portly Bajoran male running away from him, against the flow of the fleeing crowd, making him deduce that the Bajoran was the assassin. In order for any assassin to be paid, they had had to prove that the client, the victim, was dead.

"Excuse me," Ryan said to person after person, as he made his way through the crowd. "Pardon me, excuse me," he kept saying, softly.

His black tuxedo became caked with dust and spilt drinks, as he made this way after the Bajoran, who now, as Ryan Tolbert watched him, morphed into a Cardassian. The Cardassian looked back, momentarily, and through the mass of panic, he made eye contact with Ryan Tolbert; instantly they both knew the role they played in this chase. The Cardassian fired his weapon at Tolbert, instead hitting a Thyrasican female, instantly killing her.

"Everyone down; now," Ryan yelled, to which many did, but some did not.

The Cardassian, Davot, made his way through the crowd, brandishing his weapon, which caused those ahead of him to panic, and move out of the way. The Cardassian's cover had been blown, Ryan deduced. The Killer had been using some sort of holographic emitter, but without his cover, the Cardassian was prone to lash out in order to escape. Ryan aimed his own weapon and fired, causing more people to scream, but the bolt of energy struck the Cardassian, thrown him off balance, where he crashed into a table.

Baybok, who had been sitting at one of the tables, when the lights went off, found himself holding a human child after the lights came on. Even as dozens of panicking people streamed by, Baybok, for some reason he would never know, held the child close to him, trying to cradle the child from any more harm that might come. Suddenly, a Cardassian came crashing over the table, next to Baybok. Before the Ferengi could do anything, the Cardassian, Davot, thrust a knife into Baybok's forehead; Baybok died instantly. Davot, the assassin, knew that escape was nearly impossible, so with his hand, covered in Baybok's blood, he reached for his only leverage; a child, and then he stood up.

Ryan Tolbert had caught up to where the Cardassian had fallen, and watched as the Cardassian slowly stood up, holding a weapon against the young infant's head. Ryan aimed his weapon at the Cardassian.

"Don't to it," Ryan pleaded with the Cardassian.

"Put your weapon down," Davot said, in a controlled manner, "or this human will die."

Meanwhile, over at the stage, and oblivious to what was happening elsewhere in the casino, Kirk was holding the dead child close to his chest, patting its back with his hand.

"Jim," Spock said, as he knelt down next to his friend, "the child is dead." Spock said, in a somber tone.

Kirk let his friend take the child, and watched as Spock placed it next to Mavis's lifeless body. Spock reached over for a table cloth and cover both Mavis and Dahme with it. Jake Sisko was there with Korena, Jake holding his dead aunt's (Mavis) hand. Jake, with tears in his eyes, looked to Spock.

"Who would do something like this," Jake said rhetorically.

Kasidy was with her husband, who was still alive. During the mayhem, Ben Sisko's head had been smashed by debris from the explosion, and was out cold. Blood streaked down the side of this head, but he was alive, unaware that his sister had died.

Kirk, still on his knees, stared down at the table cloth that covered Dahme. He then began to look about, trying to find his other surrogate child; Mathew.

"Where's Mathew," Kirk said, with a trembling voice, "where's my son?"

Spock tapped him on the shoulder, and then pointed in the other direction. Kirk turned to see a Cardassian, holding Mathew in his arms, with a weapon aimed at the child's head. A human, holding a weapon as well, slowly lowered it, obviously cowering to the threat of the Cardassian. Kirk stood up, and walked toward the tense showdown between the two strangers; who held the life of his child between them. And then, before Kirk could do anything, the Cardassian beamed away; with Mathew!

Spock looked over at Kirk and saw a look in his friend's eyes a look of total rage.

"Jim," Spock began to say, but Kirk ignored his Vulcan friend and went straight toward the human who had been confronting the Cardassian.

S'vath, who has seen the incident played out, from where he was with his own family, kissed his wife quickly, and then joined up with Kirk, as he headed toward the Tuxedo wearing stranger.

"Who are you?" Kirk demanded of the human wearing a black Tuxedo, "and why did you let him take my son?"

"I had no choice," Ryan Tolbert responded. "He would have killed the child; trust me."

"Well now he has my child," Kirk said with anger, "and he could be killing my son right now!"

Kirk grabbed Ryan Tolbert by the collar and then punched him, smashing Ryan Tolbert to the ground. No one intervened, knowing that Kirk's anger, almost parental in nature, was allowed in such circumstances. Even Spock held back from stopping his friend. Kirk straddled Ryan Tolbert, who now had blood streaming from his lip, and punched him again. It was clear to everyone that Tolbert was not putting up a fight, indicating that even he understood Kirk's anger.

THE END OF PART ONE…


	222. Inferno PART TWO

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**(NEW COVER ART at my profile!)**

**Inferno: Part Two!**

Previously…

_Kirk grabbed Ryan Tolbert by the collar and then punched him, smashing Ryan Tolbert to the ground. No one intervened, knowing that Kirk's anger, almost parental in nature, was allowed in such circumstances. Even Spock held back from stopping his friend. Kirk straddled Ryan Tolbert, who now had blood streaming from his lip, and punched him again. It was clear to everyone that Tolbert was not putting up a fight, indicating that even he understood Kirk's anger. _

Our Story continues…

"If we act now," Ryan Tolbert said, "we can save your son."

Kirk stopped his barrage and stood up. Ryan Tolbert, after wiping the blood on his lip on the sleeve of his Tuxedo, struggled to stand up, but he did.

"Who are you," Kirk demanded, "and what is your connection to the Cardassian?"

"His name is Davot," Ryan Tolbert replied to Kirk. "He is a hired assassin. My name is Ryan Tolbert, and I am an agent for various Federation security operations, including the Earth's Internal Security force. I was…"

"If you're here," Kirk said, cutting off Tolbert before he could say anything more, "then that tells me that these various Federation agencies knew he was here too, and you were sent to stop him; YOU FAILED!" Kirk yelled. "YOU GOD DAMNED FAILED! And now my daughter is dead, along with him," Kirk pointed at Baybok's lifeless body, "and a wonderful named Mavis."

Ryan Tolbert had nothing to say, because, at the bottom of what Kirk said; was the truth. Kirk looked about, at the wreckage, and then back at Tolbert.

"This assassin has my son; and I'm going to go save him," Kirk said to Tolbert. "Where will the Cardassian go? Can you at least tell me that?"

Tolbert nodded.

"We believe Davot, the assassin, was hired by a criminal element named Cube-1," Ryan Tolbert explained to Kirk, "And due to recent intelligence, we believe Cube-1 is one of the criminal underworld's most notorious crime lords, a former Star Fleet officer named Chakotay. I suspect that Davot is making his way to Chakotay to get payment for what he has done here."

Kirk took in what had been said, and then went to the next obvious question.

"Alright," Kirk said, as the others listened, "where can I find this Chakotay?" Kirk asked.

Quark, who had been listening, stood up and came over to where Kirk and Spock were standing.

"Kirk, listen to me," Quark said to Jim Kirk, "Chakotay isn't some low rung thug; Mister Tolbert here is correct, to a point. Chakotay isn't just some powerful criminal underworld master mind, he is the most powerful."

"The Ferengi is right," Spock told Kirk. "I know of this Chakotay; the Federation has never been able to coral him, or bring him to face justice for his actions."

"And," Ryan Tolbert added, "His criminal fortress is on the world Dan'gin. It is a world outside of Federation jurisdiction, and has no laws or central government. It is a world entirely populated by the most hardened of criminals."

Kirk was about to respond, when the sobs of a woman could be heard. It was Myran, and she was on the ground, near a motionless body; that of Harrison Riker. Riker's mid section had been impaled by a support beam that had been blown out from the explosion. Amanda handed Sarek, her infant child, to Sulu and rushed over to Riker.

Kirk looked back to Ryan Tolbert.

"I don't care about criminals on that world," Kirk said to Ryan Tolbert, "What I care about is getting my child back; so I'm going."

Kirk was about to walk away when Spock stopped him.

"Jim," Spock said to Kirk. "You are too well known, even in this time period, to go undetected on a world like Dan'gin."

"Spock," Kirk said, loudly, and with a tone of anger, "that assassin has Mathew; my son," Kirk said to his Vulcan friend. "I'm going to go and save him. Now, I don't know who this God damned Chakotay is, and I don't care. I'm James T Kirk," Kirk said. "I'm supposed to be some kind of legend in this time? Well, it's time for me to earn my title."

"I will come with you," Spock said.

Kirk shook his head.

"Spock," Kirk said, "While I appreciate the gesture, we both know that you're not at an age to do this sort of thing."

"Then I'll go instead," S'vath, Spock's son said.

S'vath looked back to his wife, Amanda, who nodded at him; giving S'vath her silent approval to help Kirk bring his child home.

"I'm going too," Ryan Tolbert said. "My ship is primed and ready to go, but we must go fast."

Kirk nodded at the agent, accepting help from the man who he had been punching only moments ago.

S'vath went over and kissed his two children, and his wife, one more time and then headed off with James T Kirk and special agent Ryan Tolbert.

Quark and Spock made their way over to where Sisko was being tended to by Suzanne Anderson, who although was a trained psychologist, was also skilled with basic medical skills. Kasidy was watching silently as Suzanne tended to Sisko.

"How is your husband?" Spock asked Kasidy.

"The doctor thinks he has a serious concussion," Kasidy said to Spock.

"Why would anyone, let alone a former Starfleet officer named Chakotay, want to kill your husband?" Spock asked her.

"I'll tell you why," Ben Sisko suddenly said, as he finally came to, and looked at Spock. "He was once part of a terrorist operation called the Maquis. I played an instrumental role in bringing their reign of terrorist acts to an end after one of their actions cost the lives of thousands of innocent Cardassian civilians. I once received a private message from Chakotay telling me that he wanted me dead because of what I had one; looks like he tried to keep that promise. Why do you ask?"

Quark replied before Spock could.

"A Federation agent was here, and claims that the Cardassian assassin who did all this was hired by Chakotay," Quark told Sisko.

"This Cardassian has fled to a world called Dan'gin, taking little Mathew Kirk with him," Spock said to Sisko.

Sisko was still on the ground; his head cradled in kasidy's lap, and looked over at Quark.

"You let Jim go to that world?" Sisko asked Quark, with a worried tone in his voice. "You, more than anyone else, know what Dan'gin is."

"He didn't go alone," Quark replied. "S'vath and a Federation agent went with him. Besides," Quark added, "no one was going to stop him from trying to save his child."

"Unfortunately," Spock said after a moment, "I believe all three of them face insurmountable odds making it off that planet alive."

Sisko tried to sit up, but Suzanne Anderson held him down.

"Please, mister Mayor," Suzanne said, "once the more seriously injured are beamed away to the hospital, then you will follow. But I need you to remain calm."

Sisko gave in, and put his head back down, and was about to close his eyes and rest.

"She's right, Ben," Kasidy said. "You need to take it easy; you are in no shape to do anything now. I want you…"

Suddenly Sisko opened his eyes, snapped his fingers, and then looked at Quark.

"Quark; do you still have your inter-dimensional communication consol?" Sisko asked.

Quark nodded.

"Yes, and if you're intending to contact Admiral Janeway with it again, I seriously doubt Starfleet is going to send anyone to that planet to help Kirk and the others," Quark said, with a sarcastic tone in his voice.

"You're right, Quark," Sisko said to the Ferengi, "I doubt Starfleet will help, and even if they did, they'd be too slow to respond. However, someone else owes us a favor or two who is in a position to help us right now," Sisko said.

"And who would that be?" Kasidy asked her husband.

"Martok…" Sisko said with a smile.

**Several hundred light years from Timus; on a dead world…**

Garak stepped out of his private craft, which he had landed inside the long since abandoned prison complex on a world which had no official designation because it had been under the control of the Obsidian Order. The buildings inside the complex were all dilapidated and crumbling due to the fact that the world was abandoned. The Klingons had been very thorough during the attack, and had left the small sized planet pretty much inhabitable.

The planet's current position in its orbit around the star in the planetary system kept the planet nearly a perpetual sea of darkness, giving the surface an eerie feel to it.

The Cardassian labor camps, even the ones ran by the Obsidian Order, were built pretty much the same, with identical placement of the buildings. Garak made his way to the building where he was sure records were kept about those who had been killed and cremated. As he stepped into the smashed remains of the building, he was unaware of the three bright spherical lights that suddenly appeared in the sky above.

After about an hour of searching, Garak finally came upon what appeared to be a manifest of a nearby burial site. Garak took the manifest, and twenty minutes later he was climbing down a steep rock surface, until he came upon the burial site. As had happened on many of the Cardassian prison planets, the offspring of some of the prisoners were buried in such places, usually by older Cardassian women who took pity on the dead children.

One of the names on the manifest was that of an infant; HRIKER. After searching for nearly ten minutes in the fog covered burial site, Garak came upon a small tombstone, with on HRIKER engraved upon it. Was Garak standing before the burial site of Harrison Riker? And if it was, Garak wondered; then who was the person on Timus going by the same name?

"So," Garak said to the tombstone, "now it's time for the pay off." He pulled out his Tricorder and began to scan for the remains that were buried beneath him. There was a strange power fluctuation, so Garak got down on his knees, to scan closer to the ground. And then, without any warning, a hand reached up out of the ground and grabbed him by the ankle…!

_**To be continued next season!**_


	223. Time's Enemy

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light**

**Time's Enemy**

**Earth Internal Security complex;**

**Death Valley….**

The maximum security holding facility, which was located in Death Valley, some four hundred miles from San Francisco in California's parched desert, was one of the most heavily secured complexes in all of the Federation. Inside the complex, Prime Minister Odo, of the Founders, was about to enter a special conference room constructed for the Lady Founder which was surrounded by solid neutronium walls and no less than fifty-two emitters, which were aimed at a metallic table in the center of the room. The emitters prevented any Founder from changing shape, including Odo. Before Odo entered the room, Ambassador Picard had words of caution for him.

"Prime Minister," Picard said, "I know of the unique relation that the two of you shared during the war," Picard told Odo. "Just remember she is as manipulative now as she was then. However, her concerns are real."

"Believe me Admiral," Odo said, "I wouldn't have asked for this conference if I didn't think I needed it. If what she has told you is the truth, then I will either know that it is or that it isn't, by the time I am done. And as for manipulative skill; I, more than anyone else, am well aware of that fact."

Picard nodded and then stepped back as Odo entered the secure area.

* * *

Odo entered the cold, stale room, and made his way over to where the Lady Founder was sitting; a cold metallic bench and table. He sat down across from her, and looked at her.

"I trust they treat you well," Odo said as statement, not as a question.

"How are you Odo?" Lady Founder asked. "Please tell me that the Great Link has flourished since the end of the (Dominion) war." There was a tinge of sarcasm in her voice.

"It hasn't been without incident, but all in all, the Federation has lived up to its word." Odo replied.

Lady Founder nodded, but then came right back with words of her own.

"What about the Romulans and the Klingons and their word?" Lady Founder asked. "From what I recall, they were not as patient as their Federation counterparts."

Odo nodded in agreement.

"The Federation has made it clear to the Romulans that any incursions into the planetary system where the Great Link is located would be an act of war," Odo said.

"Please tell me that the Great Link's survival isn't dependent only on the Federation and that the Jem-Hadar are still providing security for the Great Link as well," Lady Founder said, almost pleading as she spoke. "I do not ever receive any outside information, or I would not be so insistent on knowing."

"The Great Link is safe," Odo replied.

Lady Founder frowned.

"I see you are going to limit my knowledge of current events as well," Lady Founder finally said. "That is your choice, however listen to me Odo," she added, with urgency in her voice. "The Borg will try anything to assimilate the Great Link. And with the death of Laas at the hand of this other shape-shifter, I fear there is more gonig on here than what we know.""

"The Borg are no longer a threat," Odo said after a moment.

"You're wrong," Lady Founder said, with regret in her voice. "They are always a threat. The Federation may believe they have stopped them, but I am telling you that the Borg will come back; they always do. And now that the Imeyah have returned, they will seek out their creation, the Borg, and use them to come after the Great Link."

"Who are the Imeyah?" Odo asked."You say they are shape-shifters, like us, and that they created the Borg; why?"

Lady Founder looked at Odo, and then smiled at him. The smile went away as she answered his question.

"The Universe is very old, Odo," Lady Founder explained. "I hope you can truly appreciate that because there have been other eras when other powers dominated the various parts of the galaxy. Fifty-thousand years ago there were forces at large that could only be described as magical that dominated the galaxy, such as the Meh'tahq or the Shadows. There were solid races as well, such as the Narn, Minbari or the Vorlons that would make their modern contemporaries such as the Romulans, Vaadwaur or even the Federation recoil in fear."

"And yet they're gone," Odo said.

"That is true, so one day it will be the same for the Federation." Lady Founder said. "The Imeyah were a race of shape-shifters, primarily in the Delta Quadrant, that, unlike our kind, which hope to obscure their existence on hidden worlds, took an active role in trying to shape that part of the Galaxy. As we used the Jem-Hadar in our efforts, the Imeyah created the Borg for the same purpose. There was never a chance for them to eliminate every solid race alone, so, they created the essence of the Borg to assimilate the solids under another controlling factor. Odo," Lady Founder continued to say, "As I told Ambassador Picard, I believe Laas was working with this lone Imeyah shape-shifter."

Odo had his doubts.

"Laas wanted to use the holographic technology created by the hologram Moriarty," Odo explained, "to create an army of holograms. Are you trying to tell me that this phantom shape-shifter, one of these Imeyah, was behind it all?" Odo asked with a chuckle. "Why would Laas have helped this other shape-shifter?"

"The Imeyah most likely promised Laas domain over the link, which is what he's always wanted." Lady Founder said, "Laas has always seen the solids as a threat, and a temporary alliance with the Imeyah would have gone a long way to ending the solid threat."

As Odo continued his conversation with the Lady Founder, Picard was sitting in the control room monitoring the situation. The outside door to the control room opened and Captain Tom Paris, Picard's Starfleet liaison, came in.

"Admiral," Paris said, as he came over to where Picard was standing by the observation window that looked in on Odo and the Lady Founder, "I think you had better read this," Paris said as he handed an information data pad to Picard. "It came via a Interdimensional communication relay. It's from Ambassador Spock."

Picard read the data, and then arched an eyebrow.

"Jim Kirk is going after Cube-1," Picard said, with worry in his voice.

"Who we both know is Chakotay," Paris said. "Sir; let me get up there and help Kirk. He has absolutely no idea what Chakotay would do to him."

Picard smiled.

"On the contrary, Captain Paris," Picard said, "Chakotay has no idea what Kirk will do to him. But, you're right," Picard said to Paris, "go ahead and get up there. If Kirk goes to Dan 'gin," Picard said, "then he's going to need all the help he can get."

"Yes sir," Paris said, as he headed for the door.

"Oh, and Captain Paris," Picard said, and then he watched Paris to back to face him. "You best use caution. Chakotay may not consider Kirk a threat, but he will definitely see you as one immediately."

"I'll do my best Ambassador," Paris said as he left the control room.

Continued…


	224. Who is this Man

**James T Kirk: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER art at my profile)**

**Who is this Man?**

A sleek ship made its way through space; its destination was the planet Dan'gin. The pilot of the one man craft was Davot, the Cardassian hit-man who had attempted to assassinate Benjamin Sisko. Failing that, and during the confusion of his escape, he had abducted an infant. The 2 year old infant was crying very loudly, having had no food for several hours. Occasionally Davot would look back at the child, and had to fight back the urge to kill it, as it squirmed around on the deck.

"Shut up, you incessant child!" Davot yelled at the child, only causing the child to scream and cry louder.

And then, the child stopped crying. Davot breathed a sigh of relief, and looked back to see the child, still awake, but resting on the floor, even smiling up at Davot.

"Don't smile at me," Davot said to the child in a snippy tone. "If you know what's good for you, you will just go to sleep!"

The child just smiled at Davot, and then farted. Unknown to Davot, in about fifteen minutes, the release of gas from the child would be small potatoes compared to what was to arrive in its diaper soon enough.

The Cardassian, who made several adjustments on the console before him, had no idea what he would do with the child. He knew one thing though; the child's father would no doubt come after him, which is what Davot wanted. Killing Benjamin Sisko was one thing, but killing the legendary Captain James T Kirk was another. It was the kind of accomplishment that would, if Davot could carry it off, propel him into the upper stratosphere of hired hit man, meaning he could charge a higher fee to those who wanted his services.

As Davot was daydreaming about the higher fee he could charge for contracts, the little baby, Mathew Kirk, became transfixed buy something on the small table across from where he was sitting. Just like his father James T Kirk no doubt was when he was younger, Mathew was becoming a very curious child, even at the age of two. He may not have known that he was in the clutches of a ruthless Cardassian killer, being used as bait to lure his father into an ambush, but all Little Mathew wanted was to play with his toy blocks. But his blocks were nowhere to be seen, which had made him cry so much. But then he saw something, over on the small table that intrigued the child. It looked like one of his toy blocks, but unknown to the little child, it was actually the specially built holodeck library system that contained Moriarty. Mathew had one goal now, in his very young life; to press the red button on that box, and why not? Pushing buttons was one of the things babies did quite well, be it real buttons, or the proverbial buttons that got their parents testy.

Jim Kirk sat at the controls of Quark's private shuttle craft. Though it was a Ferengi shuttle, Quark had long ago switched out its controls with Starfleet designed controls. S'vath sat next to Kirk, and Ryan Tolbert sat behind them in the passenger cabin.

"Jim," S'vath said to Kirk, "you've been piloting the shuttle since we left ten hours ago. Let me take over for awhile."

"I failed him, and those children." Kirk said, not keeping his eyes off of the controls in front of him. "That's all he asked me to do, the other Kirk, and that was to keep his children, our children, safe. And now look what has happened; Dahme is dead, and Mathew has been kidnapped by a cold blooded killer."

"There is no way you could have known," S'vath said to Kirk, "that an assassin was there at Quarks getting ready to try and kill Ben Sisko. You know as well as anyone that there are evens beyond our control."

"If anything," Ryan said from where he sat, "this is my entire fault. I should have informed the authorities on Timus that Davot had arrived, but I didn't."

"What would that have done?" S'vath asked Tolbert. "This assassin, or Davot as you refer to him, had a holographic masking device, which is illegal. And even if you had told us to look for a Cardassian, we never would have found him, being that he was cloaking his appearance with that of a Bajoran civilian."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"Just like you're father," Kirk said to S'vath, "you're right. The person who is ultimately to blame for this is the assassin."

"Or," S'vath interjected, "the man who hired him to kill Sisko; Cube-1, or as we now know him to be, a former Starfleet officer named Chakotay."

Ryan Tolbert stood up and came over to the small bridge at the other end from where had been sitting. He pointed at the library consol which was located in front of S'vath.

"Is the shuttle's library computer Starfleet issue as well?" Ryan asked S'vath.

"Affirmative," S'vath replied. "Quark let my wife and I borrow this shuttle of his when we went to the library on Karvalla to investigate clues to a murder I was investigating (Ep #180). Not only does it have Federation access, it also has access to the Romulan library core, and the data storage facilities on Q'onoS. Why do you ask?"

"Now that I know for a fact just who Cube-1 is, I think it might help us all if we knew more about this man who hired Davot, this man named Chakotay."

S'vath lifted his left eyebrow.

"You're about to say fascinating, aren't you?" Kirk asked S'vath. "You're more like your father than you're ever going to admit to."

"Computer," S'vath said, purposely avoiding the subject of his father, "display all relevant information pertaining to Chakotay; the former Starfleet officer."

Two monitors, one in front of S'vath, the other in front of Kirk, began to display texts and images of Chakotay. There was information about career in Starfleet, and then as a Maquis resistance-cell leader. Then it delved into his time aboard Voyager, when that ship had been drawn to the far off Delta-Quadrant. It was after that the reading became even more interesting the further one read on.

"It says here," S'vath read, "that he, and the other Maquis members aboard the Voyager were sentenced to spend time incarcerated."

"If I read the information correctly right here," Kirk said as he pointed at the monitor, "Chakotay and the other Maquis members actively assisted the Voyager on its way back home, with Chakotay him self acting a First Officer. And yet they were still sentenced to time?"

"You have to remember, some of their actions," Ryan told Kirk, "had led to the deaths of innocents, during their time in the Maquis. They had to pay for their crimes."

"Look here," S'vath said, as he had kept reading on, "when the sentence was handed down, he was imprisoned. His wife, a former Borg drone, had already given birth to their only child, a girl named Yudelle. Chakotay, and the other Maquis members, were taken to the penal colony on Tantalus V."

"Whoa, stop there for a moment," Kirk said, "I've been to Tantalus V. Please tell me reforms were made there after what your father and I found."

"Indeed," S'vath said to Kirk, "there were reforms. However, it is now a maximum security complex. And apparently," S'vath said as he went on reading, "Chakotay broke out of."

"I remember reading about that," Ryan Tolbert said. "I was on Earth at the time, and when the reports came out that he, and five of his Maquis allies, had broken out. But as I recall, it had something to do with his child; Yudelle…"

It did indeed, readers…and next time we will find out what happened to Yudelle and how those events turned Chakotay into a criminal, and led to the loss of Annika Hansen's memories.


	225. Night of the Living Dead

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Night of the Living Dead**

_**Previously, on the planet Timus, inside of Quark's casino**_…the Cardassian hit man had just tried to kill Benjamin Sisko, but there were other casualties as well….

The sobs of a woman could be heard in the carnage. It was Myran, and she was on the ground, near a motionless body; that of Harrison Riker. Riker's mid section had been impaled by a support beam that had been blown out from the explosion. Amanda handed Sarek, her infant child, to Sulu and rushed over to Riker. The body of her child, Dahme, was cradled in her arms as well….

_**And at that moment, **__**on a dead world several hundred light years away, which had once been a Cardassian prison-labor planet…**__**  
**_  
Garak stepped out of his private craft, which he had landed inside the long since abandoned prison complex on a world which had no official designation because it had been under the control of the Obsidian Order. The buildings inside the complex were all dilapidated and crumbling due to the fact that the world had been long abandoned. The Klingons had destroyed most of the world during their invasion of Cardassian space, during the lead up to the Dominion war, and had been very thorough during the attack, leaving the small sized planet pretty much inhabitable.

The planet's current position in its orbit around the star in the planetary system kept it in nearly a perpetual sea of darkness, giving the surface an eerie feel to it.

The Cardassian labor camp, even the ones ran by the Obsidian Order, were built pretty much the same, with identical placement of the buildings. Garak made his way to the building where he was sure records were kept about those who had been killed and cremated. As he stepped into the smashed remains of the building, he was unaware of the three bright spherical lights that suddenly appeared in the sky above.

After about an hour of searching, Garak finally came upon what appeared to be a manifest of a nearby burial site. Garak took the manifest, and twenty minutes later he was climbing down a steep rock surface, until he came upon the burial site. As had happened on many of the Cardassian prison planets, the offspring of some of the prisoners were buried in such places, usually by older Cardassian women who took pity on the dead children.

One of the names on the manifest was that of an infant; HRIKER. After searching for nearly ten minutes in the fog covered burial site, Garak came upon a small tombstone, with on HRIKER engraved upon it. Was Garak standing before the burial site of Harrison Riker? And if it was, Garak wondered; then who was the person on Timus going by the same name? Garak had his own assumptions, but didn't want to even hazard the possibility that his assumptions were true because it would mean the impossible was possible.

"So," Garak said to the tombstone, "now it's time for the pay off." He pulled out his Tricorder and began to scan for the remains that were buried beneath him. There was a strange power fluctuation, so Garak got down on his knees, to scan closer to the ground. And then, without any warning, a hand reached up out of the ground and grabbed him by the ankle…!

Garak, startled, lurched back, and lost his balance, falling backward. As he fell backward, his head hit a large boulder. Dizziness came, and he felt himself falling into a black abyss. But before he lost consciousness, he looked over at Harrison Riker's burial site, and watched as the hand that had grabbed him had now been joined by another. Someone was trying their hardest to crawl out from ground! As Garak felt himself slipping away, he saw the person dig their way out, finally seeing them stand where he himself had been standing moments earlier. The person, who was looking the other way, turned around and saw Garak. Garak recognized the person immediately; Harrison Riker. Garak could only watch at Harrison slowly walked toward him, and was soon standing over him.

With his strength fading, Garak looked up at Harrison Riker and asked one question.

"What are you?" Garak asked, as the dizziness made his vision spin.

Harrison reached down and picked up another large boulder and held it up over his head, readying to pummel Garak with it. Garak closed his eyes, and felt content his life was finally over…but instead, he heard a voice.

"No," the voice said, and it wasn't Harrison Riker's voice. "There will be no death here."

Garak opened his eyes, wanting to see who had just possibly saved his life. Through the haze of his dizziness he saw three spheres of light, and instantly Harrison Riker was gone, and then just as suddenly, a fourth light appeared, and then all four lights reached higher into the sky and in an instant they were gone.

In mere moments, the dead sound of the darkness returned, and everything was still again. Garak tried with all his might to stand up, but the blow to his head was more serious than just a simple bruise. He surmised that he had suffered a concussion.

"You probably should have just let him kill me," Garak said to the now darken sky. "It's not like I'm going anywhere soon."

Garak rested his bleeding head back down on the ground, content to just let death come over him, because, quite frankly, there wasn't much else he could do. He thought about what he had just witnessed; Harrison digging his self out of the ground. What forces were at work, Garak wondered, that would explain such a strange event?

"Then again," Garak said to himself, softly, maybe it was all a delusion brought about when he hit his head on the rock. Then again, that first which had reached out of the ground, did so before Garak had hit his head on the rock. "Oh well," Garak said finally. "It doesn't matter now."

With nothing else to do, Garak decided to look back on his life, in his final moments. But just as hope had seemed lost, Garak's eyes caught a most interesting sight in the near distance; Transporter beams solidifying. There were three of them, and soon three figures appeared. They were all wearing white containment suits, with helmets, thus giving Garak no clue as to who they were. One of the three new comers looked over in Garak's direction and came over to him, as the other two went over to the hole in the ground from which Harrison had crawled out of. It was at that moment when Garak's strength gave out…and he was lost to the dark abyss…for now…

Continued…

Next time…Miracle on Timus


	226. Outwit Outlast and try to stay alive!

Just a brief intermission to announce my new STAR TREK story which will premier sometime today in the STAR TREK "OTHER" secion of this site...here goes...pretend you are reading this in the TV guide!

TV GUIDE LISTING…

"_Sixteen contestants are being flown to a remote island, out in the middle of nowhere .They are all Star Trek fans, and will be portraying their favorite iconic Star Trek Characters in a series of contests to determine which Star Trek character is the ultimate Survivor. There will be heroes, there will be villains! There will be strong men and women and others you wouldn't think had a chance to win. The prize is ultimate; Five million dollars and the chance to help create the next STAR TREK TV series on CBS TV."_

(Well, that's what they think…because they will actually be in a life and death struggle with Earth's survival in the balance!)

Outwit! Outlast! Hell…JUST STAY ALIVE!

STAR TREK: SURIVIOR!


	227. Desperate Act

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Desperate Act**

_**Flashback…Earth**_

The medical complex at Star Fleet Command was one of the most advanced facilities of its kind throughout the Federation. The pediatrics wing of the complex was situated in an elevated area that had a stunning view of San Francisco bay. Inside one of the conference rooms, Seven of Nine, and her good friend and mentor, Admiral Janeway, were sitting, with Seven's child, Yudelle, kept warm in a blanket, on the table between them. Janeway had just been consulting with one of the doctors, Julian Bashir, and then headed into the conference room to be with Seven of Nine, and had delivered very stressing news to her.

Seven of Nine stared back at Admiral Kathryn Janeway, upon hearing the Admiral's words.

"Seven," Janeway said, with a very somber tone in her voice, "did you hear me?"

Seven of Nine had shown much growth, after Voyager had arrived several years earlier. But she hadn't been without her share of loss. Her husband, and former Maquis and Star Fleet officer Chakotay, had been incarcerated for one year of his seven year sentence, which was his punishment for having been a Maquis terrorist during. But now, things had just gotten worse.

"Affirmative," Seven replied, not bothering to look down at her Yudelle fidgeting in its blanket as the two women conversed. "You are telling me that the child is infected with Vegan choriomeningitis, and that she is going to die." She then looked down at her child, an infant named Yudele. "My husband and I will have to endeavor to have another child to take its place."

Janeway felt saddened at the words Seven had just said to her. The growth the former Borg drone had shown, over the past several years, had just vanished. It was clear, to Janeway, that the news of her two year old child's condition had affected Seven in more ways than one.

"Seven, listen to me," Janeway said, as she looked down at the smiling infant," this is a child. You just can't say you're going to replace her in such a cold and detached way. And even if Dr. Bashir said that her condition is without remedy, it doesn't mean we stop trying to find one."

Seven looked out the large window, at the skyline in the distance, and then back to Janeway.

"Before coming here, to Star Fleet Medical, I researched the medical career of Dr. Julian Bashir," Seven said, in a matter of fact way, "and by my own rigorous standards, I find him to be very competent in his field. If he believes Yudelle is going to die, then she is going to die. I see no logi…"

"You're her mother," Janeway said, cutting Seven of Nine off. "Look at her," Janeway said, as a tear came down from her left eye, "she is looking up at you, not me, you. There has to be an ounce of humanity in you that understands the bond between a mother and her child."

"What do you expect me to do?" Seven asked. "One of the most accomplished doctors in the Federation has just told us that Yudelle is going to die. I do not see what more I am to do."

"I don't know," Janeway said, as she fought back the urge to cry. "But at least go to the Tantalus Penal Colony," Janeway urged. "At least let Chakotay know, in person. He is her father, and he has a right to know."

"That is logical," Seven of Nine said.

"Go ahead and wait here," Janeway told her, "I will see to getting Yudelle admitted into the hospital.

Janeway reached down and picked up the child, and was saddened to see that Seven of Nine just looked out the window as her child was taken away. For many years she had been a Borg drone, and had no doubt seen many of her fallen Borg comrades just left behind, or had watched as their software had been removed before the body was evaporated. Was Seven merely reverting back to that sort of behavior? Her child was no longer operating at peak levels, so was this Seven's way of letting go?

Two hours later, after admitting her Yudelle into the hospital, Seven of Nine and Admiral Kathryn Janeway headed to Tantalus Penal Colony, via the Admiral's private shuttle craft.

* * *

**TANTALUS PENAL COLONY**

Three days later they had arrived at the Penal Colony. Seven of Nine, Admiral Janeway and Chakotay had met in the visitor's complex. There were several guards that stood watch in the complex, and they allowed Chakotay to hold his child. Chakotay was not taking the news well at all.

"I don't believe this," Chakotay said, as his little girl smiled up at him. "I know you respect this Dr. Bashir's opinion; but what about the Doc?" Chakotay asked, in reference to the EMH they had all come to know so well during the voyage home from the Delta Quadrant. "I'd rather hear it from him."

"He is at a conference on Romulas," Janeway replied. "He isn't due back for another month or so."

"How are you handling this," Chakotay asked his wife; Seven of Nine, as he reached out his hand and set it on hers. "I wish I could there with you."

"You are incarcerated," Seven of Nine reminded him. "Anything that must be done, I must now face alone. However, as I have told Admiral Janeway, when you are released from your sentence, in six more years, we can create another child to replace this one."

"It sounds to me like you're giving up on Yudelle," Chakotay said, with a bitter tone in his voice. "That isn't like you."

"There is nothing that can be done," Seven replied. "I do not see the logic in investing more compassion in this situation. I have already decided to, as you would say, move on."

Janeway could sense the tension rising between Chakotay and Seven. And again, it seemed as if the advances Seven had mad, trying to become more human and less Borg, were becoming undone. After several more uncomfortable moments, Janeway and Seven prepared to leave. Janeway and Chakotay shared a moment alone as Seven was in the process of wrapping a blanket around the child.

"She isn't reacting right," Chakotay told his former commanding officer.

"Believe me; I know," Janeway said. "She is compartmentalizing the ordeal, as a Borg drone would. We knew this could happen if she ever faced real stress. Give her time."

"Kate, listen to me," Chakotay said. "On Earth, there is Tribe of Native-Americans that has been relocated there after having spent hundreds of years on another planet."

"Yes, I heard about them. They were place on that world by the Preservers; if I recall."

"That's correct," Chakotay said, "And recently they returned home, to Earth. The chief is named Satangkai. This may seem like a farfetched idea, but I don't care; I want my daughter to live. I believe Satangkai's medicine doctors may have a way to combat Vegan choriomeningitis. Take Yudelle to him."

Janeway smiled at her former executive officer.

"Alright," Janeway said, "I'll do it."

The two of them hugged and soon Janeway and Seven of Nine were on their way back to Earth. Janeway told Seven of Nine about Chakotay's hope that Satangkai could help Yudelle. After debating the issue for nearly a day, while on route back to Earth, Seven of Nine finally agreed to what she believed was desperate act to save her child.

Continued…


	228. The Heart of the Matter

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER ART AT MY PROFILE)**

**Heart of the Matter**

**The Planet Timus...**

It had been three days since the Cardassian had tried to kill Benjamin Sisko at Quark's casino on the planet TImus. In hot pursuit, Jim Kirk had left Timus, accompanied by S'vath and Special Agent Ryan Tolbert, in hope of retrieving his son Mathew from the Cardassian. But back on Timus, there was a miracle in the works.

Benjamin Sisko and his wife Kasidy were at the town's lone hospital, sitting in the waiting room. Ben Sisko's older sister, Mavis, had been struck by the beam intended for him. Some of the blast had missed her, but what did hit her had mortally wounded her. The doctors had tried every known method to save her life, but the injuries were too severe. Admiral Kate Janeway, who had heard of the attack from her post at the Naissance Sphere, used her pull and was able to get Doctor Zimmerman, reassigned (Voyager's doctor, who now has a name; Zimmerman) to Timus to oversee the situation. Doctor Zimmerman, wearing his holo-emitter, entered the waiting room. Ben and Kasidy stood up to hear the news. Their daughter, Rebecca, had just arrived with two hot cups of coffee only moments earlier for her parents, was there as well.

"I'm sorry to inform you, but your sister will not live much longer," Zimmerman told Sisko. "I have given her something to ease the pain, but I suggest that you see her now; there isn't much more time."

Ben Sisko nodded in acknowledgement.

"Thank you for at least coming to Timus and trying to save her life," Ben Sisko said to the doctor.

"If I may," Zimmerman said, "I think your sister's impending death may mean life for someone else."

"What does that mean?" Rebecca asked.

"The child, Dahme Kirk," Zimmerman told the Siskos, "as you know, she was severely stunned as well. She faces almost certain death, due to the fact that the blast polarized nerve fibers inside her aorta. Unfortunately, that part of the heart cannot not, as of yet, be either cloned or simulated artificially," Zimmerman said.

"And you think Mavis can help with that?" Kasidy asked.

"Yes Mrs. Sisko, I do indeed believe so. Though, to be honest, I do not have the needed equipment to graph that part of her heart, so I would need to do a complete heart-transplant. I have already done the preliminary work, and have concluded that the new heart would not be rejected by Dahme's system. I have not brought this up with Mavis, but I am bringing it up with you."

"You want to give the little baby my aunt's heart?" Rebecca asked, as tears welled up in her eyes. "Daddy," Rebecca said to Ben Sisko, "it would be miracle."

"I know your sister would support this," Kasidy said to her husband. "Go talk to your sister. Let her know of this. Let her know that her death will help keep Jim Kirk's baby alive."

Sisko nodded in agreement, and then followed Dr. Zimmerman into the inner area of the hospital.

Several minutes later, Ben Sisko had explained the situation to his older sister, who was barely alive, her waning life signs displayed on the screen above her bed. Mavis, with what little strength she had, smiled upon hearing that her heart would keep the child alive.

"You tell Jim to watch out," Mavis was able say with a slight tone of humor in her voice. "With my heart beating inside of that girl, you know she's gonna be a hellfire."

Ben Sisko laughed at the thought.

"I know you won't believe this," Mavis continued to say, struggling to breathe as she spoke, "but mama and daddy are standing right next to you."

Ben's dad and his stepmother were both deceased. But if Mavis believed she saw them, then that was all that Ben needed to hear to believe her.

"They want you to buy back the restaurant," Mavis prodded her brother, "and run it."

"Yeah right," Ben said with a coy smile, "you've only been asking me to do that for the past five years."

"And you should..." Mavis began to say, before a spasm of pain rifled through her body.

Sisko felt a tug at his arm, it was Dr. Zimmerman. Sisko came away from the bed for a moment.

"We need to administer the agent," Zimmerman said, "if her body begins to shut down, the stress could cause her heart to fail, and damage it."

"Hey," Mavis said to them both, "I know what's going on. Give me that damn medicine so I can get goin'"

Ben Sisko came over and hugged his sister one last time as Dr. Zimmerman slowly administered the agent. Sisko stepped back and looked down at his sister as she smiled up at him; one last time. And then surely enough, the life in her eyes began to fade…and then she was gone.

* * *

Pediatrics…

Myran Kirk knelt by the incubator that kept her baby alive; barely. Myran had no more strength, and was on her knees. Only says ago, Harrison Riker had been killed right in front of her and now her child faced certain death, while her other child had been abducted. She had been consoled by so many, but it didn't help ease the pain, the feel of total utter loss. And then the door to her child's hospital room opened, and then Myran looked to the door. Out of the blinding light came what could only have been described as a miracle; the Emissary.

"Emissary," Myran said through her tears, "Won't you please bless my child before she passes."

Sisko reached down, and offered his hand to the woman. Myran took Sisko's hand, and then he gently pulled her up to her feet.

"That is not why I am here," Sisko told her. "My sister has just passed, and the doctor believes he can save your child's life by giving Dahme my sister's heart."

Myran smiled.

"Yes…yes…wh…wh…What do I have to do?" Myran pleaded.

"Just let him know that you consent, and then he can start immediately," Sisko told the woman.

Myran rushed out of the room to find the doctor, to give him her permission. Sisko, who was now alone in the room with the fallen child, looked down at the little girl and smiled. He bent down and touched the soft head of the baby with the palm of his hand.

"My sister is right, young lady," Sisko said to the baby who was sedated, and looked so lifeless. "If this works, and you do indeed get my sister's heart, you may also get her vigor; huh," Sisko said with a slight chuckle, "I have pity for your mother."

Moments later, several medics arrived and took the child away on a grav-gurney. Myran came in and waited by Sisko, and he took her hand into his.

"Please tell me this will work," Myran said softly as she looked up at Sisko.

"It will," Sisko said. He had no way of telling for sure if the operation would work; he just knew it would.

**_Next time….Picard's visit to Star Fleet Academy brings him face to face with a Changeling named Azami!_**


	229. To the Core

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER ART AT MY PROFILE)**

**To the Core**

**Starfleet Academy…**

The massive library complex at Starfleet Academy was on e of the most impressive libraries in the entire Federation. With collections representing a wide swath of the various worlds that comprised the galactic union and beyond, the value to a cadet's knowledge base was beyond compare. The latest wing of the library had only been built only four years earlier, and was very modern looking, with nods to Vulcan/Earth/Bajoran and even Cardassian architecture designs.

Several dozen cadets were inside the library for various reasons, most of them deep in their studying and were there to access reference materials. A few were using the holodecks and their programs to further immerse themselves in their study material. Even though there were several dozen or so cadets, it was actually a smaller crowd than usual, due to the fact most of the academy was on a light schedule due to the annual winter break. One cadet taking advantage of the down time was Azami, who was sitting at one of the tables with several datapads before her. In the coming weeks she would be taking her first field assignment; the Naissance Dyson-sphere, under the command of Admiral Kathryn Janeway. Azami was busy familiarizing herself with the Dyson-sphere as well as other aspects of her assignment.

In stationary orbit of Earth was the Delta Flyer-2. Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard, whose commission in Starfleet had been reactivated due to recent events, sat in the aft compartment along with Founder Prime Minister Odo. Piloting the Delta Flyer-2 was Captain Jonathan Canary, recently reassigned from the Naissance Project.

"Admiral," Canary said as he pivoted his chair to look back at Picard and Odo, "I just received a signal from Commander Mike Stone; he is ready to make his move."

"Put him on," Picard replied.

Canary pressed a button on his consol.

"Stone here," the voice of Mike stone said.

Mike Stone was the chief of security for the western hemisphere of Earth. His headquarters were located in San Francisco, and he had worked with Picard on several recent matters.

"Mike," Picard said to Commander Stone, as he looked at monitor that showed the image of Azami studying quietly in the Starfleet Academy library, "this has to go smoothly. We cannot allow her to escape, nor can the response be over-the-top so as to destroy her. I must talk to this shape-shifter."

"That's all well and good Jean-Luc," Stone's voice replied, "but if what we know is true, then she is the number one suspect in the murder of Cadet Renee Clayborn as well as Laas. And while I respect the sensitivity of Starfleet's interest in her, she, or it, must face justice for her accused crimes."

Azami was not really human. She had taken that form, but she was actually from a race of shape-shifters called the Imeyah. With help provided by the former leader of the Dominion, the "Lady Founder", Starfleet was able to locate Azami. According to "Lady Founder", the Imeyah and the Founders had fought a war thousands upon thousands of years ago. In fact, the "Lady Founder" claimed that the Imeyah had created the Borg in much the same way that the Dominion had created the Jem'Hedar; to control the solids.

"We wouldn't even be at this advance point of the investigation," Picard began to point out, "without the assistance of the female Founder. She helped us in constructing the tracking device that led us to Azami. I just want to make sure that we are all on the same page here. If Azami is indeed here as an advanced agent of a super race of changelings, I must know the extent of exactly what her aims are."

"Which may or may not be a direct threat to Earth. And that leads directly to the chief priority of my job; protection of Earth." Stone countered. "But don't worry Jean-luc; we're all on the same page here; Stone out."

Picard could see the look of disappointment on Odo's face.

"You don't seem to pleased," Picard said,

"Should I be?" Odo asked. "I thought this apprehension was going to be controlled by Starfleet. If this shape-shifter's abilities are to be believed, she could very easily escape; and all of this would be for nothing."

"I understand," Picard said. "All we know for certain is that she was working with Laas to try and obtain the holodeck technology from Moriarty so as to create an army of holodeck warriors. She is accused of killing her fellow cadet, and then Moriarty so as to silence him on any possible information he could have given us. She must face justice."

"Sir," Captain Canary interjected, "has there been any news as to the whereabouts of the Moriarty? I read the report and found it quite interesting that his library device was stolen from Stone's office."

Picard nodded in acknowledgement of Canary's statement.

"Stolen by a Cardassian agent, whom as we speak, is being pursued by Jim Kirk," Picard said to Canary. "I have dispatched Captain Tom Paris to meet up with Kirk, as well as special agent Ryan Tolbert, to clue them in on the fact that I want Moriarty's library device back in my custody once the situation with Kirk's abducted child is resolved."

Stone's voice spoke through the com signal.

"Alright," Stone said, "we're about to Transport the security detail in."

"Please tell me that Master Chief Miles Obrien is at the Transporter's control," Picard eagerly said.

"I'm here sir," Obrien's voice could be heard saying.

Both Picard and Odo felt a little better knowing that fact.

* * *

**The Planet Timus**

Benjamin Sisko and his wife Kasidy were waiting with Myran in the visitor's room inside the hospital. Rebecca Sisko and Lal were there as well, sitting quietly by one of the windows that looked out upon the peaceful town of Summit Grove. Kasidy left her husband and walked over to the two young women. She sat down next to them.

"Are you two still set to leave tomorrow for the Naissance Dyson-sphere?" Kasidy asked.

"I don't know if I should go," Rebecca said to her mother. "Aunt Mavis is gone, and dad is devastated."

"You of all people know how strong your father is," Kasidy said. "The fact that her last act saved that child has helped him accept her death. The last thing he would want is for you to alter your plans." Kasidy said. She then looked over at Lal. "How are you doing?"

"I am fine, thank you," Lal said. "Please convey my condolences to your husband."

"Thank you," Kasidy said as she stood back up, and walked back over to her husband.

Moments later, Doctor Zimmerman came out of the operation room and had a smile on face; the operation had been a success. Myran hugged Benjamin Sisko. Sisko's sister had died, but in so doing, had provided a chance for Myran's and Jim Kirk's infant daughter to. Their daughter was named Dahme, which in the Bajoran language translated to miracle.

* * *

**the planet Dan'gin**

Jim Kirk was piloting Quark's private shuttle, and brought the vessel out of warp. The planet Dan'gin was directly ahead of them. It was a world that had no laws, and was in an area space that none of the galactic powers claimed. In fact, the planet was so infested with the criminal element that no galactic power even dared to try and implement order or any kind.

"This isn't going to be easy," special agent Ryan Tolbert told Jim Kirk.

"You two can stay here," Kirk said to Tolbert and S'vath.

"Jim," S'vath said after a moment, "we're coming with you."

Kirk smiled at S'vath, who was also the son of his close friend; Spock.

"Thank you," Kirk told them both.

And then the three men went about creating a plan to rescue Kirk's son; Mathew. After nearly an hour of planning, Kirk powered up the shuttle and took it into the planet's atmosphere and closer to an encounter with not only Mathew's abductor, a Cardassian assassin, but with the assassin's employer as well; a man who went by the alias of Cube-1. But Kirk, S'vath and Ryan Tolbert all new Cube-1's real name; Chakotay.

Continued…


	230. Silent Walls

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Silent Walls (there is new cover art at my profile for this issue)**

**FLASHBACK…(five years ago)**

Having been found guilty for his actions while serving with the Maquis, former Starfleet officer Chakotay had been sentenced to serve seven years at the minimum security facility at the Tantalus Penal colony. He was in his private cell when a communication came into him from Admiral Kathryn Janeway; the look on face was a signal to Chakotay that the news wasn't good.

"What's wrong?" Chakotay asked. "Don't tell me Yudelle is dead."

Yudelle was the toddler daughter of Seven of Nine and Chakotay. She had come down with a rare medical condition; Vegan choriomeningitis.

"Chakotay, listen to me; the Federation medical board has not certified Chief Satangkai as an authorized practitioner of medicine." Janeway said.

"Meaning what?" Chakotay asked.

A look of anger came over Janeway's face.

"When Seven and I attempted to take Yudelle to the Native American lands on North America," Janeway explained, "I got a terse message from Starfleet's medical board. Apparently they knew of what we were doing and ordered us not to violate their decree."

"Kate, don't tell me you listened to them," Chakotay said, his own anger building inside of him.

"Of course not," Janeway said, "however, as you know, the Native America tribal board has expressively demanded that Transporters not be used when accessing their land. So, with that in mind, Seven and I took a travel pod to the arrival center just outside tribal land near New Mexico. A Starfleet security team was there, and they took Yudelle from us. Both Seven and I have been detained until the matter is settled in the coming days."

"Yudelle doesn't have days," Chakotay said. "Who has her?"

"She's being kept at a medical center here in New Mexico, and being tended to by its doctors." Janeway's expression became that of being concern. "Yudelle is not doing well, and even with all my connections, I can't get the medical board to budge on this."

Chakotay could tell that nothing good was going to come from the status quo.

"Well, you did the best you could Kate," Chakotay said, "thank you for trying. Where is Seven now?"

"They just let her go in and visit Yudelle, but I know this is getting to her. I can see the pain in her eyes," Janeway said.

"Give her my love," Chakotay said, and then he broke the communication.

He thought for a moment, and decided to take action. It was time to call in all his markers and then he went about coming up with a plan to escape from the penal colony.

-**end flashback-**

* * *

**On a Distant world….**

The world had been explored by three starships over the past century or so, but no value was ever applied to the small world that was far removed from any high traffic area of the galaxy. It was the first visit to the world that resulted in a mysterious incident for James T Kirk and his crew on Star Date 5978.2 (That Which Survives)

Though a Starfleet camp had been established on the small world, it had long been abandoned. And during the Dominion war, a Breen warship, while fleeing from a Federation attack, crashed into the surface of the planet, and was obliterated upon contact.

A small little creature, resembling a lizard, scurried about the dusty ground, near a concentration of shrubbery. The small animal was roughly eight inches in total length, and could smell the scent of small insects up ahead in the assorted bushes. It was suddenly sent running in the opposite directions when, from out of nowhere, a large object appeared.

That object was actually man…and his name was Dr. Leonard McCoy.

* * *

The planet Dan'gin was a world that was situated right on the invisible border that separated the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. It was a world without government, a place where scumbags flocked to. Scoundrels of all shapes and sizes patronized the bars and sex clubs that littered the lone city on the planet. One could even say that Dan'gin was the evil counterpart world to Timus, which was, generally, a peaceful world. Dan'gin was a dog eat dog world where physical strength and weapons separated the winners from the losers as did wealth and power. Neither the Federation nor the Klingon Empire, the closest powers to the world, had any desire to move in and clean the planet up. The Gorn had tried, decades earlier, but lost seven ships and thousands of lives in the process. The lack of weapon laws made meant that an invading force would face certain doom. Even the Jem'Hadar avoided Dan'gin during the Dominion War; the planet's reputation the main reason why.

So, it was pretty much general knowledge that Dan'gin was a universe of its own. If anyone was foolish to go there then they would have to suffer the consequences. The criminal element that flocked there also had one simple code; do not bring your criminal efforts to Dan'gin. Meaning; no kidnapped victims were to be brought there, because the major powers, Federation/Klingons/Romulans ect, would have to respond if their citizens were kidnapped and brought to Dan'gin. Murder was allowed on Dan'gin, as well as swindling, or rape, or any lurid act, as well as gambling, prostitution and illegal cloning.

One citizen of Dan'gin had arrived on the world five years earlier. His name was Chakotay; and he was a former Star Fleet officer, but had also been a member of the Maquis. And upon the Voyager's return to the Alpha Quadrant, Chakotay was not happy with what had happen to his former associates in the Maquis, and he didn't like the plea bargain the Federation had offered him and others of the Maquis that had served aboard Voyager. Chakotay fled Federation space, rather than sign the plea bargain, and thus became a wanted criminal. He ended up on Dan'gin because many of the criminal elements there had helped his cause during the days of the Maquis and their struggle against the Federation and Cardassians, were there and it only seemed natural that he would end up there too.

After five years of investing in criminal acts throughout the system, mainly through his numerous contacts in the Orion Syndicate, Chakotay had made himself a pretty good fortune and had a feared name. He was also known as someone not to cross. Many who had crossed Chakotay had been killed; ruthlessly. Over those five years he had become a cold cruel man out to make a simple percentage.

Chakotay owned a joint on Dan'gin. It was a bar, brothel, and pretty much one of the most popular hangouts on Dan'gin. If you were a top of the line criminal and or scumbag, Chakotay's was the place you went to gamble, or just sit at a table or at the bar with no cares or bothers. The scent of all kinds of illegal drugs, sweat from the varied alien life forms that came there, and the undeniable aroma of other bodily fluids, would cause anyone to faint upon their first venture into the bar. It wasn't uncommon to see sexual acts happening in the booths that were scattered about the darkened parlor. An occasional fist fight would break out at the various games of chance that were played all about the parlor as well. Dabo wheels, Poker tables and Dom'Jot tables were the most favored games of chance. If patrons got into fights, and couldn't afford the damaged furniture, then they were taken out of the club and decapitated by Bak'loth. Bak'loth, a massive Chalnoth warrior, and was Chakotay's chief enforcer, was not to be trifled with. To get to Chakotay meant you had to get though Bak'loth, and that wasn't easy to do.

Bak'loth was standing in his customary position in the far corner of the bar. Near to where he stood, two naked Orion slave women were engaged in sexual acts together in a cage suspended from the ceiling. There were two drunken patrons passed out on a table below the cage, but no other customers in the vicinity of that area of the bar, which was fine with Bak'loth. He looked up at the two Orion women and wondered if they knew that no one was watching them. One of the Orion women began to urinate, or least Bak'loth thought it was urine, and the expelled liquid drained out of the cage onto one of the drunks below. Bak'loth shook his head, and then decided to stand somewhere else, safe from the splattering bodily fluids of the cage dancer.

A Cardassian approached Bak'loth.

"I need to speak with Chakotay," Davot said, in a cool manner.

"Chakotay…not…see…anyone," Bak'loth replied with his usual spoken speech pattern.

Davot reached out his hand, which held a bar of gold pressed latinum.

"Maybe you can double check," Davot said as Bak'loth reached out and took the bar.

"Come…" Bak'loth said.

Bak'loth walked through a dark passageway that was line with several high end scanners, which were aimed at his and Davot's body, looking for any signs of danger. A green light flashed at the end of the passageway, and both of them walked through a door.

On the other side of the door they found Chakotay. He was sitting with two women on a large curved couch that rimmed the entire room. It didn't take much imagination to know that the couch was used for the massive sex orgies that Chakotay was known for having from time to time.

"This better be good," Chakotay said, as he stood up and came over to where Bak'loth and Davot.

Bak'loth handed Chakotay the bar of latinum, and then took it over to a safe. Chakotay entered the combination, opened the safe, and then placed the bar on top of a stack of bars, one of many, that were in the safe. He closed the safe and turned to face them.

"Alright," Chakotay said, "what do you want?"

"I have the object," Davot said. "It is aboard my ship."

"When you say you have the object," Chakotay said, "I assume you mean the hologram library device that I contracted you to retrieve for me. Is the hologram individual Moriarty inside the device?"

"It is there," Davot said.

"Then why have you not brought it to me?" Chakotay asked.

"I want to re-structure our deal," Davot said. "In order to get into Starfleet's security complex on Earth, I had to pay a high price for the transporter technology to do so."

"Davot, that is a cost you did not bring up when I contracted you," Chakotay said with irritation in his voice. "Had you mentioned it then, I would have had no problem to buck up the price. Now you know how this works, because I've contracted you several times before. The price was set when you took the deal."

"All true," Davot said, "but I should also tell you that I attempted to assassinate Benjamin Sisko on Timus prime. Although I failed, I was hoping that the act alone was worth something extra to you."

Chakotay thought for a moment.

"I have never put out a contract on his life, even though seeing him dead would please me," Chakotay said. "You say you failed? Why should that be any worth to me?"

"I have brought a hostage back with me," Davot said with a smile. "And from what I know of Starfleet history, this hostage could be worth a hefty price to you."

Davot pressed a button on his sleeve and then, a second later, a baby's crib materialized in the center of the room; and there was a baby in it.

"Oh and yes," Davot said, "that transporter tech I bought to infiltrate the Earth Security complex on Earth can bypass your system as well."

"I'll have to remember that," Chakotay said, as he walked over to the crib.

Seeing the young baby, who was roughly the same age Yudelle was when she died, brought back memories to Chakotay. He reached down and picked the child up. The child, a boy, smiled up at Chakotay, which brought a smile to Chakotay's face as well.

"I don't understand," Chakotay said to Davot, "how is this child of any value to me."

"He is the offspring of a legendary Starfleet officer," Davot said, "James T Kirk."

The smile on Chakotay's face quickly vanished.

"Jim Kirk," Chakotay repeated softly. "I had heard reports of his still being alive," Chakotay said as he looked at the child, "but I had no idea he had a child."

"Two actually," Davot said. "His infant daughter was unintentionally killed during my failed assassination attempt on Sisko." (readers…we know that Dahme actually survived, thanks to Dr. Zimmerman, but that information hasn't been circulated yet to where anyone else would know.)

A look of anger came over Chakotay's face as he set the child down in the crib.

"You killed an infant?" Chakotay asked. "And then you kidnap another and brought it here? And, on top of all that, they are the children of James T Kirk? Does he know about this?"

"He was there when happened," Davot said. "Certainly the death of his other child, and the abduction of this one, has to be worth something to you."

It was at that moment, and without any warning, that three Transporter signals appeared and solidified. And instantly, standing in their place, were S'vath, special agent Ryan Tolbert and James T Kirk!

Continued…


	231. The Doctor

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**The Doctor**

A small Ferengi vessel came out of warp near a charted yet long forgotten world. Aboard the ship were two Ferengi traders. They were brothers, and considering Ferengi, they actually got along. The oldest brother was named Ombox and the younger brother was named Tokbie. The reason they both got along was very clear to the both of them; they were failures. They had eked out miserable existences while trading goods, the kinds of goods that, at best, would lead to miserable existences. They had a large cache of bottom feeder items such as; hyper-sonic tooth brushes, women's G-force bras-several assortments of Gobnok candied suckers-subscriptions to monthly periodicals such as Cardassian Bikers-Hologram Gaming magazine.

"Brother, you do realize," Tokbie told his older brother, "that we only have enough energy reserves for one more jump into Warp speed."

"Yes, I know," Ombox replied with sarcasm in his voice. "Don't worry I'll think of something; I always do."

"What world is this?" Tokbie asked.

"I don't know; I've never been to this part of the Federation before. According to the databanks, this world has been explored, but nothing of any value remains and it is uninhabited," Ombox explained.

"Great," Tokbie said, "this will be just another waste of time. I doubt such a desolate and obscure planet would bring us anything of value."

"You never know," Ombox said, with a slight burst of hope in his voice, "maybe we'll find something others have over looked. You know those Federation types; they don't like to get their hands dirty. You did bring the metal detectors and shovels right?"

Tokbie looked back into the innards of their ship, where all their clutter was kept.

"I'm sure they're back there somewhere," Tokbie replied.

The ship entered orbit and each brother peered through a science scanning viewer, hoping to find clues of readily available ores to exploit. It didn't seem to take too long, and before they knew it, three hours had passed and they had found nothing of any importance, and so they decided to set their scanners on low settings and conserve what little energy the ship had left.

"Great," Ombox said, "nothing is here."

"Well, I guess we can sell the ship at the next trading post," Tokbie finally said.

"Are you serious?" Ombox asked. "What are we going to do for a living?"

"What about that cousin of ours," Tokbie said, "Baybok. Last I heard of him he was living on the planet Timus, which isn't too far from here. Maybe he has work for us, or at least, some food. I'm getting sick of eating Weeblo Seeds all the time."

"Are you forgetting something younger brother?" Ombox asked. "He's a Ferengi, just like we are. He just isn't going to hire us; he'll want something in exchange and guess what? WE have nothing."

Tokbie was about to reply when suddenly the scanners chirped to life.

"The scanners have found something," Ombox said excitedly, "maybe this is our lucky break!"

"Don't get your hopes up to high," Tokbie came back with, as he looked into the viewing panel of the sensors, "It's only a life sign; a human male."

"How did he get down there?" Ombox wondered. But this his voice became more excited as his mind began to spin out possible $$$ values. "I bet he's lost. And If he is lost, then I bet someone might be offering a reward if he were to be found. Let's go down there and checkout who this human is. It's a win-win situation for us."

"How do you figure?" Tokbie asked his brother.

"If he's worth something, that is good for us," Ombox said. "If he isn't worth anything, we could kill him and then butcher him up and eat good meat for a month or so. That would be good for us too."

"You always have the answers," Tokbie said to his brother.

"I know," Ombox said back to his brother.

Ombox took the ship down through the atmosphere of world, the surface of which was dominated by deserts. The area they were heading toward had no cloud cover at all, just yet another desert landscape which was dotted by an occasional foothill or rock cropping. As Ombox prepared to land the ship, Tokbie, who was using viewing glasses, pointed out the window of the craft at the human who was in turn looking up at them as the ship landed. The human had dark hair and was wearing a blue shirt with dark slacks and boots. The shirt had a very recognizable emblem on it.

"Brother," Tokbie said, "there's a Starfleet emblem on his shirt."

"A Starfleet emblem, are you sure?" Ombox asked, as he brought the ship to a landing, "What kind of uniform is that?"

"Who cares," Tokbie said. "If he was stranded here, we could charge him anything we want for passage to a local Starbase."

The two Ferengi brothers scurried to the exit of their ship, and opened the hatch. A metallic boarding ramp automatically extended from the ship the moment the hatch had been opened. Ombox, followed by Tokbie, exited first.

"Whew," Ombox said as they stepped out onto the dry surface, "it's hot out here."

They both stared up at the hot sun overhead.

"Let's get this over with," Tokbie said, "these kinds of worlds give me heat rashes."

"I know," Ombox said with a groan in his voice, "and they smell awful."

They made their way toward the human had changed his direction and had started walking toward the ship.

"Howdy there," the human said. "It's a good thing you came out of the sky when you did," the stranger said, "I'm not sure how long I would have made it out here in this heat."

"Who are you?" Ombox asked the human.

"Isn't that the strangest thing," the stranger replied with a befuddled look on his face, "I don't know who I am. In fact, I can't even tell you how I got here or where I am. Obviously I'm suffering from some kind of memory loss."

Ombox and Tokbie didn't care about any of that, all they saw was the opportunity to make some $$$ in the form of gold pressed latinum.

"Well, if you'd like, we could take you to the nearest Starbase. They might be able to help you," Tokbie said to the human.

"I'm not sure what a Starbase is," the stranger said, "but sounds like a great place to get a start at."

The Ferengi assisted the human up and into their ship, offering him water and Weeblo seeds. And then, due to exhaustion, the human was soon fast asleep on one of the cots. Ombox and Tokbie soon powered the ship up, and lifted off. Moments later, the ship was back into space, and heading away from the planet. Tokbie was using one of the computers, searching databases.

"Hey," Ombox said, "don't use that computer for too long. I was barely able to scrounge enough energy up to get us of that world. We have just barely e enough battery reserves to power up the warp drive."

"I know brother, I'll be fast. In case you're wondering, I'm using one of the Starfleet databases we bought from that Andorian we traded with a few months back."

"I remember him," Ombox came back with. "You gave him my bootleg copy of Human Sex Slave; The Revenge of Veronica West in exchange for that database."

"And finally," Tokbie said, as the face of the stranger was displayed on the screen, "it has paid off. Look brother, we have a match."

The Ferengi stared at the human face displayed on the screen, and the named listed below it; Doctor Leonard McCoy.

Continued…

Next time SPOCK and G'KAR see the future; an exploding super-nova and the destruction of Romulas!


	232. Child Play

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Child Play**

_Previously…_

_A Cardassian mercenary, named Davot had attempted to kill Benjamin Sisko on the planet Timus. Though the attempt to kill Ben Sisko had failed, instead resulting in the death of Sisko's sister Mavis, Davot escaped and kidnapped the two year old son of James T Kirk in the process. Davot headed to the world of Dan' gin, which is a world without any sort of government and is run by the criminal element which infests the world, including the infamous criminal mastermind Cube-1; former Starfleet officer Chakotay. Davot, who was desperate for assistance, had gone to Chakotay hoping that the kidnapped child of Kirk would be of some value to him…our story continues…_

**Chakotay's lair on the planet Dan'gin; which is securely located deep inside the bowels of the seedy nightclub which is only a front for his criminal organization.**

Chakotay dismissed the two hookers who were with him, so that he could deal with his guest; Davot. The women, both Bajoran, exited out the rear entrance.

"I have brought a hostage back with me," Davot said with a smile. "And from what I know of Starfleet history, this hostage could be worth a hefty price to you. Oh and yes," Davot said, "that transporter tech I bought to infiltrate the Earth Security complex on Earth to obtain the holographic device (containing Moriarty)you paid me to get for you, can bypass your system as well."

Davot pressed a button on his sleeve and then a baby's crib materialized in the room, and inside the crib was a child that was roughly the same age Yudelle, Chakotay's dead child, was when she had died. Seeing the young child now brought back memories to Chakotay. He reached down and picked the child up. It was a boy, and it smiled up at Chakotay, which brought a smile to Chakotay's face as well.

"You killed an infant?" Chakotay asked. "And then you kidnap another and brought it here? And, on top of all that, they are the children of James T Kirk? Does he know about this?"

"He was there when happened," Davot said. "Certainly the death of his other child, and the abduction of this one, has to be worth something to you."

It was at that moment, and without any warning, that three Transporter signals appeared and solidified. And instantly, standing in their place, were S'vath, special agent Ryan Tolbert and James T Kirk!

Chakotay, still holding the child, locked glances upon Kirk the moment the legendary Starfleet officer appeared. The helplessness on Kirk's face was the same look that Chakotay had seen on his own face when he watched his daughter die of a disease that she could be cured from.

"Chakotay," Ryan Tolbert said, as held up a card-case, flipping it open to reveal a badge, "I'm agent Ryan Tolbert. Please give us the child, and we will be on our way; that is all we are here for."

Davot laughed.

"Your laws mean nothing here, human," Davot said as he revealed a hand held weapon and aimed it at Tolbert. "So I suggest you leave now."

"This is between you and me," Kirk said to Chakotay, their eyes locked in a glance. "I've read your file," Kirk added, "and I know that you lost your daughter to terrible disease."

Chakotay nodded.

"Your son," Chakotay said, looking at the child for a moment, "I can tell you love him. But I loved my Yudelle just as much; and she died."

"It would be illogical for it to happen again," S'vath said, as he, being a father of two young children himself, understood the undercurrent that Kirk and Chakotay shared.

"What do you know of it Vulcan?" Chakotay asked.

"I have two children, the same age as his," S'vath said to Chakotay, "and I know that if I had lost them the way you had lost your daughter, I too would have fallen to the depths of despair, but that doesn't have to happen to Kirk again. He has already lost a child. (S'vath and the others are unaware that Kirk's injured child has actually survived back on the planet Timus.)"

"Don't listen to these men," Davot said to Chakotay. Davot then aimed the weapon at the child, and by doing so, he aimed it at Chakotay as well. "If you don't leave now," Davot said to Kirk and the others, "I will kill both of them."

Realizing the futility of the situation, Ryan Tolbert twitched his wrist, and then a hidden knife in his sleeve slid into his hand, and then he threw it at Davot. The knife dug into the Cardassian's thick neck, but not before he fired his weapon. Chakotay pivoted just in time, shielding the blast with his shoulder; as Kirk and S'vath ran toward the fallen Chakotay, and baby Mathew, Davot beamed away.

Upon rolling Chakotay over, who was on the ground, Kirk and S'vath were astonished to find that the child was gone.

"When he beamed out," Chakotay struggled to say to Kirk, his life fading with each breath, "he must have beamed your son out as well." Chakotay reached out and grabbed Kirk's arm, and squeezed it with his last remaining strength. "I'm sorry it happened this way; get your child back Kirk!"

Kirk nodded and then watched as the life faded from Chakotay's face; the former commander of Voyager was dead.

"Let's go," Tolbert hurriedly said, as he pressed a button and he, as well as Kirk and S'vath beamed away.

Chakotay's body was left motionless on the ground. The back entrance opened and the two Bajoran hookers came back in, and seeing the dead body of Chakotay, they rummaged through his large living quarters, scrounging up anything of value, and then they slipped out the back door and were gone.

* * *

After a few moments, the doors opened to Chakotay's quarters and thugs of all kind entered, and saw that Chakotay was dead and then; the chase was on!

* * *

Moments later; Kirk, S'vath and Ryan Tolbert were on Quark's ship, and once again they were pursuing Davot's small craft.

"We have to get Mathew back!" Kirk said to S'vath, who was now piloting the ship.

"Jim," Ryan Tolbert said, "he may have killed Mathew already."

Kirk shook his head.

"No," Kirk said, "I won't lose two children like this!"

"We have another problem," S'vath said suddenly, as he maneuvered the ship, "Eighteen ships are chasing us; no doubt Chakotay's death has been discovered and they believe we did it, and," S'vath added, "killing a legend like yours would no doubt be a great accomplishment."

"What about Davot's ship?" Tolbert asked.

"He can't go into warp for another thirty-five seconds, due to the fact he is heading between those two moons," S'vath said. The ship was rocked by a torpedo fired by one of the ships chasing them, "and neither can we," S'vath added.

Kirk and Tolbert looked out the rear viewing port.

"There are more than eighteen ships chasing us," Tolbert said, "I count at least thirty!"

"Some of them are no doubt using sensor evading tech," S'vath replied, "these are criminals we are dealing with."

And then, as Kirk and Tolbert were watching the ships behind them gaining on them, they were suddenly puzzled when ALL of the ships chasing them suddenly reversed course.

"What's go on?" Kirk asked. "Why are they all reversing course?"

"That's why," S'vath said.

Jim Kirk and Ryan Tolbert came up to the front of the ship and saw what S'vath saw; three dozen Klingon battleships of various designs. And then one of the Klingon ships, a Negh-var class battleship, fired at Davot's ship; instantly destroying it!

"No," Kirk said with a soft voice.

But at that instant, a red transporter signal flared into sight and solidified; standing in its place was Kirk's good friend: Chancellor Martok of the Klingon empire, and he was holding baby Mathew. Martok held the child out, and Kirk took it.

"You once saved Benjamin Sisko's daughter, and my life," Martok said to Kirk, "it was the least I could do."

Kirk could not contain himself, and he smiled at the large Klingon; and then he held out his hand. Martok grabbed Kirk up, and the baby between then, and nearly choked them out of all their breath as he bear hugged them both.

"How did you know we were here?" Ryan Tolbert asked Martok.

"There was no mystery as to where that Cardassian scum would go," Martok said replied. "When you left Timus, Sisko contacted me with Quark's inter-dimensional communication array, and just by chance, my forces were engaged in training exercises with the Federation. The Federation, displaying its usual stupidity, did not send one vessel; I sent all of mine. Once we detected this child's life signs, we beamed it over, and then I ordered my flagship to destroy the Cardassian and his ship."

"You do know," Tolbert said, with a sarcastic look on his face, "that the Federation does claim jurisdiction in these parts and will want to know why Davot wasn't apprehended and brought to face justice in a court room."

They all broke down and laughed at the notion of a Federation trial.

"Oh, one more thing," Martok said, as the laughter ebbed. "Your daughter lives," Martok said to Kirk.

"How is that possible?" S'vath asked for a befuddled Kirk.

"I do not have all the details," Martok said to Kirk. "However, if you would land this Ferengi deathtrap on my flagship, we can get you back to Timus much faster."

Kirk reached out and put his hand on Martok's shoulder.

"Martok; you are a friend," Kirk said, as he held Mathew in his other arm, "I am forever indebted to you."

"I might just take you up on that debt someday," Martok said.

Martok slapped Kirk on the back, nearly knocking him over in the process, and then Martok beamed away.

S'vath landed the Ferengi transport ship inside the hanger bay of Martok's flagship, and soon the fleet warped away.

* * *

_Somewhere, beyond the bounds of eternity, Chakotay held his daughter Yudelle again…and they both found peace._

* * *

Meanwhile, three dozen light years away, another Ferengi transport was making its way through space as well. And a man who had no idea who he was, and wearing a dingy old smuggler's wardrobe, was eating a plate of Weeblo seeds, which he found quite tasty. He had been given a new name by his Ferengi captors and that name was Gobi. But the Ferengi also knew this man's real name, Leonard McCoy; but they had no plans of letting the human know. Not until they either sold him to the slave marketers. But, as always, fate had other plans and pretty soon the Ferengi would learn how valuable a trained surgeon could be!

_Next time…Picard comes face to face with death! And coming soon; Spock and G'kar get a glimpse of the future… Kirk finds new love…Ryan Tolbert finds that there is an evil inside of him…Rebecca and Lal arrive at the Naissance Dyson-sphere (again)…S'vath investigates a man who claims to work miracles…and finally; Khan is back and this time he has Q in his sights!_


	233. Violent Peace

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Violent Peace**

**Starfleet****Academy****…**

The massive library complex at Starfleet Academy was one of the most impressive libraries in the entire Federation. With collections representing a wide swath of the various worlds that comprised the galactic union and beyond, the value to a cadet's knowledge base was beyond compare. The latest wing of the library had only been built only four years earlier, and was very modern looking, with nods to Vulcan/Earth/Bajoran and even Cardassian architecture designs.

Several dozen cadets were inside the library for various reasons, most of them deep in their studying and were there to access reference materials. A few were using the holodecks and their programs to further immerse themselves in their study material. Even though there were several dozen or so cadets, it was actually a smaller crowd than usual, due to the fact most of the academy was on a light schedule due to the annual winter break. One cadet taking advantage of the down time was Azami, who was sitting at one of the tables with several data pads before her. In the coming weeks she would be taking her first field assignment; the Naissance Dyson-sphere, under the command of Admiral Kathryn Janeway. Azami was busy familiarizing herself with the Dyson-sphere as well as other aspects of her assignment.

In stationary orbit of Earth was the Delta Flyer-2. Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard, whose commission in Starfleet had been reactivated due to recent events, sat in the aft compartment along with Founder Prime Minister Odo. Piloting the Delta Flyer-2 was Captain Jonathan Canary, recently reassigned from the Naissance Project.

"The security team is beaming in now," Captain Canary relayed to Picard and Minister Odo….

* * *

A five team security detachment beamed in and surrounded Azami, training their weapons on the unsuspecting changeling.

"Do not move; by order of the Earth Security forces you are under arrest for the murder of…" the team's commander began to say, when all of a sudden, Azami changed shape into that of a twenty-five foot Ibarian Snowbeast.

Before any of the security team could react, the snowbeast reached out, grabbed the team leader who had ordered Azami not to move, and bit into his neck, severing the man's head in the process. The snowbeast flung the lifeless body into a nearby wall as innocent bystanders fled in all directions as the security team opened fire on the snowbeast, who then sported wings and took flight, smashing out through a large window that overlooked the Starfleet Academy campus.

But once outside of the library, another team, which had anticipated this move, opened fire on the flying beast, who then roared at its attackers, hurling a wave of flame out of its mouth, instantly engulfing five of the attackers with its flames, killing them. Suddenly, zooming out from the cloud covered sky were four attack craft, and one of them was a Bird of Prey, weapons firing at the beast. At first it appeared as if the beast would weather attack, as streaks of energy bounced off its wings. Suddenly the beast fell back upon a grassy knoll just outside the library, where it was then fired upon by several security officers. Ionized energy webs were fired and spread over the beast, just as the Bird of Prey, which was directly overhead, dropped a Di-tromnium web as well, which solidified around the beast, effectively taking away its ability to morph. Tiring from the strain, the beast was able to morph one last time into the calm appearance of Azami. She offered no resistance as a security officer ran up to her and attached a device around her petite waist. At that moment, Picard and Odo beamed into view, as did Commander Mike Stone from Earth's security division. The three of them approached the now powerless shape shifter.

"My name is Commander Stone," Stone told Azami, "you are under arrest for the murders of Cadet Renee Clayborn as well as Laas, who was your co-conspirator in an attempt to destroy Earth."

Azami looked past Commander Stone and directly at Odo.

"You are a fool," Azami said to Odo. "The only way these pathetic humans would have known how to capture me is if they were told, either by you or another of your kind, how to do it."

Odo shook his head, and looked upon Azami with a look of disgrace.

"Violence will never bring peace to the galaxy," Odo told Azami, "the Great Link found that out the hard way."

"These solids will eventually cage you as well," Azami said with a smile, "it is only a matter of time." She looked over at Picard. "You're attempt to cage me will not last. I will eventually escape and when I do, I will kill you; Locutus."

"I have to wonder," Picard said back to her, "if in your attempts to bring order to the galaxy, if you truly realize the amount of destruction you have wrought, thanks to your creation of the Borg. I find it quite ironic that your perception of control seems to derive out of wanton disrespect of life."

"We," Azami said, as she looked over at Odo and them back to Picard, "are the only true life forms of the galaxy. Ever since your kind, solids, entered into the vacuum of space you have brought destruction in every corner of the galaxy. Trust me, Locutus, no cage can hold me. In time you will see that truth."

"Take her away," Stone ordered the security officers who had come to take Azami into custody.

Picard surveyed the damage done to the library.

"We lost six of the security team," Stone said, "But it could have been worse."

"Please send my regards to their families," Picard said to Stone.

"Of course," Stone replied.

"What will happen with Azami now?" Odo asked Stone.

"She will get her day in court," Stone replied. "And don't worry; we will take extra precautions to unsure that she doesn't escape. The information given to us by the Lady Founder will be most helpful in that effort."

"I certainly hope so," Minister Odo. "Now, Ambassador Picard, it is time I get back to the Gamma-Quadrant and rejoin the link and share this event with the others."

"I understand," Picard said. "However," Picard said, as he watched from a distance as Azami was placed inside of security-force hover craft and taken away, "I have to wonder if there are others of her kind, the Imeyah, are out there."

"That I do not know," Odo said, "I have to think that she wasn't the only one."

Picard and Stone watched as Odo beamed away to the Jem'Hedar transport vessel that was in orbit of Earth.

"What about you?" Stone asked Picard. "What are your plans?"

"I am heading to the planet Timus," Picard replied. "There is a slight chance that the matrix device containing Moriarty may at last be back in our custody."

"And if it is," Stone added, "I expect you to get it back to me where it belongs. Moriarty is also due for his day in court."

"It is ironic," Picard said. "Months ago I was arguing for his right to be free and now I will be arguing for his incarceration."

"You fought for his rights, I'll give you that," Stone said.

The two men shook hands, and then went in two different directions. Seconds later, Picard was beamed away and was soon aboard the Delta Flyer two on his way to Timus.

* * *

Commander Mike Stone returned to his home, which was located in the suburbs of San Francisco. One he was in the privacy of his home, he went into a special room and closed the door; safely secure behind five inches of neutronium. In mere moments he morphed into the shape of liquid energy, which he would have to remain in the form of in order to bring balance to his biological state. Such was the existence of an Imeyah changeling.

* * *

Next time…Spock learns of a possible future that includes the destruction of Romulas and Vulcan! Plus; Leonard McCoy has a new calling….smuggler!

And coming soon; the death of Chakotay has an unwelcomed effect on Annika Hanson; and only Deanna Troi can help her find peace! Kirk returns to Timus and so does Spock! Plus; an evil essence is inside of special agent Ryan Tolbert and it wants to live and kill again!


	234. Ramblings

**Star Trek: Shadows and Lights**

**Ramblings **

Ambassadors Spock and G'kar walked side by side down a winding dirt path behind their guide, a Noralian named Mindga. The planet Noralia was located in an unclaimed area of the Alpha-Quadrant and was deemed to be unimportant in the matters of galactic events. The inhabitants were humanoids who stood, at best, four feet tall. Their heads were bald, with the exception of a thick strand of hair which was kept braided and reached down to the small of their back.

"We are almost at the Hall of Echoes," Mindga told his two visitors. "Unfortunately it is housed beneath our ancient burial sites and it is against our laws to allow modern technology such as Transporters to penetrate this part of our world."

"It is of no problem," Spock replied.

The three men continued to walk down the path, which went further and further into the depths of mountain crevice, which would soon lead them to the hall of echoes. G'kar looked over at Spock.

"Spock," G'kar began to say, "I couldn't help but notice that before we exited the shuttle when we landed here on Noralia that you had received a message from your son S'vath. Please excuse my curiosity, but were they able to save Kirk's child from the Cardassian who had abducted him?"

"Yes," Spock replied, "they were. In my reply I told my son to inform Jim that his daughter Dahme was alive as well. Once we have seen to this matter here on Noralia, I would like to return to Timus to see Jim and make sure he is…fine."

"Oh please yes," G'kar said. "Although I only know your friend peripherally, I am quite anxious to see that he is well too."

"Ahhh," Mindga said a moment later as they neared a cave that was lit up with torches, "we are finally at the Hall of Echoes."

All three stepped inside of the large cave. The cave was much larger on the inside than it appeared on the outside. There were all sorts of ancient artifacts including ancient texts and various writings of all kinds.

"Thousands upon thousands of years ago," Mindga explained, "this world was once a major center point of galactic events, just as your home world Narn was." Mindga said to G'kar.

"Don't tell me," G'kar said, "my ancestors conquered your world too."

"Yes," Mindga replied, "and it was quite violent. However; that was another time, and believe we, the Noralians have no ill will toward your people. The Vorlons and their form of justice was satisfactory for us."

"That is good to know," G'kar said.

"Our world traded many goods with many different alien cultures, thus we were visited by many." Mindga went on to explain. "When I received your initial inquiries into our ancient past, I did not believe I had an answer for you as to whether we had been visited by aliens such as the one you described, until I brought it up with my mate. She is more of an expert on the past than I am; she should be doing this sort of task."

"Why isn't she?" Spock asked.

"The females of my species are not allowed to consort with visitors from other worlds," Mindga explained. "An archaic law that hopefully will soon be part of the past, but a law none the less." He began to walk deeper into the cave. "Come with me. Do watch your steps, the ground has never been altered so it is somewhat jagged at certain points."

Spock and G'kar followed, with G'kar offering his arm as support to Spock.

"I can see now why your wife chose to stay in the shuttle," G'kar said.

"Yes," Spock said with an arched eyebrow, "Elizabeth's logic can, at times, seem beyond compare."

For nearly twenty more minutes the three men made their way deeper into the cavernous surroundings around them. At times, Mindga would stop and look at a stack of scrolls, believing it to be the stack they were looking for. After several non-starters, he finally squatted down and looked several scrolls.

"These are the ones," Mindga said. "One thing we Noralians have always loved to do is writing without end. One of our most celebrated writers wrote a poem that would take, if spoken without resting, four years to complete."

"That is long," G'kar said with a chuckle. "The longest Narn poem would last, I believe, five minutes and only has two words; War and Kill, in various combinations."

"This is the scroll," Mindga said. "My wife left here on the top of the stack after she came across it."

Spock took the scroll from Mindga, and studied the ancient text.

"Can you translate what it is saying?" G'kar asked, as he watched Spock studying the texts.

"Yes I can," Mindga said. "In fact, I already have. The writer, a Noralian named Mokona, claims these words are the ramblings of a dying alien who was visiting Noralia at the time of his death. The individual was not much taller than a Noralian, at least according to Mokona."

"What do these written texts convey?" G'kar asked.

Spock handed Mindga the scroll so that he could recollect what he had read previously.

"According to the texts," Mindga reported, "the dying visitor claimed to have come from another universe. In his ramblings, he claimed that a star in our universe went super nova and that an individual named S'pk," Mindga and G'kar looked to Spock, "with strange looking ears, had tried to stop the nova but had failed. Now, here is the strange part," Mindga said.

"What do you mean the strange part?" G'kar asked, "It already is strange tale."

"This visitor goes on to say that his mate had died on a world that will be destroyed when the super- nova happens, which he predicted was fifty thousand years in the future from the time of this writing," Mindga said.

"Ambassador," G'kar said to Spock, "you believe that world to be Romulas; don't you?" G'kar asked.

"I have no proof of that," Spock said, "however, it is a distinct possibility."

"It's been fifty thousand years," Mindga said to Spock. "Perhaps these rambling words of a dying soul are just that; ramblings."

"Spock," G'kar said after a moment, "can I tell Mindga what we know?"

"Please do," Spock said, as he continued to think in silence.

"What more do you know?" Mindga asked, as he scratched his bald head.

"The Romulans have found an ancient site on their world that dates back to about the same time as these writings," G'kar told Mindga. "The site has drawings on a cave wall that depict a bright light in the sky, and an individual looking up at that bright light. That individual has pointed ears like my friend Spock, and the name SPK carved beneath the individual in the drawing." G'kar looked to Spock. "What do you make of this Spock?"

Spock thought for a moment more, then he looked over to G'kar and Mindga.

"If we take what we know in a linear line," Spock explained, "then it means that in the not so distant future, a star near Romulas will go super nova. I will somehow be involved, and not only that, I will end up in an alternate universe, or perhaps an alternate timeline. Two beings from that alternate existence from ours will end up in this universe, however, fifty-thousand years in the past and die with the knowledge of future events. No one from that time would be concerned because, at that point, Romulas did not even exist."

A voice suddenly spoke from behind where Spock, G'kar and Mindga were standing.

"You are describing a future that I cannot allow to exist," the voice said.

Spock and the others turned to see the uninvited guest; someone who Spock knew quite well. It was Romulan senator V'arul.

"You are not an invited guest, Romulan," Mindga said with anger in his voice.

"His name is V'arul, and I believed him to be a friend when he brought me in to solve this mystery (#168)," Spock said with a tone of disappointment in his voice.

"I am a friend," V'arul said, "Unfortunately it is my world that faces destruction. Now thanks to you, we know that you Spock will play an important part; apparently."

"So you believe that by killing Spock," G'kar said, "you can alter the timeline? That is a foolish belief. Killing Spock will not stop that star from going super- nova."

"If that star does go super-nova and those events happen," V'arul said to G'kar and Spock, "Spock will end up in that alternate timeline the alien was speaking of. That future Spock had knowledge of those events, knowledge of the super-nova that he gained right here and now; and yet Romulas will still be destroyed."

"My friend," Spock said to V'arul, "We cannot be certain of the facts. However, now that we know something of them, we can work together to find the star and find away to stop it from happening."

"That has already happened," V'arul countered, "and yet Romulas is still doomed. I believe by killing you now, I will set a new chain of events in motion that could quite possibly save my world."

* * *

Above the planet Noralia, a bright light spherical light appeared.

* * *

Suddenly, in the caves below, the ground began to tremble and there was a massive cave in. V'arul looked up just in time to see the cave ceiling crushing down to kill him; and it did, instantly. Spock, G'kar and Mindga tried to make their way toward the entrance, but the ground tremble again and then there was another massive cave in.

* * *

Inside the bright spherical light above the planet Noralia, two individuals stared down upon the world below; Q and Khan Noonien Singh.

"You enjoyed that; didn't you?" Q asked Khan. "That look in your eyes is the same one you had when you caused the two worlds in the Beta-Quadrant to destroy each other with their nuclear arsenals."

"Let us be clear with one thing," Khan said to Q. "I take no pleasure in doing these things you send me to do. I do them because they must be done. Now," Khan said, changing the subject, "you are certain Spock will live?"

Q nodded in agreement.

"Yes, per our arrangement," Q said, "the Vulcan will live."

"He will live; for now," Khan added with a subtle smile.

(author's note; long time readers know that Khan has appeared a couple times already, apparently working with Q as do Sarek-Kmpec and Jonahtan Archer. How these four are still alive, and what purpose Q has for them, has not been revealed...yet)

Continued…


	235. Bad Bones

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT (NEW COVER at my profile)**

**Bad Bones!**

The planet **Servh'ja**; it was a barren world which was located in the Federation but was primarily a place where smuggler would meet up to make trades. A small shanty town was the only semblance of civilization on the world. It was near dusk as a loud commotion came from the center of town. Two smugglers were on the run; in fact they were running for their lives and they were Ferengi!

After running for nearly ten minutes, the two Ferengi ran toward an abandoned wooded shack; hoping to find a good hiding place. The shack was two hundred yards away up a steep embankment. Tired and winded, they finally made it to the shack, and ran inside, closing the old style door behind them. One of the Ferengi slid a very feeble looking bolt lock across the door, knowing all too well that it wouldn't hold for long; death was coming and it would be an agonizing death at that.

The Ferengi were brothers. The oldest brother was named Ombox, and his younger sibling by three years was named Tokbie. They had scraped through their lives on the very meager earnings they collected as traders of good. If there were such a thing as a 99 CENT store in the 24the century, Ombox and Tokbie would be trading their goods with the 33 CENT store chain, the quality of their merchandise was that low.

"Tokbie," Ombox said, gasping for breath as he and his brother slid down, with their backs against the door, waiting for their certain doom, "have I ever told you that you're a moron."

"Oh yes; you do so all the time, brother," Tokbie said with a wide affectionate grin on his face, "I used think moron was my real name when we were younglings."

"Well it's not your name," Ombox said, "It is what you are. You do realize that we are being chased by no less than five very angry Nausicaans."

"I know. But we've gotten out of worse jams than this."

Ombox moaned for a moment, and then he continued talking.

"Why did you let me sell those defective Dom-jot sticks to them?" Ombox demanded.

"Ummm, brother, that's why we came here to Servh'ja, to unload the defective sticks on them. You said they would be too stupid to know the difference."

"Well," Ombox came back with, "I was wrong. You should have tried to stop me! Now we're going to ripped to shreds and die horribly!"

"You'll think of something," Tokbie came back with, "you always do."

"We have no weapons and we've lost our communicators," Ombox reminded his brother. "So we have no means to put up a fight, or more important, we have no way to flee this place."

There was nothing to say to that, because it was true.

"Father was right about one thing," Tokbie said after a moment had passed, with a look of melancholy on his face, "we are going to die penniless, but at least we'll go out together."

Ombox looked at his younger brother, and his eagerness to just let themselves be killed by the barbarians that were hunting them down.

"How can you give up so fast?" Ombox asked.

Tobkie didn't have a chance to respond, for at that moment a large thud smashed at the door, causing the entire wall and door to rumble.

"They found us," Tokbie said. "You can run brother! There must be a back door. You run out the back as I cause a diversion!"

"How are you going to cause a diversion?" Ombox asked, "Offering them a Klingon blood pie?"

A light went off inside of Tobkie's head!

* * *

A Starship transport vessel arrived at Timus Prime. Among its dozen or so passengers was Captain Tom Paris of Starfleet. Moments later, he and the other passengers boarded a shuttle which would take them down to the visitor's center which was located near the middle of the only settlement, town, on the planet; Summit Grove. As Tom looked out the window, he thought about his wife B'Ellana and hoped she and their children were having a fun time at Pixar-system. Pixar-system was one of the most sought out vacation spots for Federation citizens with kids. It was a small solar system which was comprised of three planets, each with its own theme. Even with three worlds to chose from it still took connections to get placed on the two year waiting list. In fact, B'Ellana had still been pregnant with their youngest child when tom had placed the reservation. And now the time had come, but Paris was still hard at work. He had been sent to Timus Prime to obtain the hologram library device that the late Reginald Barclay had built to store the character known as Moriarty.

Several months earlier, Moriarty had escaped the device, killing Barclay in the process. In time, the evil minded hologram was recaptured, inside the device. But the device was stolen by a Cardassian mercenary and only recently was retrieved by Special Agent Ryan Tolbert, with help from Commander S'vath and James T Kirk and General Martok.

Sitting across from Paris was yet another passenger. His name was Gordon Sky, and he had come to Timus for another entirely different reason; he had come to give hope.

* * *

Back on the Planet Servh'ja, the door to the shack was smashed off its hinges. Five very angry Nausicaans came rushing in; with blood lust in their eyes. What they found was something totally unexpected. A table, with five table settings, including plates, knives and forks, two wine glassed and neatly folded table napkins. A Ferengi wearing a chef's hat, and holding a wine bottle, greeted them.

"Welcome friends," Tokbie, who was wearing a dress and a blond wig, said with a pleasant toothy smile, "please sit down and prepare for a wonderful feast."

The Nausicaans were so confused and surprised they did as they were told to, and took their seats around the table. Tokbie began to pour them wine. One of the Nausicaans placed its large hand on Tokbie's leg, and slowly slid it up Tokbie's leg.

"Hey there Herman," Tokbie said, as he turned around as lightly slapped the large behemoth's hand, "You can't just come in here and break a woman's heart with false affections."

Suddenly the door opened and yet another Nausicaan stood there, and he was holding Ombox off the ground by his collar.

"I guess there were six of them," Ombox said with a worried smile.

Moments later, and after they were stripped of their clothes, Ombox and Tokbie were placed inside of a large cooking pot. As it turned out, the shack had indeed once been a café owned by a blond human female named Lydia. As Ombox and Tobkie waited for the pot of water to begin to boil, several two of the Nausicaans were dumping all sorts of spices into the water, as yet another Nausicaan was slicing up onions and tomatoes, dropping them into the soon to be ready to eat Ferengi noodle soup.

One of the larger Nausicaan's stared at Ombox and Tobkie and smiled at them.

"You…die," the Nausicaan said with a deep loud voice.

"We're so sorry," Ombox pleaded, "how was I supposed to know the Dom'Jot sticks we sold you were defective."

"Because I told you they were when we got them on Enaban-IV," Tokbie said suddenly.

"Would you shut up!" Ombox said to his ignorant brother as the Nausicaan laughed loudly.

Suddenly, there was a large explosion outside the shack; all of the Nausicaan's turned to face the door they had just repaired moments ago and then suddenly it was smashed in yet again by an unseen force. Dust from the outside blew inside and when the swirling cloud of dirt dissipated, a lone figure stood in the doorway; it was a man, and he was holding a shotgun, was wearing sunglasses, and a pipe hung from his mouth. And then the bad ass looking man spoke, and a slight southern twang came from his voice as he sneered at the six Nausicaans.

"You want some of this you bad boys?" Dr. McCoy said to the Nausicaans, with his strong yet subtle gruff voice. He aimed his weapon at the beastly looking aliens and added; "Come to papa and let him spank yer' ass!"

Continued…


	236. Colt McCoy

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT **

**(Be sure to see "Cold McCoy" at my profile. Look for a link to his photo!)**

**COLT McCOY**

_Previously…_

_Suddenly, there was a large explosion outside the shack; all of the Nausicaans turned to face the door they had just repaired moments ago and then suddenly it was smashed in yet again by an unseen force. Dust from the outside blew inside and when the swirling cloud of dirt dissipated, a lone figure stood in the doorway; it was a man, and he was holding a shotgun, was wearing sunglasses, and a pipe hung from his mouth. And then the bad ass looking man spoke, and a slight southern twang came from his voice as he sneered at the six Nausicaans._

"You want some of this you bad boys?" Dr. McCoy said to the Nausicaans, with his strong yet subtle gruff voice. He aimed his weapon at the beastly looking aliens and added; "Come to papa and let him spank yer' ass!"

_Our story continues…_

The first massive 8 foot tall Nausicaan made the first move, and moved toward McCoy, but McCoy did not hesitate and he fired the old style shotgun; BANG!. The sound was so loud it made the entire house tremble, as the blast blew a chunk out of the Nausicaan, instantly killing him. Then the other Nausicaans rushed at McCoy, who took a moment to push his sunglasses back tighter upon his face, and then calmly and collectively stepped backward out of the house, forcing his very angry pursuers to come out of the doorway one at time and then…

BANG! Down went another, BANG!, and then another; the final three did not follow, and then McCoy knew why. He saw the other three emerge on the far side of the house, having exited the back entrance. They hurled angry words at McCoy, with the words "KILL YOU" and "REVENGE" intermingled with unrecognizable Nausicaan curse words. They kept running until they were out of view, hidden by the blackness of the surrounding cold desert atmosphere.

McCoy reloaded his weapon, on the chance the Nausicaans tried something, and then he went inside the cabin to find Ombox and Tokbie holding their hands up in utter fear of the man they had found on another remote world only days earlier.

"Wha…wha…what was that all about?" Ombox asked, his voice whimpering as he spoke. "Wh..wh…wh…what are you?"

McCoy took off his sunglasses and slid them inside a sleeve pocket on the left arm of his black-leather jacket. He puffed on his pipe, inhaled deeply, and then blew out the smoke, making round rings. Then, after a moment, he answered Ombox.

"They would have killed you," the cold sounding McCoy said, as he kicked the lifeless body of the first Nausicaan he had killed only a few short moments earlier. "So," McCoy continued, as he looked over at the two Ferengi, "I killed them instead."

_(READERS; Gobi is what the Ferengi have named McCoy, not wanting to tell him of his real name so that they can hopefully sell McCoy to smugglers to use as slave labor. Though obviously now, after what they have just witnessed McCoy doing, that might be easier said than done.)_

"Gobi," Tokbie said to McCoy, "you killed three of them in cold blood."

"Like I said," McCoy came back with, as the two Ferengi stood before him naked, both having nearly been boiled alive in large cooking pot for a tasty Ferengi Noodle soup dinner for the Nausicaans, "it was either you or them. Now, I suggest we get out this flea-bitten piece of crap shack, and get back up to the ship before the others return and finish what they started," McCoy said as he looked over at the large cooking plot.

"I agree," Ombox said as he and his brother put their clothes back on.

"By the way," McCoy said as the two Ferengi dressed, "I know you told me my name is Gobi, but I'm changing it because Gobi is a pussy name," McCoy said, as he bent down and picked up one of the onions that was going to be used for the now aborted Ferengi Noodle soup, and then he bit into it. "My new name will be Colt."

"Colt; what kind of name is Colt?" Tokbie asked as he finished dressing.

"Hell I don't know," Colt McCoy said, "but I like it and that's all that matters. Now come on," Colt McCoy said with a sneer, "let's blow this joint."

Moments later the three were back aboard their small ship, and left the planet **Servh'ja**in the distance. Ombox and Tokbie were in the small cockpit as Colt McCoy was reclining in the passenger cabin, taking it easy. Tokbie leaned in and spoke softly to his older brother.

"What are we going to do?" Tokbie asked. "We have to get rid of him before he gets us into trouble."

"Are you a fool?" Ombox said with a chuckle. "He just saved our sorry little lives from ending up inside of a Nausicaans stomach. Most of the pitiful smugglers we come up against all lack one serious thing; an enforcer, hired muscle."

"Brother; maybe we should tell him that he is actually a doctor, and that reckless killing like this is probably against his ethical values," Tokbie countered with.

"Shut up," Ombox said, "I am the older brother, and I am telling you that I want Colt to be with us. Having someone like that working for us will give us the kind of respect that Ferengi don't ever get. In fact, we're heading to the Mimba system, and we're going to visit the trading post on Mimba-7 and earn us some more respect."

Tokbie shook his head.

"You're going to get us all killed," Tokbie said, "but you are the older brother and I will listen to you."

The small Ferengi ship sped through space, on its way to the Mimba system. But as the ship sped through space, Colt McCoy closed his eyes and soon he found sleep. Strange images raced across his dreams and with those dreams he saw faces he didn't recognized, but felt that he should.


	237. Career Path

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Career Path**

**The Planet Timus; the local hospital in the town of Summit Grove**

James T Kirk smiled down at the tiny infant that was sleeping soundly inside of a special containment field. The last time he has seen the infant, Dahme, he thought she had been killed during the attack on Benjamin Sisko, but thankfully, he was wrong. Doctor Zimmer, the renowned hologram doctor, stood next to Kirk. Kirk looked over at Zimmerman.

"Thank you for doing this," Kirk racked his mind, trying to find the right word and knew there was only one word to use, "miracle."

"Actually, it wasn't as difficult to do as I had anticipated." Zimmerman said.

"Well, no matter," Kirk said, as he looked back down at the infant, "it was a miracle."

Kirk turned around and saw his ex-wife Myran holding the child that he, as well as Ryan Tolbert and S'vath, had saved from the clutches of the would be Cardassian assassin who had tried to kill Ben Sisko.

"Thank you for rescuing our child," Myran said to Jim. "I thought we were going to lose both of them, but somehow, we didn't."

Kirk came over to her and hugged her.

"I'm sorry about the loss of Harrison Riker," Kirk told her. "If there's anything I can do, let me know."

Myran nodded at Kirk. As Dr. Zimmerman began to speak with Myran, Kirk left the room. In the waiting area he found S'vath, Ryan Tolbert as well as Benjamin Sisko and Tom Paris. Kirk went straight to Sisko and shook the man's hand.

"I'm sorry for the death of your sister," Kirk told Sisko. "She gave her life to save Dahme, and I will never forget that."

"Mavis would have wanted it this way," Sisko said to Kirk.

Tom Paris was holding a device, which was roughly square shaped.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch name," Kirk said to Paris.

"Captain Tom Paris," Paris replied, "I am Ambassador Picard's chief aid, and I came here to retrieve this." He held up the device.

"What exactly is that thing?" Ryan Tolbert asked.

"It is a hologram library that holds the essence of a criminal named James Moriarty," Paris said.

"James Moriarty," Kirk said repeated, "I think I know that name."

"You should," Sisko told Kirk, "he is the fictional nemesis of Sherlock Holmes, in the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle."

"That is correct," Paris said. "And in our time, he is a holographic creation that unfortunately has reverted to his criminal ways of murder. The Cardassian you were in pursuit of had stolen this device from Earth Security Headquarters, and Chancellor Martok, before destroying the Cardassian's ship, had it," he motioned toward the box, "beamed off in time."

"So, you're telling me that Martok asked to save a murderer?" Kirk asked with sarcasm in his voice, "seems like a waste of time."

"Yes," S'vath added to what Kirk had said, "I think that you'll find logic in this time, compared to your time, somewhat different."

"What will you do with it now?" Kirk asked Paris.

"The Ambassador is on his way here now," Paris said, "I'm not sure what will happen to Moriarty after that, but I am sure he'll forward it on to the Federation for further consideration."

"What about you Jim?" Ben Sisko asked. "What will you do now? Settling here on Timus was the other Jim Kirk's idea, not yours. Are you going to stay?"

"We could really use you in the Federation Security Division," Ryan Tolbert said to Kirk, "in fact; the both of you." He added, looking over at S'vath.

"Jim," S'vath said to Kirk, "the Constable position, here in Summit Grove, is really yours. I only took it over after the other Kirk disappeared a few months back."

"Thank you," Kirk said to S'vath, was also the son of his good friend Spock, "but I think I'll leave it with you; if you want it."

"Yes I would," S'vath replied. "I kind of like the thought of being the lone lawman of a small settlement. At first I didn't think I would, but it has alluring attributes."

"Well first," Sisko said to S'vath, "we'll have to clear that with Admiral Janeway. You were originally part of her Naissance crew, and she may want you back."

"Her permission will not be necessary; I'm going to resign my commission as of this moment," S'vath said to Sisko. "And no," he said to agent Tolbert, "I am flattered you asked for me to join your Security Division, Ryan Tolbert, but I'm going to stay here on Timus with my family."

"That is understandable," Tolbert said, thinking back on the wife and child he had once had who had both been killed directly do to his profession.

"Now, again, it's back to you," Sisko said to Kirk. "What are you going to do now?"

Kirk shook his head, and looked out the window which was full of the night time stars.

"I don't know," Kirk said softly.

At that moment, Betty Benton, who was Mayor Ben Sisko's executive secretary, came into the room.

"This communiqué just came in," she said, as she handed a data pad to Sisko. She turned and left the room.

"This is unfortunate news," Sisko said, as he read the data pad.

"What is it?" Captain Tom Paris asked.

"Its news about Ambassadors Spock and G'kar," Sisko said, looking over at S'vath. "They were both engulfed by a cave in on the distant world of Noralia (_issue #234_). G'kar is dead, and your father is in serious condition. He's been taken to Starbase 185 for medical treatment."

S'vath seemed taken aback by the news, and Kirk could tell that the young man was worried about his father; Spock.

Without waiting one second, Kirk walked hurriedly toward the door that led to the intensive care unit.

"Jim," Ryan Tolbert said, "where are you going?"

Kirk turned back to face Tolbert and the others.

"Spock may need the best doctor, and that doctor just saved my child's life," Kirk said.

S'vath looked over at Kirk, and Kirk saw a flash of hope in the young Vulcan's eyes.

"Ben; could please go talk to Quark," Kirk said to Sisko. "Tell him I need to use his ship again," Kirk said. "And you," Kirk said to S'vath, "we're going to Starbase 185 we're going to make sure Spock lives."

Sisko headed out of the waiting room, on his way to talk with Quark; Paris went with him.

Kirk hurried into the other part of the hospital as Ryan Tolbert followed him.

"Jim; I'm coming with you," Tolbert said, as he caught up with Kirk in the hallway.

"Ryan; that isn't necessary," Kirk said to Tolbert. "I'm pretty sure there is no security issues involved here."

"Perhaps," Tolbert said, "but I'm coming with you as a friend, and I will not take no for an answer."

Kirk nodded.

"Alright," Kirk said, as they approached Doctor Zimmerman.

"Doctor," Kirk said to Zimmerman, "I'm glad I caught up with you; I need your assistance. Ambassador Spock has been injured, and although he has been taken to a Starbase for care, I'd rather have you there."

"Thank you," Zimmerman said, "but unfortunately I did not bring my other Emitter-regulator and without it my little friend here," he motioned to the emitter on his shoulder, "won't last much longer."

"Damn," Kirk said softly.

"What a moment," Tolbert said to Kirk. "The device that Captain Tom Paris had; perhaps the doctor could be stored inside of it until we arrive at Starbase 185."

"Device; what device," Zimmerman asked.

"From what I heard," Kirk said to Tolbert, "I don't think either Captain Paris or Ambassador Picard will want us to use it for this intention."

"I know, but listen," Tolbert said. "I think I have legal recourse here. I am an agent of the Federation Security Department, so, I can demand to take custody of that thing. Since the device was stolen from Earth Security, which is a division of the FSD (Federation Security Department) I can claim jurisdiction."

"Paris isn't going to buy that at all," Kirk said.

"Tom Paris?" Zimmerman asked. "Would someone please tell me what's going on here?"

"Listen," Kirk said to Zimmerman. "I don't know how to explain this, but somehow I know that my friend Spock is going to die unless I get you to him. And if that means stealing that damn device so that you can make the trip, then that's what I'm going to do. But I won't force you," Kirk added. "Will you come along if I get that device?"

Zimmerman smiled, and arched his eyebrow.

"Going off on some half-cocked mission with the legendary James T Kirk," Zimmerman said, his eyes wide opened, "and his friend, the super-secret agent Ryan Tolbert, isn't what I signed up for; but it sounds like fun, so count me in."

"Now we have to get the device," Ryan Tolbert said. "And how do we do that?"

Kirk thought for a moment and then he had an idea.

"From what I know, Martok is still up on his ship, waiting to brief Picard when he arrives," Kirk said. "I think I can persuade Martok to nudge us in the right direction."

"We better hurry," Ryan Tolbert said. "Once Picard gets here, not too many people, including Martok, are going to want to cross him."

"Doctor, you stay here," Kirk said. "We'll be back for you in a bit."

_Continued…and next time, Jim Kirk goes up against Jean-Luc Picard! And did I mention that Vic Fontaine is in the mix too? Well…he is!_


	238. Fallen Hero

**STAR TREK; SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**FALLEN HERO**

**Earth…**

The large log-cabin house had an almost magical view of the massive lake, Big Bear Lake. The mountains were matted with a light snow, the first of the season, and tourists were already arriving to ski down the mountain slopes. Skiing had remained a popular sport on Earth, even in the late 24th century, so much in fact that the waiting list to even rent a cabin was two years long. But it just so happen that Deanna Troi and her husband, Captain William T Riker, had bought their log-cabin house years earlier.

Annika Hansen was sitting on the large balcony that looked down on the lake below. Though the sun was only just rising, and the air was kind of crisp, Annika enjoyed the quiet of the early morning as day began. She, as well as Deanna, and Deanna's son Thomas, had arrived the previous night. Deanna had thought getting away from the hustle and bustle of Star Fleet Command would do Annika some good, as the news of Chakotay's death had recently been relayed to her. So, with only a robe and warm slippers to keep her warm, Annika had made a fresh pot of freshly grounded coffee, Kona blend, and had come out to the balcony.

She smiled as she heard the door open and saw Deanna, who was also in a robe and slippers, came out side with a mug of coffee as well, and sat down next to her.

"This is an amazing view," Annika told her good friend.

"I couldn't believe that Will and I were able to get this place," Deanna said, "I mean; have you ever seen such a beautiful sight?"

Annika sipped on her coffee.

"I just looked at my messages," Deanna said, after sipping on her own coffee, "Tuvok should be arriving later in the day after his visit with T'av. How are you feeling?" Deanna asked Annika.

"I had dreams last night," Annika said after a moment. "They were dreams of Chakotay."

"Were they pleasant dreams?" Deanna came back with.

A bird flew by, a blue jay, causing both women to smile. Then Annika thought for a moment.

"They were mainly images from our time in the Delta-Quadrant, from before we were together," Annika said.

"That maybe a good thing," Deanna said. "Perhaps your lost memories are starting to find their way back from the depths of your mind. I believe, someday, you will remember it all."

Annika set her mug down and looked directly at Deanna.

"Deanna; what happened to me? And please don't couch your answer with ambiguous words; just tell me. I see images of my daughter, and I know she isn't here any longer; what happened?"

Deanna Troi thought for a moment. She had been told by Starfleet medical to go slow with Annika, on the fear that a sudden recollection would set her back. But it was Beverly Crusher who had recently gone against that argument and had told Deanna to come forth, and to tell Annika the truth.

"As you know, Yudelle was very ill," Deanna began to say. "Your husband, Chakotay, was still in prison and was serving time due to his involvement with the Maquis. Now I know that you know that over the past few years he became a criminal element; but above all else, he loved his and your daughter. I am utterly convinced that it was that love for Yudelle that set in motion a series of unfortunate events for both your lives."

A tear came down from Annika's left eye.

"Starfleet Medical had no cure for the disease that inflicted your daughter," Troi continued. "Chakotay urged you to take Yudelle to the Native American doctors in the New Mexico lands, which you did, with the help of Admiral Janeway. Chakotay believed that a Native American shaman had herbs and other remedies to use that Starfleet Medical would never even try. Unfortunately, Starfleet Medical did not condone such medical practices and sent security officers to the reservation's entrance center, and they took your child from you."

"I have no memory of this," Annika said. "What happened next?"

"Admiral Janeway was furious, but she was powerless to stop them from taking your daughter." Deanna replied. "Your child was taken to the medical compound in New Zealand. And while Janeway fought this action in the Federation courts, Chakotay found out and broke out of prison, and with help from his fellow Maquis inmates, they used stolen ships and attacked the medical compound, rescuing Yudelle, but killing two doctors in the process. You were there."

Annika bowed her head in silence.

"Why don't I remember any of this?" Annika asked.

"During the attack, you tried to stop Chakotay," Deanna answered. "During his time in prison, he had changed, and believed you to be part of the Federation bureaucracy that was leading to the death of Yudelle. During the attack, he had successfully made it to Yudelle's room and took her from her bed. When you tried to take Yudelle from his arms, he struck you and you fell back and hit your head very hard, and cracked your skull. Unable to wait any longer, he left you on the ground and fled with the child, and headed for the New Mexico lands to find the cure that was never going to come."

"What happened next?" Annika asked; her face still buried in her hands.

"Federation security forces chased his ship to the Native American lands in New Mexico, and damaged it, forcing Chakotay to crash land the ship in the desert. He was injured, but Yudelle died in the crash, died in his arms." Deanna said softly. "His friends were able to land, and rescue him. They left Yudelle's dead body in the smashed ship, and fled into space and Chakotay became a criminal. He did some terrible things in his time as a criminal, and nothing can change that fact. However, very recently, his last act was saving someone else's child. "

"James Kirk's child," Annika said, softly.

"Yes," Deanna said. "I won't lie to you, Annika. Chakotay's acts as a criminal were atrocious, and may have cost the lives of many. But I also believe that events in our lives can impact us in ways we cannot ever truly understand. But I know this; he loved you and he loved his daughter even more. And had fate played out differently, I am quite sure that things could have turned out differently and for the better for all three of you."

Annika broke down and started to cry. Deanna came over and hugged the woman, tears coming down from both their eyes.

Across from where they were, on a nearby hill covered in snow, a skier was watching the two of them. The skier spoke into a device.

"The Borg drone is here, just as you said she would be," the skier said. "I can take her now; there will never be a better time."

"Do it…" came a response.

Continued…


	239. Go'neth

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**The Adventures of Colt Macahan (aka Leonard McCoy)**

"**Go'neth"**

The raggedy Ferengi ship came to a landing on the small world of Dobus. Just like so many worlds that skirted the outer edges of Federation territory, Dobus was just another run of the mill place which was dotted with a dozen or so trading settlements. Rift raft from all over the galaxy came to this world and the others like it so they could squeeze out a meager existence trading their usually stolen goods . It was dusk as the ship powered down. Colt Macahan (aka Leonard McCoy) stared out the window at the concentration of lights coming from the nearby settlement.

"I'm going there," Colt said to his Ferengi partners; the brothers Ombox and Tokbie. It wasn't a request; it was just a mere statement of fact.

"Suit yourself." Ombox, the older of the two Ferengi brothers said as he stood up from the small pilot seat and stretched out. "I'm going to get some sleep; what about you brother?"

Tokbie nodded in agreement with his brother.

"I'm going to get some sleep too," Tokbie said.

"Oh No you're not," Ombox came back with. "You're going to fix the right side thruster mount like I told you to do back on Rigel-7. Once you are done with that, then you can sleep."

"I could use your help brother," Tobkie said to Ombox.

"I fly this piece of targ-dung our father left us before he died," Ombox came back with, "you fix it."

Colt grabbed up his nap sack, his sawed of shotgun, and his sunglasses and headed towards the exit.

"Why doesn't he fix the right side thruster mount?" Tokbie whined to his brother.

"Because his job is to look like that," Ombox pointed at Colt, who looked about as mean as a human could, "and your job is to fix the ship." Ombox said, looking back at Tokbie. "As for you," Ombox said to Colt, "Just be back by tomorrow morning, just before sunrise, or we'll leave you here."

Colt didn't answer. He pressed a button and the door opened, and he left the ship.

* * *

The walk to the settlement was nearly five miles long and allowed Colt to smoke some cigars and thing about nothing else. When he neared the settlement, the common dungy smell that seemed to permeate all places like it was no different on Dobus, and the faceless rift raft seemed just the same as well.

As darkness came over the land, torches were soon lit and they soon threw a yellowish hue everywhere. As Colt strode into the outskirts of town, two hookers, one a Bajoran the other a three foot Tellarite, came over and walked beside him. The Bajoran woman weighed nearly four-hundred pounds, and was topless; her massive breasts flapping about, resembling the corpses of two dead B'jak monkey drums. The Tellarite hooker smelt like several piles of dried tuna fish, and she stroked Colt's thigh as she walked along side him.

"You look as if you need to have some fun," the Bajoran woman said with a deep voice, "and the two of us are a package deal," she added as she reached down and slid two of her fingers into the mouth of the Tellarite.

"Leave me," Colt said.

The tone of this voice was unmistakable, giving of the impression that he wanted to be alone. The two women knew the sound all so well, and stopped their nagging and headed back from where they came.

Soon Colt had made it into the center of the settlement, and like so many other settlements, in the center was a makeshift bar which was covered by a very dirty tarp with various rips in it. Colt entered the bar and was pleased to see several tables where obvious games of chance were being played. He made his way over to one of the tables were four others were playing five-card stud. Two of the players were humans of some sort, and the other two were hominoids but from species Colt did not recognize. He sat down, and pulled out strips of latinum and bought himself into the game.

* * *

Several hours later back at the ship…Ombox was sleeping and Lokbie was still awake...

It had been nearly five hours since Tokbie started on the repairs to the right side thruster mount, and finally it was done. He was outside the ship, and the dead silence gave Tokbie a small feeling of claustrophobia. In the distance he could see the settlement that Colt had headed for hours ago, and wished that he had gotten to go as well. Suddenly Tokbie got the strangest feeling that he wasn't alone and he was right. He turned around and saw him; Go'neth.

Go'neth was an eight-foot tall Gorn. His left eye was covered by an eye patch, and the left side of hisface was scarred very heavily.

"Where is my latinum?" Go'neth asked Tokbie. Go'neths voice smelt of blood and vomit, and his voice had a deep slithering whisper sound to id.

"We have it, in fact," Tokbie said, whimpering as he spoke, "We were just on our way to pay you and had to stop here so I could repair the right side thruster mount."

Or course Tokbie was not telling the truth. He and his brother had no intention of ever repaying the Gorn whom had loaned them two bars of latinum several months earlier, hoping to never see him again.

"I don't believe you," Go'neth said as he the thrust a long sword into Tokbie's gut, the curved blade climbing up through the inside of Tokbie's innards until it exited out of his mouth; killing him in the process.

Go'neth stepped back and watched Tokbie's lifeless body slide off the sword and downward to the ground well it fell silently to the dirt. He brought the blade up and licked it from one end of the blade to the other, savoring the rich taste of the Ferengi's blood. He made his way toward the other side of the ship and toward the closed hatch; his next target was Ombox!


	240. Spider Webs

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Spider Webs**

**A massive Negh'var orbits the planet, with two Vor'cha cruisers in the near distance….**

There were three Klingon ships in orbit of Timus prime, having arrived a couple days earlier. The ships had been part of a joint training exercise with their Federation allies until Chancellor Martok had received an urgent message from Benjamin Sisko. Sisko had asked Martok to assist James T Kirk who was in mortal danger on the criminally ran planet known as Dan'gin. Three dozen Klingon ships, under Martok's command, had indeed headed to Dan'gin where upon arriving, had indeed rescued the legendary Starfleet captain, as well as Kirk's child, and Kirk's cohorts; special agent Ryan Tolbert and S'vath; Spock's son. The rest of the Klingon fleet had been sent back to the training exercise, while Martok's flagship and accompanying two security vessels remained at Timus Prime.

* * *

A special meal had been arranged aboard Martok's vessel. Attending the meal were Ben Sisko, as well as his wife Kasidy and their son Jake and his wife Korena. They were joined by Tom Paris, Jim Kirk and his date Suzanne Anderson, Ryan Tolbert, S'vath and his wife Amanda, as well as Hikaru Sulu and his Ferengi friend Baybok and the person tasked with arranging all of the food preparation; Quark. The dinner guest had been arrayed around a very large table, with Martok at the head of the table and his chief General, M'iaQua, sitting directly next to him. Various conversations were engaged as the meal had begun.

M'iaQua, who sat between Kirk and Martok, was talking with Kirk. M'iaQua had been talking about the incident inside the Naissance sphere, with Kirk taking it all in. What M'iaQua did not understand was that the Jim Kirk he was speaking with was the same one who had experienced the incident as well. But Kirk was very entertained with the tale, and how the Klingon ships under M'iaQua had helped destroy the entity known as Gary Mitchell (**_issue #143_**).

Sulu was sitting next to Kirk as M'iaQua completed the story. M'iaQua was called away from the table, leaving a befuddled Kirk wondering more about the events surrounding his former friend Mitchell.

"Let me guess," Sulu said to Kirk, "you have no idea what General M'iaQua was talking about."

"Hikaru; did those things really happen?" Kirk asked Sulu.

"They did indeed," Sulu said. "Spock told me the entire tale; he was there as well, as were Sisko and his wife, and S'vath and his wife Amanda," Sulu said, motioning to the four of them who sat at the other end of the table. "And you don't remember and of it do you?"

Kirk took a sip from the glass of water he had just been served by Quark.

"No; I don't," Kirk replied softly. "When I came out of the Nexus, my physical body was younger because it had somehow been merged with the other Kirk, but, the memories he had since arriving in this time period were gone."

"What is this Nexus you are talking about?" Baybok asked from where he sat next to Sulu.

Kirk was about to answer when suddenly Martok's voice became louder.

"My friends," Martok said, as he raised his mug, which was no doubt filled with blood wine, "as my late friend Worf use to say…drink until there is no more to drink."

The others raised their glasses and/or mugs and joined in with the toast. General M'iaQua returned.

"I have just been informed that the Delta-flyer 2 has been delayed, and Ambassador Picard and Captain Jonathan Canary will be arriving tomorrow instead."

Kirk tossed a quick glance over at S'vath and Sisko who both quickly nodded.

"Did they give any reason as to their delay?" Captain Tom Paris asked.

"None," M'iaQua said as he sat back down between Kirk and Martok.

"If I know Picard, and I do," Martok said a slight chuckle, "I am sure he is requiring that they only travel as fast as that blasted speed limit he and the Enterprise proposed all those years ago."

There was a slight burst of laughter around the room. As the light conversation continued, Quark came over to where S'vath and Amanda were seating. Amanda was wearing a dress that did very little to cover her succulent breasts.

"Ahem," S'vath said, as he saw the line of sight from Quark's eyes.

"I was just admiring the table setting," Quark said with an awkward smile.

"Sure you were," Amanda said with a sexy smile aimed at Quark, who then walked away in a slight daze.

"Teasing him is unfair," S'vath whispered into Amanda's ears.

"I know, but it turns me on," Amanda replied.

Quark watched from the serving trays as his three assistants began to serve the plated food items. Quark was making sure that it all went smoothly because he knew that if it did, Martok would throw some more business his way when the rest of the fleet returned. It was at that moment when Baybok came over to Quark.

"If you want, I can help," Baybok said to Quark.

"No," Quark said, "you're here as a guest."

"I heard that you're having trouble with your ship," Baybok said.

"It's down in the hanger bay of this ship, waiting for a repair," Quark said, though he knew fell well it was a lie. The ship was about to be borrowed again by Kirk, and was waiting in the hanger bay for Kirk and his crack team of thieves.

"My cousins Ombox and Tokbie have a ship much like yours," Baybok said, "Fortunately they do not have the same problem; finding spare parts to keep it going."

What Baybok didn't know was that Quark's ship was totally refitted with Federation technology. The 'need' for a repair part was just a ruse to give an excuse to keep the ship in Martok's landing bay so that it could be borrowed by Kirk and the others again. All of which was known by Martok himself, but in such away to provide him plausible deniability if something went wrong. The news that Picard was delayed was good news to all involved.

"Yes," Quark said, faking a smile, "lucky them."

* * *

Several decks below the galley, where the dinner was taking place, were Tom Paris's guest quarters. And suddenly, in the darkness, two figures shimmered into existence; Federation special agents Ryan Tolbert and Eran. They were both wearing special head devices which had eyepieces trained over their eyes.

"So," Tolbert said to Eran, who was wearing a skintight black leather outfit that hugged her in all the right areas, "I guess you enjoy doing this as opposed to your cover job; the chief coroner in the town of Summit Grove."

"Oh you know it," Eran replied, knowing full well that Tolbert was looking her over. "Though, I must say, having sex with S'vath and his wife Amanda was a fringe benefit I didn't expect."

"I bet," Tolbert said with a knowing sound in his voice.

He looked about the room, with the eyepiece giving him the ability to see behind cupboards and other unseen areas. But it was Eran, who was looking about as well, who found what they had come for; a hologram library device.

The device housed the hologram known as Moriarty, who had been created two decades earlier aboard the Enterprise. But the library device was needed for an entirely different purpose; to house the holographic doctor known as Zimmerman. Tolbert reached inside of a back sack he had brought and pulled out a square looking device which resembled the hologram device.

"Do you think that decoy device will fool Paris and Picard when he gets here?" Eran asked.

"I don't know," Tolbert said as he put the real device in the sack. He pressed a button on a wrist device he was wearing. "I just sent the signal."

"Where to now," Eran asked.

"Quark's ship; it is still stored in the hanger bay," Tolbert said. "Quark was told he could pick it up earlier, but was miraculously given another day to so by Martok. The others will meet me there; you don't have to."

"And then let me get this straight," Eran said. "You will store the holo-Doctor inside this hologram device and then take him to Starbase 185 so he can help Ambassador Spock. You do realize this can get you drummed out of the agency if they find out. All of this because Kirk asked you to help; Ryan…are you nuts?"

"No," Tolbert said, "just being a friend."

At that moment, and for no reason, Ryan Tolbert felt dizzy. And then a strange memory flashed across his mind; he saw his hands slicing a woman's throat and then…the memory was gone.

"Are you alright?" Eran asked, noticing the strange look on Ryan's face as experienced the strange memory. "Where did you just go?"

"It's nothing," Ryan Tolbert said, trying to shake his mind of the strange feeling it had. "Let's get out of here."

He pressed another button on his wrist and a second later the two of them were beamed away.

Continued…


	241. Bitch

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER AT MY PROFILE)**

**Bitch**

**The lawless border world of Dobus…**

Colt MaCahan (aka Leonard McCoy) opened his eyes and wondered where the hell he was; and then he remembered.

His head was snuggled between the two large naked sweaty breasts of the 400 pound Bajoran hooker named Kara he had spent the night with, as well as her wife, a three foot tall female Tellarite named Ogaba. Both of the women were still sleeping, the stench of the alcohol beverages they had all shared and bodily fluids they had shared as well, became more pronounced as Colt became more aware of his surroundings. Morning was approaching, which meant he had to get back to the ship before his partners, two Ferengi brothers Ombox and Lokbie, left him behind.

Colt searched about the dark and found his clothes, being as quiet as possible, and put them on. The abode the two women shared was nothing more than a teepee with tarps and animal skin as walls and ceilings. Grabbing up his shotgun, and his black leather jacket, Colt prepared to exit the tent and looked back down upon the bed the three of them had shared. Being as smashed as he was the night before could have been the only explanation as to how he had ended up with the two women, but who cared? Sex was sex, and he had needed badly. He took out two strips of latinum, dropping one next Ogaba, and sliding the other inside the waistline of Kara's panties, and then he left the tint.

The sky was still very dark when Colt emerged from the tent, which was just one of many that were loosely arranged on a dirt path near the center of the shanty town. It had taken him nearly two hours to walk to town the day before from where the ship was parked in the nearby hills, but now it would only be a matter of minutes to get back. And that's because of the streamlined Starbike he had won playing poker the night before.

He had bought into the game with just five strips of latinum and when it was all said and done, he left with the starbike. The bike, with its two impressive Slipdrive engines, was called Bitch by its previous owner, and Colt saw no reason to change the name. He hefted right leg over the seat of the bike and sat down on it, placing his two hands on the two handlebar grips. He only activated the battery, so as not to wake everyone else. The bike went into silent motion. As the bike gained momentum, Colt pressed a button and the two tires suddenly rotated sideways, and the antigravity spike rolls went into action and the bike climbed into the sky. A slightly green tinted force field bubble suddenly appeared around the bike, shielding Colt as the bike sped through the sky. Very soon he realized something was wrong; the Ferengi transport vessel that belonged to Ombox and Lokbie was gone. And as he got closer, he saw to bodies on the ground where the ship had been. Anger began to rise in Colt's veins as he landed the bike, and then ran over to the two Ferengi that had been his friends. He knelt down by their bodies.

Tokbie's body had been gutted like a fish. But then, suddenly, Ombox coughed; he wasn't dead…yet. Colt propped up Ombox's massive head. His eyes had been gouged out, and it was a miracle he was still alive.

"Is that you Colt?" Ombox asked, barely able to make a sound with his voice. Blood trickled out of Ombox's mouth as he spoke.

"Was it the Nausicaans?" Colt asked.

Ombox was barely able to move his, but he did, and he shook it.

"No…" Ombox struggled to say. "It was a Gorn. His name is Go'neth."

"Who is this Go'neth? Why did he do this?" Colt asked with anger in his voice.

Ombox coughed again, more blood poured from his mouth.

"Don't bother yourself with it," Ombox pleaded. "Lokbie and I made a mistake by not paying him back; we brought this on ourselves. Just let it end here. There is never any profit in revenge; take that advice from a Ferengi who knows."

"To hell with that," Colt said through gritted teeth. "I'm going to find this Go'neth and when I do I'm going kill him."

Ombox shook his head again.

"What will that serve?" Ombox asked. "Colt, listen to me," Ombox struggled to say as his life began to fade. "I'm sorry we did this to you."

"What are you talking about?" Colt asked.

"This isn't the kind of life you were meant to live," Ombox said. "We were wrong by not telling you who you really are."

A look of curiosity came over Colt's face.

"What do you mean; who am I?" Colt asked.

But it was too late; Ombox's battle to stay alive had been lost and he was dead. Colt MaCahan stood up and looked down upon the two dead Ferengi. He wasn't sad for them, but he would miss them as friends. As for Ombox's cryptic message as to who Colt really was; Colt shook it off, because for now it wasn't important; revenge was.

About an hour later he stood over the two stone graves that he had made for the both of them, having used his bare hands to find the various boulders he had found scattered about. He took one last look at the graves as he mounted Bitch. The glare of the morning sun was starting to show over the distant mountains as Colt revved up the engines of Bitch. He smiled at the two graves, and then he kicked up the bike stand and then in one fluid motion, Bitch streaked into the sky and then into space as the light green force-field bubble encased him.

As Colt maneuvered the Starbike into space, and as he prepared to enter warp-speed, he set his sights on an unseen target; a Gorn named Go'neth.


	242. A Slice of Life

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**A Slice of Life**

(This is either a flashback…or…a flash-forward…or…a flash-sideways. In Star Trek, it is not always easy to tell which it is….)

Mr. Spock sat in the Captain's chair on the bridge of the Enterprise. And although the chair was presently his, he knew, as the rest of the crew knew, it really belonged to James T Kirk. As the rest of the bridge crew went out their duties, Spock stood up from the chair and walked back to his science post and, once again, he looked into the viewer.

Lt. Uhura stood up from her post at communications and came over to the science station.

"Mr. Spock," she said to the Vulcan first officer. "I have the results of the diagnostics table I ran on both the long-range and short-range frequencies."

Spock stood up and faced her.

"What were the findings?" Spock asked.

"No different than before," Uhura replied, with a slight tone of disappointment in her voice. "The devices should be working; they just aren't. Mr. Spock; where are we?"

Spock arched an eyebrow.

"As I told you, and the rest of crew, I do not know concretely…yet," Spock replied. "I regret that I cannot provide a more complete answer; however," Spock said, knowing the need for humans to have hope, "I am quite confident that I will do so very soon."

And then, just as Spock had known she would, he saw a smile come to Lt. Uhura's face. She turned around, and headed back to her post.

But if truth were to be told, Spock had absolutely no idea where they were and when, if ever, they would find their way home. He and Mr. Scott had come up with a working theory that would hopefully provide answers, but the kind of answers they really didn't want to face. Because, if Spock's and Scotty's theory were true, then the Enterprise was no longer part of the space time continuum. A signal came from Scotty, who told Spock to meet him at his quarters; and so Spock headed off of the bridge.

Five minutes later, Spock entered Scotty's quarters. McCoy was there as well.

"Doctor," Spock said to McCoy, "I do not see the need for your being here."

McCoy cocked a grin at Spock.

"Spock," McCoy said, "I think I need to be here since, indirectly, I am responsible for not only the physical wellbeing of the crew, but their mental well being as well. And if we're going to hear some bad news here in a moment, then I want to help decide how we inform the rest of the crew."

"Logical," Spock said after a moment.

"Thank you," McCoy came back with.

"Oh Doct'a," Scotty said, "ye not be worried about that compound ya made us with that Klingon nerve agent are ye?"

"No," McCoy said, "the compound is not dangerous at all. Now look," McCoy said to the other two, "let's see what the test came up with so we can figure out what to do next if it's the bad news we fear it is."

"Very well," Spock said as he shifted his attention to Scotty, "please access the test results." Spock said.

Scotty activated the three sided monitor on his desk and then a graph with equations and numbers appeared.

"Fascinating," Spock said.

"I thought ye be saying something like that," Scotty said.

"Well, would someone mind telling me what it means," McCoy said, having no idea what the formulas were referring too.

Spock pointed at a set of formulas

"When the Enterprise went into phase," Spock began to explain, "We did indeed clear the Tholian Web, however," Spock continued to say, "the power levels were greater than we had expected. According to this data," Spock said, looking at the monitor, "it is quite possible that we fractured the space time continuum and created a causality loop, creating another Enterprise in the process. The other Enterprise was absorbed back into the space time continuity, where as we…"

"Are outside of time?" McCoy asked. "Is that even possible; and what about Jim? The oxygen in his suit must have run out by now."

"Or," Scotty cut in, "he made it through to the other side; with the other Enterprise."

"Yes," Spock concurred, "that is a distinct possibility."

"Then what about us?" McCoy asked. "Are we just going to live the rest of our lives outside of time?"

"For now," Spock said, "it is our only option. One advantage for us, if this theory is correct, we will not age. We will live inside this the moment for all eternity."

"Aye," Scotty said, "but that still sounds pretty much like a death sentence to me."

"Me too," McCoy said.

Suddenly the Enterprise was shaken, so much so that Scotty fell to the ground. Both McCoy and Spock helped their friend up.

"What was that?" McCoy asked in an excited tone.

"Please calm yourself." Spock said as the Vulcan headed for the door to Scotty's quarters, "I am endeavoring to find out."

"Go ahead," Scotty said to McCoy, who was still worried about the engineer, "I need to be getting' down to me engines," Scotty said.

McCoy followed Spock, who was already heading down the corridor.

"Spock, wait up will you?" McCoy said.

Spock turned around to wait, and just as he did, a brilliantly bright object, no larger than the size of coin, streaked into view, colliding with McCoy's body. Scotty had emerged from his quarters and saw the same thing happen from behind McCoy…and then…McCoy was gone!

Both Mr. Scott and Mr. Spock over ran to where McCoy had been standing between them just a second before.

"Did ya' see that?" an excited Scotty asked Spock.

"Affirmative," Spock said.

"What was that bright thing?" Scotty asked.

"At this time I do not know," Spock replied. "Do you have a Tricorder in your quarters?"

"Aye," Scotty said as he ran back into his quarters to retrieve it.

Spock didn't know what the bright object was that had struck McCoy's body, but Spock had a sensation; and if he didn't know any better he was sure it was a feeling. He knew he would see McCoy again…someday!


	243. Massage Therapy

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Massage Therapy**

**Earth**

**Big Bear Mountain…late evening.**

**The log-cabin retreat owned by William T Riker and his wife Deanna Troi….**

Annika Hansen leaned down and then stretched her naked body out across a blanket that was positioned near a crackling fireplace that gave off warmth that seemed to envelope her body. At first she was on her back, but her good friend, Deanna Troi, who wore only a robe, motioned for her to roll over on her stomach and she did.

"You seem to have this down to a science," Annika said as she rolled over and settled her head on a soft pillow.

"It's funny you should say that," Deanna said as she poured a little dab of warm vanilla scented oil on the small of Annika's back, and began to smoothly spread it about with her fingers. "On Betazed, all students in higher-grades are required to take a massage classes, and the instructors," she added as she glided her fingers over Annika's firm rear, down her thighs and finally to her calves, "were scientist in their own right, and strived to pass their knowledge on in a most detailed manner."

"Are you saying that the professors gave massages to their students?" Annika asked with a sexy tone to her voice.

"And the students gave massages to their professors," Deanna added, "it was only natural."

Deanna used both hands to kneed Annika's left calf, and then slid them up to her upper thigh.

"That feels so good," Annika said, softly.

"I want you to just close your eyes and enjoy this," Deanna said in a soft tone as well. And then she leaned closer and whispered a question into Annika's left ear; Annika nodded her head and replied. "Yes…"

Deanna smiled, and moved her hands further up Annika's slowly spreading legs.

Meanwhile, outside the log-cabin, danger was approaching. There were five figures, wearing dark outfits, and armed with phaser rifles, and they made their way across the back deck of the cabin. Two of the figures broke off from the other three and headed to the other side of the cabin.

The other three, including the team leader, continued on the deck. The leader signaled to the other two with him, and they silently joined him by the entrance. He peered into the window, and could see the two women engaged in an intimate massage. And as much as he just wanted to watch the scene play out, who wouldn't, he knew they were there for one reason and one reason only; abducting the former Borg drone; Annika Hansen. He looked back to the other two.

"Where is the boy?" he asked.

One of the others looked at a device on his wrist, and then nodded his head.

"They've got him," was a whispered reply.

The boy to whom the leader was referring to was the four year old son of William Riker and Deanna Troi. He was inside the log cabin, asleep in his room, and now was a bargaining chip. Upon hearing the update, the team leader, who was closest to the door, waved a device over the locked door and opened it. Immediately all three men lowered their masks and rushed in, the door closing behind.

Deanna was startled as the three masked men rushed over to where she and Annika were, aiming their guns at them.

"Don't do anything stupid," the team leader said to the two women as he reached down and tossed Annika's discarded robe over to her; which she hastily put on.

"What is the meaning of this intrusion?" Deanna demanded.

"If you do what you're told, then I promise, no one is going to get hurt," the team leader said.

At that moment, the other two men came into the room, one of them holding a still sleeping Thomas, who then handed the child over to Deanna, who, like Annika, was still sitting on the ground.

"I'm a Starfleet officer," Deanna said in a stern, yet soft voice to the leader, as not to awake her four year old son. "You can get into a lot of trouble for this unprovoked action."

The team leader nodded his head.

"No doubt," he said, in agreement with Deanna. "If we get caught," he added.

"What is this all about?" Annika asked.

"You actually," the team leader said.

He reached up and took off his mask, but the other masked men did not. He had long hair and was quite dashing looking.

"My name is Fredrick Allen Thorn," he told the two women.

"I know that name," Deanna said, after a brief silence. "Are you related to the late Lawrence Thorn?"

"Yes, he was my uncle," Fredric replied.

"By showing us your face," Annika said, "you've made a tactical mistake."

"That's the Borg-tone of voice I was hoping to hear," Fredric said to Annika with a smile. "Believe me," he told the two women, "I wound not have resorted to this action unless I thought it was necessary. But no one believes me, so I have no other choice."

"What do you mean they won't believe you?" Deanna asked.

"I obviously don't have the time to tell you, I wish I did, but I don't." Fredric said to Deanna, "but I need Ms. Hansen to come with me. It would be better for all of us if she came willingly."

"As long as you promise not to hurt the boy or Deanna I will go with you," Annika said.

"You can't go," Deanna said to Annika, "you don't know what they will do to you."

"I promise; nothing at all," Fredric countered.

Deanna fired an angry look at Fredric.

"I don't trust people who break into innocent people's homes," Deanna fired back with.

"I'm afraid you have no choice," Fredric said with a pleasant smile.

Annika stood up.

"Please go pack your things," Fredric said to her.

Fredric nodded at one of his men, who then accompanied Annika into the room she was staying in while visiting Deanna.

"You won't get away with this," Deanna said to Fredric.

"If I were you, I would pray that I do succeed," Fredric said. "Because if I fail, if she fails, we're all dead," he added with a solemn tone to his voice.

"What is this all about?" Deanna asked, sensing with her mind that the man had been telling the truth the entire time.

At that moment, Annika and the other team-member returned. Annika had changed into a form fitting pair of blue jeans and a sweater. She was escorted out of the cabin with the others, Fredric donned his mask.

"Please give us ten minutes to make our escape," Fredric said with a sincere voice to Deanna. "I have no way to force you to honor that request, but if you truly are Betazoid, then you know that I'm telling you the truth."

Deanna nodded slightly, and then Fredric left the cabin. After the ten minutes had passed, she placed her still sleeping son on the nearby couch, and then went into Will Riker's steady and accessed the small communication array he kept in the log cabin for such occurrences. She had to inform her husband first...and luckily, the Titan was not that far away from Earth.


	244. Friendly Words

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT (new cover art at my profile)**

**FRIENDLY WORDS**

**Martok's Flagship, in orbit of Planet Timus**

Ambassador Picard was not a happy man. He had just arrived at the planet Timus Prime, via the Delta Flyer 2; piloted by Captain Jonathan Canary. Picard had come to Chancellor Martok's flagship to reacquire the special holoprogram device which had been especially built to house Moriarty. Months earlier the device had been stolen from Earth Security Headquarters and only a week earlier had been re-obtained by Martok during a recent incident at the planet Dan'gin.

"..and now," Picard said to Martok, in a terse manner, "it has been stolen again."

Anger was growing on Martok's face.

"Picard," Chancellor Martok spat out, "I trusted Kirk, and the other two. How could I have known they were going to do this on my ship? Hear these words; I promise you this," Martok said, with gritted teeth, "When I find Kirk; I will have his head!" Though, of course, it was all an act on Martok's part. He knew what was going to happened, and on a favor from Sisko, looked the other way.

Martok stomped out of the hanger bay, where the Delta Flyer-2 had landed only five minutes earlier. Picard shifted his gaze to Benjamin Sisko.

"Ben; why do I have the suspicion that you know more than you're letting on?" Picard asked. "You do realize that Kirk, by including S'vath and Agent Tolbert on this quest, he has jeopardized their careers, and freedom I might add, on another one of his silly quests. Where are they going?"

"If I knew, I wouldn't tell you Jean-Luc," Ben Sisko replied. "There are some things that transcend the service, and uniform, and if you have forgotten, I don't wear one anymore."

"What about duty and honor to the Federation?" Picard countered quickly. "Do they not factor into your silence?"

Sisko thought for a moment.

"Well," Ben said with, with deep seriousness in his voice, "I think Jim believes what he is doing is a matter of duty and honor."

Picard shook his head.

"Ben; the Federation operates by a set of rules and regulations," Picard said. "We are all bound to them, even James T Kirk and you. If we don't follow those regulations, then the result is chaos. If I were you, I would remember that fact if you should follow Kirk down this path much farther."

Picard turned to leave, but Sisko wasn't finished.

"Ambassador; those are strong words," Sisko said, in a soft tone as Picard turned back to face him. "Especially considering that we are talking about the abduction of a proven murderer by a man who has done so much for Starfleet and the Federation."

"I have petitioned to have Moriarty's designation as a citizen of the Federation to be rescinded," Picard replied. "However, until that decision is made, he is still a citizen and thus is protected by our laws. Do you have any idea why Kirk and the others even took the device?"

Sisko's silence was all Picard needed.

"No, or course" Picard said after a moment, "I didn't think you would; however I do. I have been informed that Ambassador Spock was somehow injured on some obscure planet, and I have a feeling Kirk is on his way there to help save his friend."

"Saving his friend," Sisko said with a sardonic tone to his voice, "we should definitely lock him up for that."

Picard flashed Sisko and irritated look and then made his way back aboard the Delta Flyer-2. At that moment, Captain Tom Paris entered the hanger bay, on his way to confer with Picard. Sisko saw Paris, who then flashed him an angry look.

"They could have just asked for the device," Paris said to Sisko.

"And you would have just handed it over," Sisko continued the train of thought.

"Instead; they made me look like a fool," Paris said. "Well, I will do everything in my power to help Picard apprehend Kirk."

Sisko could only shake his head as Paris threw him a cold shoulder, and made his way to the Delta Flyer-2.

The moment Sisko exited the hanger bay of the Negh'var battleship, he was met by Chancellor Martok.

"Benjamin," Martok said, "I value our friendship more than you could know. But Kirk has put me in a very uncomfortable position with Picard and Starfleet."

"Chancellor; I would understand, and so would Jim, if you decided to jump ship here," Sisko said.

Anger came over Martok's face.

"I am not, as you say, jumping ship," Martok spat out. "I owe Kirk my life, and will do what I can to shield him."

"Thank you," Sisko said to Martok as the two of them looked through the viewing port at the Delta Flyer-2, which was prepping for launch. "For the life of me, I can't understand why Picard is making such a stand with Moriarty's future. It just doesn't make any sense."

"Does he yet realize," Martok said, "that the reason Kirk took the device was to house the holographic Doctor for the long voyage to where Ambassador Spock is?"

"No," Sisko said, "but he'll figure it out eventually."

"Which will no doubt lead Picard back to you, my friend," Martok said. "Should time ever come when you want to live in the Empire; you tell me."

Sisko nodded his head in acknowledgement.

As the Delta Flyer-2 powered up, Sisko and Martok noticed that someone else had left the small craft; it was Captain Jonathan Canary, who had piloted the Delta Flyer-2 from Earth to Timus. As the Delta Flyer-2 zipped out of the hanger bay, and into space, Martok and Sisko approached Captain Canary.

"Captain Canary," Sisko said, "what is going on?"

"I told the Ambassador that I wasn't comfortable trying to stop Kirk, and so he dismissed me and let Paris take back his duties as Picard's assistant," Canary explained. "That's fine with me," Canary continued to say. "Kirk doesn't deserve this kind of shit."

"What will you do now?" Sisko asked.

"Head back to the Naissance, and if I'm correct, isn't your daughter on her way there?"

"She is indeed," Sisko said with a smile. "She and Lal left two days ago on a transport. They should be arriving at the Naissance in about three or four days. By the way," Sisko said, "did I hear correctly that Worf's son, Alexander, is now in command of the Emprenda?" Sisko asked.

"He is indeed," Captain Canary said. "Though, it was just a temporary promotion while I was on loan to the Ambassador during Paris's absence. Now that Paris is back, I'm going to back to the Naissance."

"You know what," Sisko said, "it's been quite some time since Kas and I have been on a vacation. With all that has happened here on Timus, I think she might like to get away and visit Rebecca at her new post."

Martok chuckled.

"Do you really think," Martok said, "after what happened last time the two of you were there, she'd really want to go back?" (Martok is referring to the events covered in issues #117 through #143)

"Trust me," Sisko said, "being nearly killed by Dinosaurs and God creatures like Trelane and Gary Mitchell would never keep my wife from seeing her daughter."

"My fleet will pass by that sector of space, if you want leave in the next day or so," Martok said.

"Would you mind if I tagged along?" Canary asked Martok.

"The more the merrier," Martok said with a loud voice. "We will have another feast, and I'll break out two or three more kegs of bloodwine!"

The three headed back out of the hanger bay…

But unknown to Benjamin Sisko, the transport vessel that Rebecca and Lal were on was about to crash land on a world populated by…the dead!

* * *

Elsewhere, on a far away world….

The planet was called Xx'Qgot, and it was located inside the borders of the Gorn Empire. When a female Gorn was prepared to lay hatchings, they would go to birthing worlds, such as Xx'Ggot for the process. Mid-wives were there to help, because the average female would end up expelling twenty-seven hatchlings. The first hatchlings would start breaking through their shells very soon thereafter. And as with Gorn custom, only the first five hatchlings would be allowed to live, the others being destroyed, the nutrients of their bodies then used to feed the hatchlings that were allowed to live.

This process had been part of the Gorn way of life for thousands upon thousands of years. But on this day, someone else had arrived on Xx'Qgot, and he wasn't Gorn at all; he was human and his name was Colt Macahan aka Leonard McCoy!

Continued…


	245. Dead Planet

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Dead Planet**

**A small Star Fleet transport vessel makes its way through space; its current destination is the Naissance Dyson-sphere…**

Twelve passengers were scattered about the main cabin. Several were crew transfers earmarked for the Naissance Sphere, while the others would stay on for the rest of the route which would end at Starbase 243. Naissance was still two days away from Naissance which gave the passenger's time to rest up, or read, or do whatever passengers did to pass the time.

Rebecca Sisko and her good friend Lal, the daughter of the late Commander Data, sat together as they had since leaving Timus. Their time on Timus had been marked by the inexplicable assassination attempt upon Rebecca's father life, and the subsequent death of his sister Mavis. Rebecca, who normally was quite the chatterbox, had been quiet during the voyage to Timus. They had left Timus only three days earlier, but the time seemed to drag, at least, in Rebecca's mind, as she reflected back on recent events. She looked over at Lal and smiled.

"I know I haven't been the best travel companion," Rebecca said with a smile. "Thank you for letting me just sit here the past few days without being my usual self."

Lal smiled back at Rebecca.

"It was a most unfortunate time," Lal said, in a matter of fact tone.

"I thought my father was going to die, and even though he lived, losing Mavis was hard on him, and all of us. Aunt Mavis was the nicest person I ever knew, and to die in such a horrible way; it just doesn't make any sense."

Lal nodded in acknowledgement of what Rebecca has said.

"Even though I am an android, capable of a trillion computations a second," Lal said, "I find life, or the period of time described as one's life, most perplexing."

"Well, that's because, unlike science with its absolution of statistics," Rebecca explained, "life cannot be defined so easily. Look at the two of us. Months ago we were fighting to stay alive, being chased by Dinosaurs and all that other stuff that happened. Now, here we are, going back to that place as if it never happened and," she said as she peaked back at one of the other passengers, "a cute young man is going there as well. Who would have thunk it?"

"Yes," Lal said quietly, "the noticeable increase in your blood flow, aroused state of your mammary papilla, and other aspects of your body, seem to indicate an attraction to that young man as you put it."

"He was two classes ahead of us at the Academy," Rebecca explained with a glow in her eyes, "and his name is Curtis Daystrom; he' sooooooo cute!." Rebecca stole another peak, if only for a second.

"Yes," Lal replied, "he is the great-great grandson of Dr. Richard Daystrom, noted Federation scientist. In fact, most of the electronics from that time, and even many today, were engineered by Richard Daystrom."

"Which means he's probably really smart," Rebecca said. "I usually don't go for men with big brains."

"True," Lal said, "I have noticed that you seem to be more attracted to men with a large penis. Your last male companion had a three foot long penis, so it will be interesting to see how Mr. Daystrom," Lal paused for effect, "measures up."

"Oh be quiet already," Lal said. "I don't only like men based on how big their dicks are," Rebecca said, "though, it would be a lie if I said it didn't matter," she added with a smile. "And besides; what's so wrong about that?" Rebecca turned the question back on Lal. "And enough about me; what about you," Rebecca said, "Ever since that Changeling, Myn, went back to the Great Link with Odo, I haven't seen you take a look at another man since then. You've got to turn the page sister," Rebecca explained with a slight sexy tone in her voice, "you've got get your grove back."

Lal was about to respond when suddenly the Transport vessel began to shake. Rebecca and Lal looked out the window and saw that the ship had come out of warp. Suddenly the voice of the Transport captain came over the intercom system.

"This Captain Gloria Algren," a female voice said, "The ship is experiencing some sort of navigation error. We are going to have set down for mechanical repairs, which, if my engineer is correct, will take no more than a day to complete. There is a Federation settlement on a world in this solar system, so we are heading there now and should be landing in about twenty minutes. I am sorry for this inconvenience, but these things happen."

"Great," Rebecca said, as she looked back at Curtis as he began to gather up his things. "I only brought enough eyeliner for two more days," Rebecca said as she gathered up her things as well.

"I'm sure there will be some sort of goods store there for you to replenish your supply on the planet we land on," Lal said. "Do not give up hope."

Moments later the ship began to shake even more, and it was becoming obvious to all aboard that the landing was not going to be a smooth one. But that was the least of their problems. Because the planet they were going to land on wasn't just your ordinary run of the mill planet.

"Look," Rebecca said, as she looked out the window. "I guess that's the main town down there, but where are the lights?" She asked. "It looks dark and dreary down there, so you'd think they'd have street lights on by this time of the day."

"Everyone hold tight," the captain's voice said over the intercom, "We're going down."

Captain Gloria Winton guided the ship to a large clearing on the edge of town. Even though the landing was a little rough, it didn't damage the ship more than it was already was. Ten minutes passed as the captain, and the rest of her four person crew saw to the passengers and made sure everyone was alright; which they were. Captain Winton then opened the main hatch and saw, in the distance, four people heading their way.

"Great," she said, and then she turned to face the passengers. "I see that our unexpected guests are already on their way. Let me explain the nature of our landing here, and see if I can arrange accommodations during our stay."

She left the ship, the hatch closing behind her.

As the other passengers packed up their belongings, Rebecca just sat down, with nothing else to do, and watched through the window as Captain Algren made her way toward the four people in the distance. But then, what Rebecca saw next was most unexpected. One of the four people grabbed Captain Algren, and then the other three joined in and pulled the unsuspecting captain of the Transport to the ground.

"What are they doing to her?" Rebecca yelled out.

The other passengers, and three remaining crew members, all looked out the window in horror at what Rebecca was seeing. The four people from the planet were ripping off chunks of Captain Algren's skin, eating her blood soaked flesh, and innards.

"Look at the expressions on their faces," Curtis Daystrom said. "There's only madness in their eyes."

And then the four human assailants, two men and two women, stood up from the now lifeless body of Captain Gloria Algren. They had eaten off one of her arms, and a large section of the right side of her torso, and now, the four deranged killers were looking at the Transport vessel.

"They see us…" one of the other female passengers, a Bolian, said in a worried tone.

And she was right; the four humans, their clothing dripping with Algren's blood, began to slowly walk toward the Transport vessel and it was very clear to see; they were still hungry.


	246. A Shell Game

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**A Shell Game**

**The ****birthing ****world ****known ****as ****Xx'Qgot; ****located ****inside the Gorn ****Empire**…

_When it came time for a mated female Gorn to lay hatchlings, birthing worlds were where it would take place. These worlds were home to cobwebs upon cobwebs of caves, connected through intricate tunnel path ways. The cave that would be used was in an area of land that had been passed down to the female via her family line upon thousands and thousands of years. _

_The average pregnant female Gorn would lay between 25 to 40 eggs and those eggs would begin hatching just hours after the last one was laid. Due to their depleted strength, the female was assisted by female family members, who would come to the world and care for the younglings until such time the mother, could take over her responsibilities. _

_It was forbidden for non-Gorns to come to birthing worlds, for it was considered a very private aspect of the Gorn society. Any non-Gorn who came to such a world, and had been found, was instantly executed, the dead body used to feed the myriad of young Gorn who scurried about the caves in their youth._

* * *

For nearly two weeks, Colt (Leonard McCoy) Macahan had visited many swanky and filthy bars/saloons upon several scummy outland worlds trying to track down the killer of his two Ferengi friends; Tokbie and Ombox. All of the information he had gathered, from other smugglers who knew of Tokbie and Ombox, led to one name; Do'neth; a Gorn. Apparently they had done business with him.

Do'neth was just a common rift-raft smuggler, and was known for killing anyone who even looked his way without permission. Colt had never met the Gorn, but when that time came, Colt would look at the Gorn, straight in the face, and without said permission, Colt would welcome any attempted reprisal and would kill the Gorn. But finding Do'neth had proven to be a chase without end, and so, Colt Macahan made his way to Gorn space, with one goal; to kill Do'neth's off spring. Colt Macahan had found out from second information that Do'neth was mated, and that his female mate was pregnant and due to give birth. It didn't take much time for Colt to find out what birthing world Do'neth's mate would use, and so he headed straight there and, having arrived, in the hills above a birthing center which was nestled in a large valley not far below, Colt Macahan would find the cave the female was using, and destroy two of her eggs in retribution for Do'neth's murdering of Tokbie and Ombox.

Using two bars of gold pressed latinum to bribe out the information he needed from others, Colt Macahan not only knew that he was on the right birthing world, for there were many, but he also knew what cave section beneath main birthing center Do'neth's mate was using. And as dusk approached, Colt knew the time for revenge was near. The space-bike he had acquired during a hand of poker on some distant world was also equipped with a basic one-person transporter device. When he felt the time was right, he would beam into the cave below, make the kill, and then beam out; all it was not was a waiting game. It was then that the occasional Gorn patrol craft flew over head. But Colt had expertly hidden the bike between two out cropping of rock faces. He himself hid beneath a grown of shrubbery, which provided great cover. When the craft was far enough away, Colt decided the time to act had come. Using a remote device, he programmed in the Transporter coordinates and in mere seconds, Colt was beamed away; down into the cobwebs of caves below.

But at that exact moment, other events were conspiring that would make Colt's act of revenge an act of mercy. Because not far from the birthing planet of Xx'Qgot, a Transwarp-conduit opened up; and a massive Borg cube appeared out of nowhere. Two Gorn battle cruisers, which provided security for the birthing world, and which Colt had been able to circumvent earlier, left the orbit of Xx'Qgot to engage the large cube shaped vessel. It was a battle that would not last very long. The Gorn ships fired volley after volley of disrupter blasts, but there was very little resistance they could offer against a Borg cube. The battle was waged, but it wouldn't last very long.

The moment Colt Macahan re-materialized in the birthing cave, instant chaos greeted him. The place was in a state of panic. Female adult Gorn were running about, the look on their faces was that of pure panic as they carried un-hatched eggs in their arm. But one Gorn, a female, was curled up in the corner of the cave. Even though he was human, and definitely not allowed to even be there, no one seemed to pay him a bother due to the panic. Colt felt a sensation in his body; compassion. He walked over to the female who was curled up in a corner on the ground, and he knelt down next to her. She was holding two un-hatched eggs.

"What is the problem?" Colt asked, as he flipped on the universal-translator on his belt. "Why isn't anyone tending to you?"

The female looked up at Colt.

"You're human," she said with a look of anger on her face, "You better get out of here before one of my kind catches you; they will execute you on sight."

"I'll take the risk," Colt said. He looked at the eggs which she was cradling in her arms. "They're haven't hatched yet. Where are the other eggs? I thought I read somewhere that a female Gorn can lay up to forty of them."

The place all around them was packed with Gorns running everywhere in panic, but Colt and the female Gorn didn't seem to care at all.

"My mate," she explained, "He was exposed to Dytainium-radiation during the Dominion War. I expelled thirty-four eggs, but only these two were viable; all the others were dead, no doubt due to his exposure."

Colt had to ask the most obvious question he needed to ask.

"Where is your mate? What is his name?" Colt asked.

"His name is Do'neth," the female replied. "My name is Ca'ltove."

Suddenly another female ran over and stood next to where Colt was kneeling.

"Why are you here human?" the female asked. "Is he bothering you Ca'ltove?"

"No, this human is not bothering me," Ca'ltove replied, she then looked over at Colt, "this is my sister; her name is L'gont. She had come to care for my hatchings, but because only two of them survived, she was about to return to her mate."

"What is going on around us?" Colt asked, as he looked up at L'gont. "Why is everyone in panic mode?"

"A Borg cube is attacking this world," L'gont replied. "We are heading deeper into the caves, in hopes that we can hide from them."

Suddenly the entire cave shook violently. A voice came over intercom system that encompassed the entire underground area.

THE BORG HAVE ENTERED THE PREMESIS.

"Come on," L'gont urged her sister, "we have to go deeper into the caves."

Ca'ltove, still holding the eggs, stood up and looked at Colt.

"I don't know who you are," Ca'ltove said. She then reached out both eggs, wanting Colt to take them. "I believe you have the means to escape what is about to happen here. Please, I beg of you, take these eggs and find my mate and give them to him."

L'gont, Ca'ltove's sister, did not offer a rebuttal because, as the cave shook again, it was clear something bad was about to happen to all of them.

"Who are these Borg?" Colt asked, not yet taking the eggs. "We have to fight them!" He reached for the two shotguns strapped to his back.

"You do not know of the Borg?" L'gont asked with skepticism in her voice.

But Ca'ltove didn't give Colt the chance to continue, and before he could get to his guns, she pressed the eggs forward, and came face to face with Colt.

"I believe I know why you came here," she said softly, as her reptilian eyes penetrated Colt's soul. "I can only imagine what he did, what Do'neth did, to make you come here to do such an act. But now I am asking you for an act of mercy. You're the only who can save them now."

And then, as Colt took the eggs, L'gont and Ca'ltove ran off.

* * *

Moments later, as the Borg ship was slicing chunks of land out from the planet below, a small space-bike, which was either unseen, or not seen as a threat, zoomed past one of the large scooped out chunks of land. Colt Macahan was totally oblivious to the event, as he aimed his bike into the darkness of space; with the two Gorn eggs nestled in the large sack slung around his back. He had saved the eggs instead of destroying them, like he and intended to do. The bike entered warp and…was gone!

Next time…

Doctor Zimmerman attempts to save Ambassador Spock's life as news of the Borg attack in Gorn space sends ripples of worry throughout the Federation! But one person is not surprise by the attack, the man who abducted Annika Hansen; Frederic Allen Thorn.


	247. Trifecta

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER ART AT MY PROFILE!)**

**Trifecta**

Starbase 185; a mushroom shaped space-station that is located in system J25, and in orbit of a small M-class planet…

The privately owned Ferengi scout class vessel, owned by Quark, but on loan to Jim Kirk, came out of orbit and took up an approach course to the giant orbiting space station with the designation Starbase-185. S'vath was at the controls.

"We're finally here," Kirk said rhetorically.

"Jim; have there been any updates to the Ambassador's condition?" Agent Ryan Tolbert asked. He had used his skills and had hacked into the computer network on the space station.

Kirk scanned over the message com traffic on the screen next to him.

"Same status," Kirk said. "He was moved out of ICU and is still recuperating in a room in the medical ward." He looked to S'vath, who was Spock's son. "They were able to save him, but it looks as if he's lost the use of his legs; I'm sorry."

"He's a Vulcan," S'vath replied, "He will accept his fate without challenge. But isn't that why we brought him?" S'vath asked as he pointed at the black device which was situated on a nearby unused consol. The device contained the holodeck Doctor named Zimmerman.

"Yep," Kirk said, as he looked at the device. "Although I wish we had the medical knowledge in the person of my good friend Leonard McCoy, who died a decade ago or so, from what I know, and from what Doctor Zimmerman was able to do for my daughter, I think he will fill in quite well."

S'vath piloted the Ferengi craft into the large opening of the space station and then took up a mooring station once one had been designated for the ship. Kirk pressed a button on the black device, and then suddenly appearing was Doctor Zimmerman.

"I assume we're at Starbase-185," Zimmerman said once he had solidified.

"We're here," Kirk replied.

"Doctor," S'vath asked, "did you encounter the Moriarty character while inside the hologram library device?"

"Luckily," Zimmerman replied, "I did not. I have read that he is quite intelligent, on philosophical matters, and had prepared to debate him on some of his more outlandish positions, but I have also read he is quite maniacal. So I found myself dreading meeting him, and, I didn't."

"Good," Kirk said. "I should let you know that the latest reports say that Spock may have lost the use of his legs."

"Well, we'll just see about that," Zimmerman said.

S'vath powered down the vessel, and then along with Kirk and Zimmerman, they headed into the space-station. Agent Tolbert decided to behind. He wanted to contact headquarters and get caught up on current events, so he elected to stay aboard the vessel, not liking the large crowds of people that gathered at bases.

A bit later, and after being fawning over by star-struck Starfleet officers who were stunned to have the legendary James T Kirk visiting their station, coming to see the other legend aboard, Ambassador Spock, Kirk, S'vath and Doctor Zimmerman finally arrived in the medical center. After a few moments with the staff doctor, a female Deltan, they continued on to Spock's room. Upon entering, they found Spock awake and with a visitor; a beautiful blond woman.

"Do you want us to come back in," Kirk said to Spock, with a pause, "fifteen minutes or so?"

"Jim," Spock replied, "I do not believe you have met my; Elizabeth Pike." Spock paused for effect as well, "wife. She did not accompany me on my last visit to Timus. However, I must ask first; how are your daughter and son?"

"Let me say first," Kirk replied, with a pat on S'vath's back thrown in, "I know he is your son, but S'vath is very good friend as well. He helped me rescue Mathew from the Cardassian. And thankfully, this doctor," Kirk said, as he looked over at Zimmerman, "was able to work a miracle and saved Dahme."

"That is good to hear," Spock said, as Elizabeth helped prom him up in his bed.

"Now you tell me," Kirk said with a tone of sarcasm in his voice, "How someone as old and crotchety as you ends up with such a beautiful woman?"

_(Author's note; yes it is true, the other Kirk (who ceased to exist when he was merged with this Kirk in the NEXUS) had met Elizabeth during the Doomsday Machine caper, but this Kirk never has.)_

"He isn't so crotchety," Elizabeth said with a smile, "once you get to know him."

Elizabeth came over and shook Kirk's hand. Kirk then reached in and kissed her on the cheek.

"Elizabeth Pike," Kirk said, with a strange look on his face. "Are you related to Christopher Pike?" Kirk asked.

"He was my father," Elizabeth replied. "My mother was Vina."

Kirk thought back for a moment, about the entire incident when Spock had stolen the Enterprise to take his former Captain, Christopher Pike, who had been severely injured, back to Talos-IV to live out his nature like unfettered by his injuries.

"That was over a hundred and thirty years ago," Kirk said, after a moment.

"And you're wondering how I, their child, could look this young after all that time." Elizabeth concluded for Kirk.

"So how is that possible?" Kirk asked.

"The Talosians took great care of my parents, until they passed away," Elizabeth explained. "And living on that world, sheltered us all from the elements, and somehow altered my physical aging properties."

"That's amazing," Kirk said.

"Or more like," Zimmerman said, upon hearing the story, "fascinating."

"And now you're married?" S'vath asked, his words aimed at his father; Spock.

"I have contemplated it ever since we first met during that unfortunate incident with the re-animated Planet Killer," Spock said. "After the Talosians were killed, Elizabeth had nowhere to go, and we started to spend a lot of time together. It seemed the logical step in the evolution of our relationship."

Kirk came over to where Spock was. He looked down at the frail appearance of his Vulcan friend.

"Enough of the reminiscing for now," Kirk finally said, "I want to know what happened to you and why were you on the planet Noralia in the first place? Ambassador G'kar is dead, and you're lucky to be live."

"Jim," Spock said, looking up at his old friend, "as you and I both well know; I do not believe in luck."

S'vath came over and stood next to Kirk.

"Father, Jim is right; what are you doing in this obscure area of the Federation?" S'vath asked.

"It's a long story," Spock said.

"Well," Kirk said, looking at Spock's covered legs, "I don't think you're going anywhere anytime soon, and neither am I until you tell us what you're up to."

Elizabeth came over and stood across from Kirk on the other side from where Spock was.

"I'm glad you're here Jim," Elizabeth said. "He hasn't been saying much to me either," she added with a slight tone of anger in her voice. "Maybe now that you're here he will."

Everyone looked at Spock, and after a moment, he places his hands on his chest, in a steeple formation, and began to tell the story….

"Months ago I received a message from a Romulan senator named V'arul. The Romulans had uncovered an ancient site in the mountains near their capital city. Among the findings were cave drawings. They depicted what appeared to be a star going nova, and a Vulcanoid witnessing this event. As we all know, the Romulans arrived on their home world some six thousand years ago. The drawings were dated to over fifty-thousand years ago, far before the arrival of either Romulans, or visiting Vulcans. There were letters etched into the drawing that were translated to SPK."

"And so they thought it was you," Kirk said. "But Spock isn't your real name, so who is to tell what those letters are?"

"Jim," Spock continued to say, "They were carved in English, which we all know my name does translate, in a shortened form, to Spock."

"Father, you and I have spoken of this before," S'vath said. "Who is to say what those drawings are really depicting. And running around the galaxy chasing for clues is never going to end, and, could get you killed."

"That's what I keep telling him," Elizabeth added.

"I could give him a sedative," Zimmerman added.

"Wait a moment," Kirk said, cutting in. "I want to hear this. Spock; what brought you to Noralia?" Kirk asked again.

"The Romulans found the skeleton remains of the being that may have made the etchings," Spock said. "The remains were of a small hominoid life form which came from a world that was, itself, destroyed by a nova thousands of years ago. I would later find out that the remains had a strange temporal differential meaning that the being was not from this universe, and also seemed to have come from the future; fifty thousand years in the future, meaning, our time."

"Wait a second," S'vath said, after taking it all in. "You're saying that the creature that drew the cave etchings on Romulas, comes from a world that was destroyed by a Nova ten thousand years ago. But this creature created these etchings 50-thousand years ago, and not only came from another universe, he came from a time near to our time; give or take a few centuries or so."

"Yes," Spock said, "Although it was a crude review, it was sufficient."

"Thank you," S'vath said, actually feeling proud being able to understand one of his father's usual long explanations.

"G'kar and I came to Noralia, where the creature had visited, for confirmation of what I just told you. And it was there we made our conclusion of future events." Spock said.

"Which is what?" Zimmerman asked.

Spock thought for a moment, and then responded.

"This is my theory, though I could be wrong. Sometime in the near future, I will witness the super-nova of a star in this universe, and then crossover to a parallel universe, but one that is not in synch, in terms of relative times, with this one. For some yet unknown reason, that small creature will cross back over to this universe, probably in an attempt to alter the future events from happening, but will arrive here in our universe; however fifty-thousand years in the past. The creature will arrive on Romulas, make the etchings, and then leave and eventually die on the world Noralia. V'arul, the Romulan senator who had contacted me, also reached this conclusion and tried to kill me in the hope of altering events that had not yet happened. But instead he ended up dying in the cave in; just as G'kar did."

Elizabeth cut in.

"Right before you came in that door," Elizabeth said to Kirk, "I told Spock that it is over. He needs to let it go of this silly endeavor because there is nothing he can do about it now."

"To which I replied," Spock said quickly, "that I could still make a difference. Jim'; what if I can find the star that will go supernova and stop it from doing so before it destroy Romulas?"

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"Well, one thing is for sure," Kirk said, "You are not ever going to walk again unless Doc here can help you."

Kirk stood back and let Doctor Zimmerman look over Spock's medical chart, as well as examine Spock to see if he could find another medical miracle in his case.

It was then that the space-station's red alert klaxon sounded!

And it was also at that moment that a space-bike entered the massive space-station doors, soon landing not far from the Ferengi spaceship that belonged to Quark.

Special agent Ryan Tolbert, who was inside the Ferengi spaceship, looked up for a moment from his consol screen and got a good look at the smuggler who had been riding the one-man craft and had just landed. Tolbert was very impressed with the Space-bike, and had heard about such a bike before. He read once that it belonged to a Gorn smuggler named Do'neth. But now it seemed to belong to the gruff looking human. Tolbert shook his head at the spectacle of a man wearing dark sunglasses, with an unkempt face as well, and then went about reading the information on his screen.

"What a fool," Tolbert said under his breath, not aware at all that the man he had just seen was Leonard McCoy.

Tolbert suddenly became aware of the red alert status of the space station as the space port doors were suddenly being closed. He flipped on the ship's communications consol and heard the ominous warning being spoken by the station's commander.

-THIS IS THE STATION COMMANDER. A BORG CUBE HAS BEEN DETECTED ATTACKING A WORLD INSIDE GORN TERRITORY SOME TWENTY LIGHT YEARS OR SO FROM THIS POSITION. WE ARE TAKING EMERGENCY ACTIONS

Kirk had heard the warning as well, and looked at S'vath, and Zimmerman continued his examination of Spock.

"S'vath," Kirk said, "what is a Borg?"

-Continued-


	248. Human Buffet

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Human Buffet**

_Previously…_

_A Federation Transport vessel crashed landed on the distant colony world of Drobix, while in route to the Naissance Dyson-sphere. Most of the passengers were Starfleet transfers, including two cadets on their first field missions; Rebecca Sisko and Lal. The captain of the transfer left the ship to see about getting assistance from the nearby town the ship had crashed landed near._

_As the other passengers packed up their belongings, Rebecca just sat down, with nothing else to do, and watched through the window as Captain Algren made her way toward the four people in the distance, who were approaching from the town. But then, what Rebecca saw next was most unexpected. One of the four people grabbed Captain Algren, and then the other three joined in and pulled the unsuspecting captain of the Transport to the ground._

_"What are they doing to her?" Rebecca yelled out._

_The other passengers, and three remaining crew members, all looked out the window in horror at what Rebecca was seeing. The four people from the planet were ripping off chunks of Captain Algren's skin, eating her blood soaked flesh, and innards._

_"Look at the expressions on their faces," Curtis Daystrom said. "There's only madness in their eyes."_

_And then the four human assailants, two men and two women, stood up from the now lifeless body of Captain Gloria Algren. They had eaten off one of her arms, and a large section of the right side of her torso, and now, the four deranged killers were looking at the Transport vessel._

_"They see us…" one of the other female passengers, a Bolian, said in a worried tone._

_And she was right; the four humans, their clothing dripping with Algren's blood, began to slowly walk toward the Transport vessel and it was very clear to see; they were still hungry._

**Our story continues…**

"What do we do now?" Rebecca asked the first co-pilot/first officer. He was a portly Bajoran, who obviously had very little experience in emergency situations. His name was Tobosh.

"We stay here and send out an emergency signal," an obviously nervous Tobosh told the others. "I'm sure it won't be long until help arrives."

"In this part of space?" Rebecca came back with. "Are you serious?"

They all looked out the various windows and saw the four lifeless looking figures making their way toward the ship.

"Oh shit," Curtis Daystrom said, "look! There are more of them!"

Although it was dusk, and becoming murky out, they could all see several more people from the town, in the distance, walking toward the ship.

"There are thirty seven more humans approaching," Lal said, in a matter of fact tone; having counted them all. She looked down at her Tricorder, which she had taken from her duffle bag. "I am detecting minimal life signs. It's possible the lack of readings may explain their freakish appearances and violent actions."

"Well, it doesn't matter. Something is obviously wrong with them," Tobosh said to the others. "I will go out there and try to see if I can get them to understand that we mean them no harm."

"Go out there?"Rebecca asked. "Are you out of your mind?"

"I believe all of this is could be a misunderstanding," Tobosh countered. "Everyone stay here," he said, as he suddenly opened the hatched and left the ship.

The four humans who had killed Captain Algren were now, at best, fifteen yards from the ship, with the other approaching town's folk a hundred yards away.

Everyone inside the ship watched as Tobosh approached the four who had killed Algren. One of them, a male, was holding a hand sized boulder. As soon as Tobosh began talking to them, the one holding the boulder pummeled Tobosh with it, seriously injuring him. The other humans attacked him in the same way. One of the female humans, clad in her ripped and dingy clothing, ruthlessly dug her teeth into Tobosh's plump neck, ripping off a large chunk, as the other continued to pummel Tobosh's head with the rock. They soon were all on their knees devouring Tobosh's body.

"We have to save him," the flight attendant inside the ship said. She was a slender red-headed human. She rushed to the door, but Curtis blocked her from it. Her name was Janis.

"It's too late for him," Curtis said, as Janis tried to sidestep position.

"You can't just leave him out there!" Janis pleaded. "He'll die!"

"He's dead already," Curtis countered. "If you open that door, you will put us all in danger!"

"We can't just stay here," Rebecca said to Curtis.

At that moment, the four deranged looking town folk reached the ship and began pounding on the ship's hull. Everyone looked out the window and saw the wild animal expressions on the faces of their attackers. The one with the boulder began to pound the rock against one of the windows.

"He'll never get through," Rebecca.

"We'll can all escape out the back hatch," Curtis finally said.

Several of the other passengers expressed their unwillingness to leave the ship, instead hoping that help would eventually arrive. But Curtis, Rebecca and Lal all thought it was bad idea to stay. Out voted, the three left out the back hatch. Ensign Ro'tha, who came from the world of Kesipa, a world that had recently joined the Federation, had a warning for the three. He swept back the black mane that fanned out behind his head.

"If you leave this ship, I'm not opening that hatch again," Ro'tha said.

"If you stay here," Curtis came back with, "they will get in and they will kill all of you. Four of them is one thing, but one the others get here, they will get in!"

"They won't get in," Ro'tha said, as he shut the hatch.

"Let's go," Rebecca said softly to Curtis, "before those things know we're out here."

"It would be prudent," Lal added.

* * *

And then the three cadets ran off into the forest, in the opposite way from the town. About a half an hour later they could hear the horrific screams coming from the transport vessels as the town's folk did as Curtis warned, and smashed their way in to the ship. Ten minutes after the screams started, they stopped.

"What now?" Rebecca asked Curtis Daystrom in a frightened tone.

"We survive," he replied. "We've all been trained, well, maybe not for something like this, but we are trained for survival."

And then the three ran further into the forest of a world they have never been to before. As they ran deeper and deeper into the forest, they were unaware that they were being observed; by a man named Harrison Riker.


	249. Friends and Family

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Friends and Family**

_Previously__…___

_**Starbase-185**____**(one**____**of**____**those**____**massive**____**mushroom**____**shaped**____**space**____**stations**__**…**__**)**___

Special_agent__Ryan__Tolbert,__who__was__inside__the__Ferengi__spaceship,__looked__up__for__a__moment__from__his__consol__screen__and__got__a__good__look__at__the__smuggler__who__had__been__riding__the__one-man__craft__that__had__just__landed__next__to__the__ship.__Tolbert__was__very__impressed__with__the__cool__looking__Space-bike,__and__had__heard__about__such__a__bike__before.__He__read__once__that__it__belonged__to__a__Gorn__smuggler__named__Do'neth,__but__now__it__seemed__to__belong__to__the__gruff__looking__human.__Tolbert__shook__his__head__at__the__spectacle__of__a__man__wearing__dark__sunglasses,__with__an__unkempt__face__as__well,__and__then__went__about__reading__the__information__on__his__screen._

"What_a__fool,"__Tolbert__said__under__his__breath,__not__aware__at__all__that__the__man__he__had__just__seen__was__Leonard__McCoy._

Tolbert_suddenly__became__aware__of__the__red__alert__status__of__the__space__station__and__watched__as__the__massive__space__port__doors__were__suddenly__being__closed.__He__flipped__on__the__ship's__communications__consol__and__heard__the__ominous__warning__being__spoken__by__the__station's__commander._

-_This____is____the____station____commander...the____borg____have____attacked____a____world____in____Gorn____Territory.____This____station____is____taking____emergency____actions-___

_**Inside**____**the**____**medical**____**center**__**…**__**deep**____**in**____**the**____**bowels**____**of**____**the**____**space-station**___

Kirk_had__heard__the__warning__as__well,__and__looked__at__S'vath,__as__Zimmerman__continued__his__examination__of__Spock._

"S'vath,"_Kirk__said,__"what__is__a__Borg?"_

_**Our**____**story**____**continues**__**…**_

"That's right," S'vath said, surprised at Kirk's simple question, "you have no idea who or what the Borg are."

"Not a clue," Kirk said.

"They are a cybernetic race that hails from the Delta-Quadrant," S'vath began to explain to Kirk. "They seem to have as their number one goal the assimilation of all sentient life forms in the galaxy into their collective. It was hoped that the efforts of the starship Voyager had led to the end of that threat, however, that appears not to be the case."

"The Borg," Kirk said softly, "sounds pretty serious."

"It is," S'vath told Kirk. "On two separate occasions one of their cube shaped vessels has managed to reach Earth. In both cases, Ambassador Picard, who was still the Captain of the Enterprise, and his crew, were able to stop them. If they have returned, it is an ominous sign that could have disastrous consequences."

S'vath went on and told a very curious Kirk about the Borg, and the kinds of defenses Starfleet had come up with to stop them.

Meanwhile, in the main lobby of the medical department, Colt (Leonard McCoy) Macahan entered the main lobby. Although the space-station was at red alert status, and people were scurrying about, the medical department was still operating as best as it could. McCoy walked up to the duty receptionist's desk. It was manned by a human female who hailed from the once mythical world of Aldean. She had olive colored skin, and wore a medical uniform. Her name was Lyvan, and she looked from her screen and saw the gruff looking Macahan looking down at her. He adjusted his sunglasses up so that they were propped up on his head.

"Can I help you sir?" Ensign Lyvan asked.

"To tell you the truth, I don't really know," Macahan said, as he scratched the scruffy five-o'clock shadow on his face.

Colt Macahan then reached into his drab looking brown knapsack and pulled out the two Gorn eggs that he had saved from the birthing world that the Borg had attacked. He placed them on the countertop that separated him from Lyvan.

"What are those?" Lyvan asked, as she stood up to look at them more closely.

"Look, miss," Macahan told her, "It is a very long story, and I don't really care to retell it. I just want to leave them with you in hope that you can get them to where they belong."

"You do know," Lyvan said to Colt, "that illegal smuggling of Gorn eggs will get you into trouble."

"Ma'am," Macahan said back to here, "if I were smuggling them I wouldn't be bringing them to a place like this. I'm trying to save them."

As Lyvan and Colt Macahan continued their conversation, S'vath and Kirk, still in their discussion about the Borg, left Spock's room, while Doctor Zimmerman attended to him. The two friends made their way toward the small food court that was located just outside of the main lobby. As Kirk listened to S'vath explain what was known about the history of the Borg, Kirk's attention was suddenly distracted at seeing a man who was standing at one of the counters conversing with one of the medical assistants; Kirk stopped in his tracks. S'vath stopped as well, and followed the track of Kirk's eyes. Both Kirk and S'vath were looking at someone they recognized as Leonard McCoy!

Meanwhile, back at the mooring stations, inside Quark's private ship, Agent Ryan Tolbert had finished reading his private messages. Included in the messages was a warning that Ambassador Picard had put out an official message ordering the immediate detention of Kirk, S'vath, and him, Ryan Tolbert.

"Damn," Tolbert whispered to himself.

Ryan then looked up at the space-doors, and saw that they were re-opening again. He deduced that the threat of Borg attack must have subsided. And then, and most unfortunately, Tolbert saw a small craft fly in through the opening, a small craft that he instantly recognized as the Delta-Flyer 2; Ambassador Picard had arrived!

Meanwhile, aboard the Delta-flyer 2, Captain Tom Paris, manning the helm, pointed down at the mooring stations below. Ambassador Picard nodded when he saw what Paris was pointing at.

"That's Quark's ship," Paris said.

"So they are here," Picard said.

"What are you going to do when you find them?" Paris asked.

"Well, despite what you might think," Picard replied, "I am not going to do anything beyond retrieving the library device. I owe Jim that much."

"I agree with that," Paris said with a slight laugh. "Even though they stole it from me, I am not that really upset about it. I mean, we are talking about James T Kirk here."

"Precisely," Picard said. "Go ahead and take us down, and while you do that, I'll contact the space-station's commander and ask him to locate Kirk and the others."

Paris did as instructed as aimed the Delta-Flyer at one of the empty mooring docks.

Meanwhile, far away in the Earth star system, another small sleek looking ship streaked out of the solar system at warp speed. …

Annika Hansen sat in one of the rooms. The door to her room had been secured, and she was unable to leave. But her captors had gone out of their way to make her comfortable. She had offered no real resistance, strangely curious about being abducted and why. The door opened and then the pleasant looking man, Fredric Thorn, came in. He was holding two cups of tea, one of which he placed down next to Annika, the other he kept. He sat down at the table too.

"I am curious," Annika said, after she sipped from her tea. "You abducted me three days ago. What is it you intend to do with me?"

Fredric sipped from his tea as well.

"I had to wait to see if it would happen," he replied.

"And what would that be?" Annika asked.

He motioned toward a monitor on the wall and it was suddenly activated. Starfleet alert messages were shown, as well as other accounts.

"A Borg cube has attacked a world in the Gorn Empire?" Annika asked, as she set her tea down.

"Yes," Fredric replied. "I tried to warn Starfleet that the Borg were going to attack somewhere on this day," Fredric told Annika, "but they would not listen to me."

"Didn't they listen to you?" Annika asked.

"No, they would not listen. They thought I was a nut like my uncle," he replied softly.

"When did you tell them?" Annika asked.

"Four months ago," Fredric replied.

A look of doubt came over Annika's face, which Fredric had expected to see.

"I know, you don't believe me either," Fredric said with a slight chuckle. "I can't say that I don't blame you. I mean, look at me, do I look like some brilliant physicist like my uncle?"

Annika looked at Fredric for a moment, and then she asked the one question that had to be asked.

"Alright, I'll take it on faith that you knew about this attack," Annika said, "but the question I have next for you is this; how did you know this attack would happen four months ago?"

Fredric smiled back at Annika.

"I knew it would happen because," he said with a pause, "you told me."

"I told you?" Annika repeated back to Fredric, as she raised her left eyebrow. "And how can that possibly be true since I have never met you until now?"

"I know, and what I'm about to say to you will sound even more incredible to hear. I knew they were going to attack because I have, locked inside my mind, knowledge of the future. And I know that someday, you and I will be," Fredric said with a pause, "married."

Continued…


	250. Family Affair

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light…**

**Another Life…**

(The first part of this chapter is a recounting of Colt (Leonard McCoy) Macahan's story thus far…with new material following on below..)

Previously…

**The bridge of the USS ENTERPRISE (no bloody A-B-C-D or E)**

_..Mr. Spock sat in the command chair, and had absolutely no idea where they were, and more precisely, when, if ever, they would find their way home. He and Mr. Scott had come up with a working theory that would hopefully provide answers, but the kind of answers they really didn't want to face. Because, if Spock's and Scotty's theory were true, then the Enterprise was no longer part of the space time continuum. A signal came from Scotty, who told Spock to meet him at his quarters; and so Spock headed off of the bridge. He arrived at Scott's quarters, and found McCoy there as well. Spock studied the information that the Enterprise's computers had collected. _

_"When the Enterprise went into phase," Spock began to explain, "We did indeed clear the Tholian Web, however," Spock continued to say, "the power levels were greater than we had expected. According to this data," Spock said, looking at the monitor, "it is quite possible that we fractured the space time continuum and created a causality loop, creating another Enterprise in the process. The other Enterprise was absorbed back into the space time continuity, along with the Captain, where as we exist outside of time."_

_Moments later, Spock and McCoy left Scotty's quarters. Spock, who had a head start, waited for McCoy who finally emerged from the engineer's quarters. Just as Spock turned around to see McCoy come out into the corridor; a brilliantly bright object, no larger than the size of small coin, streaked into view, colliding with McCoy's body. Scotty had emerged from his quarters and saw the same thing happen from behind McCoy…and then…McCoy was gone!_

* * *

_A small Ferengi vessel came out of warp near a charted yet long forgotten world. Aboard the ship were two Ferengi traders. They were brothers, and considering Ferengi, they actually got along. The oldest brother was named Ombox and the younger brother was named Tokbie. The reason they both got along was very clear to the both of them; they were failures. They had eked out miserable existences while trading goods, the kinds of goods that, at best, would lead to miserable existences. The ship landed and the two Ferengi brothers scurried to the exit of their ship, and opened the hatch. A metallic boarding ramp automatically extended from the ship the moment the hatch had been opened. Suddenly, a human, wearing a blue tunic, approached them._

_"Howdy there," the human said. "It's a good thing you came out of the sky when you did," the stranger said, "I'm not sure how long I would have made it out here in this heat."_

_"Who are you?" Ombox asked the human._

_"Isn't that the strangest thing," the stranger replied with a befuddled look on his face, "I don't know who I am. In fact, I can't even tell you how I got here or where I am. Obviously I'm suffering from some kind of memory loss."_

_The two Ferengi assisted the human up and into their ship, offering him water and Weeblo seeds. And then, due to exhaustion, the human was soon fast asleep on one of the cots. Ombox and Tokbie soon powered the ship up, and lifted off. Moments later, the ship was back into space, and heading away from the planet. Tokbie was using one of the computers, searching databases. The Ferengi stared at the human face displayed on the screen, and the name listed below it; Doctor Leonard McCoy._

"_We will make him a slave," Ombox said, "trade him for credits, or eat him..."_

* * *

_They would go on and make him an apprentice-smuggler. McCoy, not knowing who he truly was, would adopt the name Colt Macahan, as well as a very mean demeanor required to be a smuggler. When Ombox, Tokbie and Colt Macahan found temporary shelter in a small wooden shack on the trading-colony world of Servh'ja, they were attacked by five Nausicaans; Colt Macahan killed three of them, the other two escaping in fear of the violent minded human._

_For several weeks the Ferengi brothers, with the new respect of having a hired gun (Colt) at the ready, began to see their profit margin increase. They would eventually end up on yet another obscure planet that smugglers used to peddle their goods; the plant Dobus. As with most trading post worlds, it pretty much had no laws, and lots of illegal gaming and prostitution to prove it. While the Ferengi remained on the ship to rest, near the outskirts of a small shanty down, Colt (McCoy) Macahan went to the shanty town for some much needed female companionship. Before settling on an obese Bajoran whore, and her female Tellarite wife, Colt had joined a poker game and came away with a one-man space motorbike. Little did he know that it had once belonged to a Gorn smuggler named Do'neth. _

_After the poker game, Colt ended up in the abode of the Bajoran whore, and shared a night of sexual lust with the two women. _

_Do'neth, the Gorn smuggler, was also an acquaintance or Ombox and Tokbie, in fact, the two Ferengi owed Do'neth a large amount of latinum. Do'neth made an unscheduled visit to the Ferengi, who were still at their ship on the outskirts of the shanty town, and butchered them when they did not pay up. _

_Upon returning to the ship, and finding his Ferengi friends dead, Colt Macahan was able to figure out who had killed them and vowed revenge. After later finding out that Do'neth's Gorn mate was pregnant, Colt headed for the Gorn birthing world of **Xx'Qgot**, confident that the Do'neth's mate would go there for the birthing cycle. His goal was to slaughter two of the eggs, in retribution for Do'neth's killing of Ombox and Tokbie._

_Colt Macahan arrived on the birthing world, risking death even by going there. Gorn birthing worlds were off limits to any outsider. And then, as Colt found his way into the birthing cave where Do'neth's mate was preparing for the birthing cycle, a Borg cube appeared above the planet and began attacking. Colt confronted Do'neth's mate, her name being Ca'ltove. She would tell him that only two of her twenty eggs were still alive. She could tell that Colt was there to kill them, but as the Borg continued their attack, she convinced Colt to save the two eggs and flee the mayhem of the Borg attack. Colt did as she asked, and fled the world on his space-bike. _

* * *

**Our story continues…**

With the aid of his space-bike's computer, Colt Macahan decided to head for the closest Federation Starbase; 185. He powered his bike through the massive mushroom shaped station's doors, and landed his bike on a docking platform. With help from the station's interactive computer consol, he found his way to the medical facility. Colt (Leonard McCoy) Macahan entered the main lobby. Although the space-station was at red alert status (due to the Borg attack only twenty light years away) and people were scurrying about, the medical department was still operating as best as it could. McCoy walked up to the duty receptionist's desk. It was manned by a human female who hailed from the once mythical world of Aldean. She had olive colored skin, and wore a medical uniform. Her name was Lyvan, and she looked from her screen and saw the gruff looking Macahan looking down at her. He adjusted his sunglasses up so that they were propped up on his head.

"Can I help you sir?" Ensign Lyvan asked.

"To tell you the truth, I don't really know," Macahan said, as he scratched the scruffy five-o'clock shadow on his face.

Colt Macahan then reached into his drab looking brown knapsack and pulled out the two Gorn eggs that he had saved from the birthing world that the Borg had attacked. He placed them on the countertop that separated him from Lyvan.

"What are those?" Lyvan asked, as she stood up to look at them more closely.

"Look, miss," Macahan told her, "It is a very long story, and I don't really care to retell it. I just want to leave them with you in hope that you can get them to where they belong."

"You do know," Lyvan said to Colt, "that illegal smuggling of Gorn eggs will get you into trouble."

"Ma'am," Macahan said back to here, "if I were smuggling them I wouldn't be bringing them to a place like this. I'm trying to save them."

As Lyvan and Colt Macahan continued their conversation, S'vath and Kirk, still in their discussion about the Borg, left Spock's room, while Doctor Zimmerman attended to him. The two friends made their way toward the small food court that was located just outside of the main lobby. As Kirk listened to S'vath explain what was known about the history of the Borg, Kirk's attention was suddenly distracted at seeing a man who was standing at one of the counters conversing with one of the medical assistants; Kirk stopped in his tracks. S'vath stopped as well, and followed the track of Kirk's eyes. Both Kirk and S'vath were looking at someone they recognized as Leonard McCoy!

"Do you see him too?" Kirk asked with a tone of bewilderment in his voice.

"Yes I do," S'vath answered, with a look of doubt on his face. "It can't be your friend; Leonard McCoy. My father and I attended his memorial service, and besides, this man is much younger."

"Did Bones have a son or heck, great-great grandson?" Kirk asked, as they continued to watch the man converse with the receptionist.

"If he did so, then it is news to me," S'vath said. "His daughter did have a son, but had no children of his own."

"I'm going to find out who this person is," Kirk said as he headed for the stranger.

At that moment, entering the medical facility was Ambassador Picard. He was escorted by two security officers.

Kirk made his way over to the stranger who resembled his friend.

"Excuse me," Kirk said to Colt Macahan.

Colt looked at Kirk.

"Do I know you?" Colt asked Jim Kirk.

"I was wondering," Kirk said, "do you know of a man named Leonard McCoy?"

Suddenly a spasm of pain rocked Colt's body and he lost his balance. S'vath, who was standing with Kirk, reached out and with Kirk's help, steadied Colt.

"Are you alright?" Kirk asked Colt.

At that instant, Kirk heard another voice call out to him.

"Jim Kirk," Picard said as he came up to Kirk and S'vath.

Kirk turned around to face Picard.

"I suppose you have come for the library device," Kirk said to Picard.

But then Picard saw the man whom S'vath and Kirk were standing next to.

"What is this person?" Picard asked. "What is happening here?"

And then Colt Macahan lost his balance, and fainted.

Twenty minutes later, Colt Macahan was admitted into his own room. Several of the station's doctors were tending to him as Kirk, S'vath and Picard watched from the side of the room. They were each holding a cup of coffee, brought to them by a nurse aide.

"Is that Leonard McCoy?" Picard asked Kirk, as they watched the doctors tend to McCoy.

"We don't know," Kirk replied. "Look," Kirk said to Picard, briefly changing the subject, "I am sorry for what we did; stealing that device. Spock was injured and the hologram doctor seemed to be the best chance he had. Unfortunately the doctor didn't bring his backup power source, and so the only way we could get him here was to store his matrix inside the library device."

"Understood," Picard replied, as he sipped from his coffee. "However, you have to know that there will be consequences for your acts."

"That's fair enough," Kirk said, "though, as a personal request of me, I'd like you to absolve S'vath and agent Tolbert of any responsibility in this matter."

"Wait a second," S'vath said with a tinge of anger in his voice. "We just…"

"If I were you," Picard said, cutting off S'vath, "I'd just remain silent."

S'vath was about to respond when Kirk cut in.

"Wait a second; here comes the doctor," Kirk said.

The station's highest ranking doctor, an Asian human male who wore old style glasses and had a short ponytail, and stood five feet and five inches, came over to where Kirk and the others were standing. His name was Doctor Wang. _(This__doctor__'__s__name__is__dedicated__to__the__real__life__heart__surgeon__who__saved__my__life__…__)_

"Your friend seems to be suffering from some sort of mental-shock," Wang told them. "Apparently it is affecting the memory center of his mind."

"Are you saying that he has his memories, he just can't access them?" Picard asked.

"Yes," Wang said. "Some sort of blunt trauma may be at the root of his condition; however, I can find now physical signs to prove that."

"What about a Vulcan mind -meld?" Kirk asked S'vath. "Do you think you could help him bridge those memories?"

"I never learned the discipline of a mind-meld," S'vath replied to Kirk. "However, I know some who did, and he is quite good at it."

"Your father," Kirk said, with a smile, as he snapped his fingers.

At that moment, Captain Tom Paris entered the room. He came over to where Kirk, S'vath and Picard were. He looked at Kirk.

"Captain Paris," Kirk said, "I want you to know that I am sorry for violating your trust in taking the hologram library device."

"You did it to save your friend; Ambassador Spock," Paris said with a smile, "I would have done the same thing."

"I hope not," Picard said with a playful smile. "Do you have an update on the Borg attack in Gorn space?"

"They Borg attacked a Gorn birthing world," Paris said with a tone of disgust in his voice. "I'm no fan of the Gorn, but attacking defenseless Gorn and their hatchings? What possible purpose could that serve the collective?"

"We may never know," Picard said.

"That's not all," Paris continued to say. "Ambassador; we just received information that Annika Hansen was abducted while staying at the home of Captain Riker and his wife Deanna Troi on Earth."

A look of concern came over Picard's face.

"Who is Annika Hansen?" Kirk asked Picard.

"She is a former Borg drone," Picard replied, "Several years ago she was rescued from the Borg collective by Admiral Janeway, as well as Captain Paris and the rest of the Voyager's crew," Picard said, as he looked over at Paris. "I find it no small coincidence that the Borg attack after all these years, with her abduction happening at about the same time."

"What do we do?" Paris asked.

"I have the strangest feeling," Picard told Paris, "that our shape-shifting friend, Azami, has that answer. We shall go to her for that answer immediately." He looked over at Kirk. "I guess I have no choice but to drop the matter of Moriarty's abduction," Picard said. He held the library device which Kirk had given back to him moments earlier. "Just try and stay out of trouble; will you?" Picard added with a smile.

"What about this situation with the Borg?" Kirk asked. "If I can be of any help, let me know."

"I may just take you up on that offer someday," Picard said. (..and yes readers; he will)

Kirk shook Picard's hand, and then Paris's hand as well, and then watched as the Ambassador, and Paris, headed out of the medical facility.

"Let's go see how your father's condition is," Kirk said, after a moment. "Something tells me that when we let him know about the McCoy mystery, he will be jumping up on his feet in no time to try and help."

"His jumping to his feet is an illogical assumption, my father would say," S'vath said with a smile, "however; you may be right."

Kirk headed over to McCoy's bedside for a moment. McCoy was unconscious. Dr. Wang came back into the room, having left for a moment.

"What can you tell me?" Kirk asked. "Is he going to be okay?"

"I cannot be sure as of yet, however, we did as you asked when you first brought him in," Wang replied. "We took a sample of his blood and have determined that his man is indeed Leonard McCoy."

S'vath shook his head.

"How can that be possible?" S'vath asked, as he came over to where Kirk and Wang were. "Not only is his age wrong, but he died nearly a decade ago."

Before Wang could answer, Kirk did.

"Is he a clone?" Kirk asked. "Or perhaps he is the result of Transporter duplication?"

"He isn't a clone or transporter duplicate," Wang replied. "There would be signs of that in his temporal signature. The computer diagnostic has concluded that this man is Leonard McCoy; notwithstanding the fact that he is supposed to be dead. However, I would appreciate it if Ambassador Spock could go over our findings; he is an expert in this field."

"I'm sure he'd be grateful to help," Kirk said.

A nurse came in to tend to Colt (McCoy) Macahan and Kirk, S'vath and Dr. Wang headed out of the room…

* * *

**Inside a Transwarp conduit subspace tunnel; the Borg cube which attacked the Gorn birthing world.**

Each of the Two thousand and twenty seven Gorn eggs that were taken from the birthing world was attached to special devices that came down from a mechanical apparatus. Borg drones monitored the meticulous draining of each egg, and the dead life within each one. Once an egg was drained it was filled with a new life giving silicone based substance. And overseeing the Borg drones was yet another person; a human named Magnus Hansen.

Continued…


	251. Death Not be A Dream

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Death Not be A Dream**

_Previously…_

A Federation Transport vessel crashed landed on the distant colony world of Drobix, while in route to the Naissance Dyson-sphere….

It had been three hours since Rebecca, Lal and Curtis Daystrom had escaped the crashed transport vessel, and from the carnage that took place inside of it. They had listened in stunned horror as the other passengers were brutally killed, and devoured, by the deranged colonist on the obscure world of Drobix. Night had arrived, and with it, two shining full moons which cast a yellowish glow across the night time forest. Being merely humans, Curtis and Rebecca had tired, where as Lal had boundless energy since she was an android. They had found a large fallen tree nestled up against a small outcropping of rocks, and rested.

"While my hearing is limited by the surrounding trees and foliage," Lal told Rebecca and Curtis, "I cannot detect anyone in pursuit of us."

"That's good to hear," Rebecca said.

"From what I could tell," Curtis said to the others, "those people who attacked the ship could not run. Perhaps their condition limits their motor functions."

"What do you think it was that made them like that?" Rebecca asked.

"I don't know," Curtis replied. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Lal," Rebecca said, "What is this place?"

The female android offspring of the late Commander Data accessed her database instantly.

"Drobix is a Federation colony world," Lal replied, "The population, as reported six months ago, was seven hundred and eighty seven. The first settlers found deposits of Dilithium crystals, as well as other rare minerals and metals. Due to its obscure location, and little contact with the Federation, not much more data is available."

"Most likely they came here to get a fresh start," Rebecca concluded, "and now this has happened. We've got to find some sort of communication so we can call for some help."

"To do that," Curtis replied with a worried tone to his voice, "we'd have to go back the way we came, back toward the settlement. That isn't going to be so easy with those things out there."

"They are not things," Rebecca corrected Curtis. "They are people."

"Listen to me," Curtis came back with, "Whatever those things are; they are not human, at least not human like you and I are. You saw what happened when Captain Algren and the first officer tried to reason with them."

"Well then what are we going to do?" Rebecca asked back with. "We can't live in this forest forever."

"Eventually, when we don't arrive at the Naissance, I am quite sure they will launch a search party," Curtis said.

"That could take a long time," Rebecca said, with a tone of doubt in her voice. "We're not going to last out here that long."

"We're going to have to try," Curtis said softly. "Lal," Curtis then said, "I know you're conserving its energy, but why don't you use the Tricorder and see what you can detect."

"A logical suggestion," Lal said as she took the device out of the pouch she had brought, and a scanned the area.

"I am detecting a clearing approximately two-hundred meters in that direction," Lal said as she pointed in the direction she meant, "And in the center of the clearing there seems to be a manmade construct; perhaps a house or storage facility."

"Some of those things could be there," Rebecca said with warning in her voice, as they stood up and continued on.

"We'll have to take our chances," Curtis replied. "It's cold and getting colder. We have to find shelter."

They made their way through the heavily wooded area until they came to the clearing. Sure enough, there was a three-story wooden house. It was obvious that the settlers on this world favored older ways, because the house looked as if it had been teleported into the future from late 19th or early 20th century.

"I'm not sure I want to go in that house," Rebecca said to Curtis and Lal. "For all we know, some of those things could be in there."

"There's a chance," Curtis said. "But, then again, we are three hours from where we crashed and we didn't see any more of them on the way here. I think it's worth a look. If we get in there, and it's safe, then we'll board up the windows and doors and hope we can holdout in there until help comes."

Rebecca looked to Lal.

"It does seem like a prudent course of action," Lal said to Rebecca. "The cold temperature will not affect my systems, but it can kill the two of you."

Rebecca thought for a moment. She had a bad feeling about the plan, but there was little more, if anything, they could do.

"Alright then," Rebecca finally said, "let's go."

And so the three Starfleet cadets made their way toward the old looking house, hoping to find safety and security within its doors.

The planet Timus…

Ben Sisko and his wife Kasidy stood atop a hill where the local cemetery was kept. Kasidy was standing close to Ben, his arms around her, keeping her warm. They were looking at the tombstone of Mavis Sisko, Ben's older sister. She had been mortally wounded during a recent attack upon Ben.

"It should have been me," Ben said with anger in his voice.

"It should have been no one," Kasidy replied. "Besides, honey, don't think about what happened to her; think about what the two of you shared. She really became an important part of our lives in the recent years, and I think she really enjoyed that sensation that comes with belonging."

There was complete silence, with just a gentle breeze blowing around them. The silence was interrupted as a land-speeder made its way up the hill and toward the cemetery.

"It's Nog," Ben Sisko said to Kasidy. "He accepted my offer and has taken over the position of Constable while S'vath is away tending to his father."

"I know, you told me last night," Kasidy responded. "But why is he here?"

Nog brought the land-speeder to a stop, got out, and came over to where Ben and Kasidy Sisko were standing. Nog had a worried look on his face.

"What is it Nog?" Kasidy asked.

"I just received a message from Starfleet," Nog said to the two of them, "The transport vessel that was taking your daughter Rebecca, and Lal, to the Naissance Sphere never arrived."

"What do you mean it never arrived?" Ben Sisko said, with urgency in his voice.

"That's all that the message contained," Nog said.

Ben Sisko didn't waste any time as helped Kasidy up on her horse, and then he got up on his own.

"I'm heading to town," Ben Sisko told Kasidy and Nog. "You see her home and you join me there."

"Yes sir," Nog said.

"Ben;" Kasidy said with pleading eyes, "Just bring our baby home."

Ben nodded to his wife, and then aimed his horse toward town, which was only three miles away, kicked it lightly, and then the horse galloped off at full speed.

-continued..


	252. Ghost Ship

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Ghost Ship**

_Garak stepped out of his private craft, which he had landed inside the long since abandoned prison complex on a world which had no official designation because it had been under the control of the Obsidian Order. The buildings inside the complex were all dilapidated and crumbling due to the fact that the world had been long abandoned. The Klingons had destroyed most of the world during their invasion of Cardassian space, during the lead up to the Dominion war, and had been very thorough during the attack, leaving the small sized planet pretty much inhabitable._

_He found his way down to the make shift graveyard that had been ran by an aged Cardassian woman. Sometimes the prisoners would procreate, and their children would die. Her job was to bury the remains. It wasn't usually allowed, but in some cases it was. But she, as well as all the other Cardassians who ran the prison was gone long ago. Garak, using old records he had found in one of the buildings, found his way to a grave that was marked H RIKER. Suddenly the ground moved! A hand reached out of the dirt and tried to grab him._

_Garak, startled, lurched back, and lost his balance, falling backward. As he fell backward, his head hit a large boulder. Dizziness came, and he felt himself falling into a black abyss. But before he lost consciousness, he looked over at what had to be Harrison Riker's burial site, and watched as the hand that had grabbed him had now been joined by another. Someone was trying their hardest to crawl out from ground! As Garak felt himself slipping away, he saw the person dig their way out, finally seeing them stand where he himself had been standing moments earlier. The person, who was looking the other way, turned around and saw Garak. Garak recognized the person immediately; Harrison Riker. Garak could only watch at Harrison slowly walked toward him, and was soon standing over him._

_With his strength fading, Garak looked up at Harrison Riker and asked one question._

_"What are you?" Garak asked, as the dizziness made his vision spin._

_Harrison reached down and picked up another large boulder and held it up over his head, readying to pummel Garak with it. Garak closed his eyes, and felt content his life was finally over…but instead, he heard a voice._

_"No," the voice said, and it wasn't Harrison Riker's voice. "There will be no death here."_

_Garak opened his eyes, wanting to see who had just possibly saved his life. Through the haze of his dizziness he saw three spheres of light, and instantly Harrison Riker was gone, and then just as suddenly, a fourth light appeared, and then all four lights reached higher into the sky and in an instant they were gone._

_In mere moments, the dead sound of the darkness returned, and everything was still again. Garak tried with all his might to stand up, but the blow to his head was more serious than just a simple bruise. He surmised that he had suffered a concussion._

_"You probably should have just let him kill me," Garak said to the now darken sky. "It's not like I'm going anywhere soon."_

_Garak rested his bleeding head back down on the ground, content to just let death come over him, because, quite frankly, there wasn't much else he could do. He thought about what he had just witnessed; Harrison digging his self out of the ground. What forces were at work, Garak wondered, that would explain such a strange event?_

_"Then again," Garak said to himself, softly, maybe it was all a delusion brought about when he hit his head on the rock. Then again, that first which had reached out of the ground, did so before Garak had hit his head on the rock. "Oh well," Garak said finally. "It doesn't matter now."_

_With nothing else to do, Garak decided to look back on his life, in his final moments. But just as hope had seemed lost, Garak's eyes caught a most interesting sight in the near distance; Transporter beams solidifying. There were three of them, and soon three figures appeared. They were all wearing white containment suits, with helmets, thus giving Garak no clue as to who they were. One of the three new comers looked over in Garak's direction and came over to him, as the other two went over to the hole in the ground from which Harrison had crawled out of. It was at that moment when Garak's strength gave out…and he was lost to the dark abyss…for now…_

* * *

Sometime later...

An eyelid opened. The moment brightness touched his pupil; it began to shrink in size as he opened his other eye. All he knew, for the moment, was that he was on his back on a hard surface. He sat up and looked about. He appeared to be the middle of what was once a lake, or some other large body of water, due to the parched looked of the ground. He angled his eyes up and saw the sun of the world bearing down. Perhaps others may have found the temperature a bit warm, if not downright hot, but Garak was a Cardassian.

"Where am I?" he asked himself, still sitting on the ground. "And how did I get to this place?"

And then he heard footsteps behind him, and he pivoted around to see who the stranger was.

"Who are you?" Garak asked.

"My name is Commander Randolph Donnelly." the human said, as he looked down at Garak. "Your memories will soon return; just give it a little time. You suffered a head injury recently and you're not quite 100%."

Garak closed his eyes, and sure enough, his memory did indeed begin to return. It seemed to Garak, that for now, the human was being truthful.

"Wait a moment," Garak said, "The last thing I remember was that I was on a former Cardassian prison world, following up on a lead. I watched as Harrison Riker climbed out of his own grave. He was killed on Timus, during the attack on Benjamin Sisko, and yet he was still alive, in the ground, on that prison world."

"What did you see after that?" Commander Donnelly asked, as he reached down and helped Garak up.

"Three spherical shaped lights appeared, and then Harrison vanished, and a fourth light appeared, and then all four spheres of light streaked away." Garak said, as he accepted a pouch of water from Donnelly. "And then three men in containment suits beamed into view."

"My team," Donnelly said, filling in the blanks for Garak. "We took you with us, and got you medical care for your injury."

"Thank you," Garak said, "but why have you brought me here?" Garak asked.

"Mr. Garak," Commander Donnelly said, "I am well aware of your services with the Obsidian Order. I could have left you to die on that world, but I need your skills as covert operative. I cannot go into specifics, just yet, but suffice to say I need you to go on a mission for me."

"What kind of mission?" Garak asked.

"Come with me, and I'll show you," Donnelly said as he turned and started walking away from Garak.

Garak followed Donnelly, but had more questions.

"I assume you are Starfleet?" Garak asked.

"Yeah, it's something like that, though we operate way under the surface, so to speak." Donnelly replied.

"My kind of operation," Garak said with a smile. "Are you part of Section 31?"

"No," Donnelly said bluntly. "Thankfully our goals are not as," he searched for the right word, "sinister as theirs can be at times."

"What is it you are expecting me to do?" Garak asked.

Donnelly stopped walking and pointed at the ground. What appeared to be a tiny spec of light, the size of a tiny pebble, was hovering just above the ground and it was ever so slowly spinning, giving off a sparkling light.

"What is that?" Garak asked.

"We have our theories," Donnelly said, "but the truth is we don't really know. But we believe it might be a doorway to another dimension, or perhaps even outside the laws of reality. That's why I have brought you here. I want you to reach down and pick it up."

"Why would I do something as risky as that? What's in it for me?" Garak fired back with.

"When the person you know as Harrison Riker came out of the ground, he momentarily touched you," Donnelly said.

"That's right; he grabbed my ankle," Garak said. "What does it matter?"

"It must be obvious, even to you, that Harrison Riker, his being killed light years away, and suddenly appearing on that prison world, was totally out of the bounds of possibilities." Donnelly explained. "When we brought you with us, and scanned your body, we found some very strange readings from an unknown force of energy, almost as if by touching you, Riker had passed on a small fraction of that energy. When we scanned his empty grave, we found the same residual energy patterns, and lots of it."

"And now you think," Garak concluded, "that the energy he passed on to me might somehow interact with that spec of light?"

Donnelly nodded.

"Alright," Garak said, after a moment. "I will go ahead and do this, but if I don't come back, I want you give my Harley to my good friend Julian Bashir."

"I'm not sure what a Harley is, but I will," Donnelly added with a smile.

Commander Donnelly stepped back as Garak reached down and picked up the spec of light; and instantly Garak was gone!

* * *

Previously…

_Mr. Spock sat in the command chair, and had absolutely no idea where they were, and more precisely, when, if ever, they would find their way home. He and Mr. Scott had come up with a working theory that would hopefully provide answers, but the kind of answers they really didn't want to face. Because, if Spock's and Scotty's theory were true, then the Enterprise was no longer part of the space time continuum. A signal came from Scotty, who told Spock to meet him at his quarters; and so Spock headed off of the bridge. He arrived at Scott's quarters, and found McCoy there as well. Spock studied the information that the Enterprise's computers had collected._

_"When the Enterprise went into phase," Spock began to explain, "We did indeed clear the Tholian Web, however," Spock continued to say, "the power levels were greater than we had expected. According to this data," Spock said, looking at the monitor, "it is quite possible that we fractured the space time continuum and created a causality loop, creating another Enterprise in the process. The other Enterprise was absorbed back into the space time continuity, along with the Captain, where as we exist outside of time."_

_Moments later, Spock and McCoy left Scotty's quarters. Spock, who had a head start, waited for McCoy who finally emerged from the engineer's quarters. Just as Spock turned around to see McCoy come out into the corridor; a brilliantly bright object, no larger than the size of small coin, streaked into view, colliding with McCoy's body. Scotty had emerged from his quarters and saw the same thing happen from behind McCoy…and then…McCoy was gone! Scotty ducked back into his quarters to get his Tricorder. As Spock approached the spot McCoy had vanished from, there was a sudden burst of light; and someone was standing where McCoy had been standing only seconds before._

"Pardon the abrupt nature of this inquiry," Spock said to the stranger who stood before him. "Would you mind telling me who you are?"

Garak smiled. He knew of the legendary Spock, since Garak considered himself a friend of James T Kirk, and had heard, from Kirk himself, about the adventures he and Spock had shared.

"My name is Garak," Garak replied. "Just plain… simple… Garak," and then he smiled.

Continued….


	253. It Had to be Murder

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**It had to be…Murder!**

**The Planet Timus…**

Powered vehicles of any sort were generally frowned upon on the planet Timus. Most of the settlers who had come to Timus were attracted by its less hectic ways, so, most people traveled about upon horses, or other riding animals like the Ul'vac; it was a mounted animal from the Romulas.

Nog on the other hand, who was the new Constable of the town, drove a land-speeder. Due to the demanding duties as the chief law officer, Nog's use of a land-speeder was understood by all. He brought the anti-gravity powered vehicle, which skimmed across the surface of the world, to a stop outside the modern looking home of Myran; the former Bajoran wife of James T Kirk. Waiting there for him were Kasidy Sisko, Sulu, Baybok and a medical officer from the local hospital; Suzanne Anderson. Along with her duties at the local hospital, Dr. Suzanne Anderson had taken also up Mayor Sisko's offer of being the town s main medical officer.

Nog stepped out of the land-speeder and approached Dr. Anderson. Generally Nog was usually nervous around women, especially beautiful ones like Dr. Anderson. But the fact he was the town cop; it helped him control his nerves.

"Sorry for the delay in getting here," Nog told Dr. Anderson, "there was fire at one of the farms on the other side of town."

Nog nodded at four of his deputies, two of whom were busy with keeping the lookie-loos, several towns' folks, from interfering with the investigation scene.

"Let me guess," Anderson said, "children with matches."

Nog nodded.

"What do we have here?" Nog asked.

At that moment, Kasidy Sisko, Hikaru Sulu, and his Ferengi friend, Baybok, came over to where Nog and Anderson were.

"Nog," Kasidy said. It was clear that she had been crying recently. "It's awful."

"What happened?" Nog asked.

Kasidy tried to explain the situation, but was too distraught to go on, so Sulu did.

"As you know," Sulu began to say, "Myran has been living here with her two children. And ever since Harrison's death, she had pretty much stuck to herself."

"Ben's sister, avis," Kasidy interjected, finding the strength to speak, "usually watched Myran's children so she could work at the local library. But with Mavis's death as well, I as well as Hikaru and Baybok have been helping out when we can."

"That's right," Baybok said. "We come here in the morning. I bring Weeblo bread, Hikaru brings the tea, and then we visit with Myran before she heads to the library."

"So, I presume the three of you came here to do just that; what did you find?" Nog asked.

Kasidy bowed her head, unable to describe what they had found. Sulu held Kasidy close, to trying his best to ease her.

"Perhaps I should just show you," Dr. Anderson suggested to Nog.

Constable Nog and Dr. Suzanne Anderson headed toward the modern style home that had been built for her and James T Kirk sometime back.

The Jim Kirk whom Myran had been married to was not the same Jim Kirk who was currently off. The Jim Kirk that Myran had been married to actually was the creation of a transporter accident which had brought Kirk into the present time from over a hundred and twenty years in the past. He had taken on the alias of Robert Crane, and the two had lived a peaceful life for nearly two years, even bringing two children into the world, until, while visiting Bajor, Kirk's real identity, which he had kept secret from his wife, had been revealed while saving the life of Rebecca Sisko; Ben Sisko's daughter. But as Myran's own checkered past caught up with her, the Jim Kirk she had been married to ceased to exist while entering a strange void known as the Nexus. His essence was replaced by the echo of another Jim Kirk which had resided inside of the Nexus. Myran was about to get a new start in her life with Harrison Riker, but he had been shot and killed, leaving alone with her two children.

Anderson brought Nog into the house, and then up the stairs to the master bedroom. Myran's dead body was face down on the ground, with a pool of blood around her, and a knife in her right hand; she had apparently slit her throat.

"Where are the children?" Nog asked.

"Kasidy Sisko and the others found them in their crib," Anderson said, as she pointed over the now empty crib. "They were taken to the hospital to be checked out, but as far as I can tell, they are fine." Anderson said. She looked back down on Myran's body. "Suicide is so awful."

"Are we sure it was suicide?" Nog asked, as he squatted down and got a better look at the body and its position on the floor.

"Why?" Anderson asked.

Nog, over the years, had become a fan of old detective books. Not the hologram versions, but the old paperback variety which were gifts from Vic Fontaine. While they were fictional accounts of murders and mayhem, they were actually written by actual detectives. His knowledge of crime scenes was also augmented when Mayor Sisko picked him to replace the last Constable, S'vath. Not wanting to let Sisko down, Nog spent many late night hours taking a crash course in forensic studies inside the holosuites at Quark's locally owned hotel/casino. It was a special holoprogram series, and was narrated by a noted criminal historian named Gil Grissom.

"Take a look at the tracks of the dried blood coming from her nose," Nog said.

"I just figured she hit her nose when she fell to the ground," Anderson said, as she kneeled down next to Nog.

Nog looked over at Anderson, who wore a loose fitting blouse. He so wanted to look down at her ample breasts, but was able to curtail the urge. Then he looked back down at the body, and pointed at the dry blood.

"Look how the trail of blood comes out, then it changes course, and then changes course again before trailing off the lower section on her chin," Nog explained. "The only way for that to have happened is if her face had changed direction; at least two times."

"Look again," Nog said. "The darkness of the blood," Quark stated.

"You're right," Anderson said, as she looked closer. "The lack of oxygen in the blood would mean that the change of course came after she was dead." Anderson smiled at Nog, slightly. "You're good at this," she told him softly.

Nog stood back up.

"The obvious conclusion is that after she was dead," Nog explained to Suzanne Anderson, "the killer adjusted her head twice."

"Then you think she was murdered," Anderson said with a whisper. "Who would want to kill this woman?"

"I know something of her past," Nog replied, "and it wasn't all pleasant. Can you perform an autopsy and get the results…" Nog was interrupted as Suzanne Anderson kneeled down again and looked at the back of Myran's head. "Nog, look at this," she said with a slight tone of urgency.

Nog kneeled back down.

"What do you see?" Nog asked.

"I hadn't seen this before, cause I wasn't looking closely, but look," Anderson said as she pointed at what appeared to be a scar. As Anderson adjusted the hair on the head, the scar could be seen tracking up to the mid section of Myran's head, then over to the other side, and ended at the bottom.

"What kind of scar is that?" Nog asked.

Anderson shook her head slightly.

"I don't know," she replied softly. "I should have more information after I do the autopsy. I'll the results to you as soon as I can."

Dr. Anderson pulled out a communicator and then moments later, she and Myran's body were beamed away.

Nog looked about the house for nearly another twenty minutes before heading back out. Kasidy, Sulu and Baybok came over to him.

"Why did she do it," Kasidy asked Nog. "Why would take her life like that and leave her kids alone like this; what was she thinking?" Kasidy demanded.

They all looked to Nog for an answer. They were his friends, and had been friends with Myran, so they had a right to know what he knew.

"Listen to me," Nog began to say. "Myran didn't kill herself."

The implication was clear!

"Then," Sulu said, as he came to the most obvious conclusion, "it had to be…."

"Murder…" Kasidy finished for Sulu, as she gasped.

**The planet Drobix:**

Rebecca, Lal and Curtis made their way through the heavily wooded area until they came to the clearing. Sure enough, there was a three-story wooden house. It was obvious that the settlers on this world, just as those on Timus, favored older ways, because the house looked as if it had been teleported into the future from late 19th or early 20th century.

"I'm not sure I want to go in that house," Rebecca said to Curtis and Lal. "For all we know, some of those things could be in there."

"There's a chance," Curtis said. "But, then again, we are three hours from where we crashed and we didn't see any more of them on the way here. I think it's worth a look. If we get in there, and it's safe, then we'll board up the windows and doors and hope we can holdout in there until help comes."

Rebecca looked to Lal.

"It does seem like a prudent course of action," Lal said to Rebecca. "The cold temperature will not affect my systems, but it can kill the two of you."

Rebecca thought for a moment. She had a bad feeling about the plan, but there was little more, if anything, they could do.

"Alright then," Rebecca finally said, "let's go."

And so the three Starfleet cadets made their way toward the old looking house, hoping to find safety and security within its doors. They made it to the front door.

"Are we sure we really want to go in here?" Rebecca asked again, and Curtis reached for the old style doorknob.

"As I said earlier," Curtis said back at Rebecca, "we have nowhere else to go."

And with that that, Curtis turned the knob and pushed the door open; and then they walked in.

Continued…House of Horrors!


	254. The House of Horror

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**The House of Horror**

**The planet Drobix…**

_Previously…_

_The three Starfleet cadets made their way toward the old looking two-story house, hoping to find safety and security within its doors. They made it to the front door._

"Are we sure we really want to go in here?" Rebecca asked again, and Curtis reached for the old style doorknob.

"As I said earlier," Curtis said back at Rebecca, "we have nowhere else to go."

And with that that, Curtis turned the knob and pushed the door open; and then they walked in.

_Our story continues…_

There were no lights on inside the house, so Lal activated the emergency light emitter on her standard Tricorder. The moment the light was activates, they what they saw next was a sight of pure horror. And knowing that Rebecca would scream at what they saw, almost with an act of reflex, Curtis reached over and covered Rebecca's mouth with his hand. The scream did come, but it was muffled. Curtis twisted Rebecca so that she was facing him.

"Shhhhh," he said, as he put his left index finger to his lips. "I know it's gruesome, but the last thing we need to do is alert anyone to our presence," he told her. "I'm not going to remove my hand from your mouth unless you promise me you won't scream."

Rebecca nodded.

Curtis slowly removed his hand. They both looked back down at what had caused Rebecca's fright; a dead body. And it was clear that it had been partially devoured. One arm had been totally cleared of flesh, only its bones remaining. There were also areas of its stomach area that had been gnawed through as well. The neck area had several chunks of flesh missing as well. The smell of the dead corpse was very putrid. But, it was also clear, it hadn't happened recently. Lal kneeled down to get a better look.

"What do you think?" Curtis asked Lal. "How long ago did this happen?"

Lal motioned to the stiff condition of the body's legs.

"The depletion of adenosine  
triphosphate in the muscle fibers of this female is causing the stiffness and the strange skin coloring," Lal explained. "I would speculate this happened between thirty-six and forty-eight standard hours ago."

"So that could mean that whatever did this to this woman has long since left this place," Curtis concluded.

"Or," Rebecca countered with, "it is still here; in this house with us."

Suddenly a thump came from above them; something or someone had just made a noise from the second level of the house.

"Why can you never find a good phaser when you really need one?" Curtis asked softly.

"I'd laugh at the statement," Rebecca said with a slight chuckle and somber tone to her voice, "if it wasn't true."

"I'll go up there," Curtis said to Rebecca and Lal.

"You can't go up there," Rebecca said to Curtis. "What if one of those things is up there?"

Curtis looked at Rebecca, and then put his hands on her shoulders.

"We can't go back outside," Curtis told her. "How cold is it out there now?" Curtis asked Lal.

Lal looked to Curtis.

"It is currently 2.2 Celsius outside," Lal replied. "And I predict it will get as low as -9 Celsius before the night is through."

"Which means," Curtis told Rebecca, "it's too cold out there; we could freeze to death. Now listen," he said, as he took his hands off her shoulders, "I will go up there and see what made that sound. If I find anything, I'll run down here and we'll get the hell out of here."

Rebecca nodded in agreement.

"A sound suggestion," Lal said quickly, "but perhaps I should go. It is obvious that these deranged humans are feeding off of other humans, which could even be infecting these new victims and causing them to become deranged as well. This would suggest some sort of ability to sense new victims, and since I am not organic, perhaps they will not be able to sense me."

"You mean smell you," Rebecca said. "I bet that's how they find new victims; through smell. Sometimes I envy you so much," Rebecca said with a smile.

"Alright," Curtis said to Lal. "Go ahead and see what's up there. In the meantime, Rebecca and I will look around down here; maybe we can find some food and water."

Rebecca and Curtis watched as Lal made her way to the stairs, toward the upper level. In order to save energy, the Tricorder had been powered down so the only light in the house was the moon's yellowish glow streaming through the windows.

* * *

The USS CRABTREE; retrofitted Oberth-class vessel…

Benjamin Sisko, upon hearing of the disappearance of the ship his daughter was on, had signaled a nearby starship; the USS CRABTREE, a science vessel. It had been studying an asteroid belt in a nearby solar system. The captain of the vessel, who Ben had known in his Academy days, agreed to ferry Sisko to the Naissance –sphere, a three day trip, to help search for his missing daughter, Rebecca, and the ship had been a passenger on.

Sisko was in his guest quarters aboard the Crabtree. Several star charts he had brought with him were strewn across the dining table. He looked at the maps, which were covered with his own scribble marks that contained all sorts of notes and numbers; his attempts at trying to figure out where the missing ship had gone. The course the missing vessel would have taken was the same course the Crabtree was taking now. He had come to the conclusion that there were eighteen inhabited worlds that the ship may have diverted course toward, had been some mechanical problem.

"But why haven't they sent out a signal?" Sisko asked himself, rhetorically.

He noticed that the USS Crabtree was on yellow alert status, and had been since he had beamed aboard. This was due to the reports of a Borg attack in Gorn space. Star Fleet protocol required all ships to maintain yellow alert status until further notice. Suddenly the monitor on the wall came to life, and the face of Captain David Fouts appeared. Fouts was a bearded man who had known Sisko since their Academy days.

"Ben," Fouts said, "we've got a signal coming in from Admiral Janeway for you, I'm piping it down to you now."

"Thanks David," Sisko said.

"Ben, don't worry; we'll find your daughter," Captain Fouts added.

Sisko smiled, and then the image of Fouts was replaced by the image of Admiral Kathryn Janeway.

"Hello Ben," Admiral Janeway said, "I'm sorry to say that there is still no sign of the transport vessel. The Emprenda is still out there looking, so don't give up hope."

"Kate, thank you for the effort," Ben Sisko replied. He motioned toward the maps on his desk. "Now, as best as I can tell, if the ship had mechanical problems, it may have diverted course to one of eighteen colony worlds between where we are, and where you are. I'd like to check them out."

"Ben," Janeway replied, "Star Fleet protocols are quite clear; science class vessels are ordered to return to the nearest Starbase until the threat of further Borg attacks has been determined no longer viable. I bent the rules to allow the Crabtree to head here, even though three other star bases were closer to Timus. Letting the Crabtree start a search for the missing transport vessel could be stretching it a bit."

Sisko nodded his head.

"I know, and I understand," Sisko replied.

"Besides," Janeway said, "the missing ship hasn't made any attempt to contact anyone nor have we received a signal from any nearby world that the ship was there. The moment it didn't arrive here at the Naissance, we sent an area wide com-alert to all the colony worlds on that map of yours. If the ship was there, they would have…" Janeway was interrupted by an ensign who handed her a data pad. Janeway studied it for a moment.

"What is it Kate?" Sisko asked.

"When we sent the alert out about the missing ship," Janeway explained, "I made it clear that I wanted a response from each of those colonies. All but two have responded; Hemet-12, which is a minimum security penal colony, and the planet Drobix, a farming colony."

"Two planets to investigate has far better odds than eighteen," Sisko prodded back with. "Kate; let us check them out at least. Once that is done, we'll give up the search until the Borg threat is over."

Admiral Janeway nodded, and then smiled.

"Alright Ben; I'll relay these orders to Captain Fouts; but I want us to be clear on this," she added. "Once you have ascertained the status of those worlds, and if you don't find the missing ship, I want you to come straight here to Naissance until the fleet wide yellow alert is rescinded."

Sisko smiled, and then the screen went dark.

"Computer," Sisko said aloud, "Show the essential data on the colony worlds of Hemet-12 and Drobix."

The monitor came back to life with new images of both worlds and then Sisko went about learning all he could about the two worlds. If his daughter was on either of those worlds, he wanted to know everything he could about the topographical data of each one.

Continued…


	255. Holiday Message

**They say to never jump outside a story to converse with the readers… I say to _hell_ with that…**

I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a wonderful holiday season, whatever that means to you. STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT will return soon with all new episodes full of adventure, fun..and horror! Here is a brief recap...

* * *

Star Trek: Shadow and Light started back in July of 2010. I wanted to find some way to bring the character of Captain Kirk back into the post-Nemesis Star Trek universe...so I came up with a "JUMP THE SHARK" theory.

What if, when Kirk and Chekov and Uhura were pulled to that crazy planet where they had to fignt in an arena, the signal was so powerful that it was split. One set of our heroes landed in the episode we saw, the other set landed in the future. Uhura and Chekov didn't survive the transfer, but Kirk did. He lived a quiet life, given a new alias by the Department of Temporal Investigations and..that was that. His existence was discovered when he risked his life to save Benjamin Sisko and his family, while visting Bajor.

Now, this Kirk that I just described is actually dead now, whatever dead means in Star Trek. He was abducted by Q and forced into the Nexus. The result was that this Kirk's physical essense was merged with the echo of Kirk that has been inside the Nexus since "Generations" and remained after Kirk left the Nexus with Picard.

* * *

Leonard McCoy is alive again...how? Well, in true JUMP THE SHARK fashion, I found another loop hole. When the Enterprise phased through the Tholian Web, who is to say that another Enterprise wasn't created and has been stuck outside the time continuum? Well, it did happen and that is where this new McCoy is from. He has lost his memories, but will soon get them back. But what about the rest of the crew stuck outside the timeline? And what about GARAK who has just arrived on that ship?

* * *

Ben Sisko's daughter, Rebecca, as well as her friend LaL, Data's daughter, are stuck on a planet populated by...oh yeah..ZOMBIES! What is happening there and how does it connect to Harrison Riker, a walking dead person himself.

* * *

The Borg are back and they have an idea who they want to be their next Queen...ANNIKA HANSEN!

* * *

With such goofiness abound, STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT is a fun story to write. My wife and kid have been with this story from the start, and roll their eyes sometimes at the strangeness of this story. From Kirk's return, to the return of the Doomsday Machine-Gary Mitchell-Trelane as well as now McCoy? Throw in a T-REX and a Dysonsphere and a Vuclan cannibal and you have sheer lunacy! Yeah!

There is a link at my profile which will take you to a "JPEG" of some of my more favorite covers to this story…I hope you enjoy…the second link will take you to a cover for this "special" message…

AND…don't forget to check out my new story…what if aliens on other worlds saw "STAR TREK"…could it cause an intergalactic war…yes! It is called "STAR TREK: THE REPLY"..don't miss it!


	256. Queen Me

**STAR TREK; SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**QUEEN ME (part one)**

**A sleek vessel made its way through space. It belonged to Fredric Thorn, who maintained a skeleton crew of twelve for the mere purpose of piloting the small sized vessel.**

Although she had been abducted from Deanna Troi's home on Earth a few days ago, Annika Hansen was no longer kept in confinement in her quarters; she was free to walk about the ship, no longer considered a captive.

The enigmatic Fredric Thorn walked along side Annika as they made their way down a corridor. He was the nephew of Lawrence Thorn. Lawrence was a wealthy man who spent most of his wealth accruing technology from all over the known galaxy, including technology obtained from illegal sellers such as the Breen. Lawrence later met his doom when he was devoured by a Tyrannosaurus-rex inside the Naissance Dyson-sphere (James T Kirk: Naissance).

"So let me get this straight," Annika said, "you have specific knowledge of the future, but you yourself have not been to the future. How can you explain that," she asked Fredric. There was a tone of doubt in her voice.

"As some one once said," Fredric explained, "the future is always in motion, but, there do seem to be certain events that will take more than a flapping of butterfly wings in China to change."

"Poetic, but not an answer," Annika said with sarcasm in her voice.

"Annika; why the tone of sarcasm in your voice," Fredric asked, with a smile, "you spent many years in the Borg collective, and then you were a crew member aboard Voyager for all those years; certainly you have seen you fair share of the unexplained."

"Fredric, as I told you earlier," Annika replied, "I suffered some sort of mental break down years ago when I lost my daughter and because of it, the memories of my time when I was part of the collective are lost to me. And the memories I made while part of Voyager are fuzzy, at best. That is why I don't understand why you have risked possible incarceration for abducting me."

"Which brings us back to your question; how did I know the Borg were going to attack," Fredric said as they arrived outside passageway. "Its time to answer you," he said, as he pressed a button on the door, which then swished opened. "Follow me," Fredric said.

Annika followed Fredric into what appeared to be some sort of a lab. There were various countertops with all sorts of equipment arranged on them. But there was no order, just devices here and there and wires arrayed about the equipment as if thrown about by children.

"This place is a mess," Annika said.

"You'll have to pardon my lack of any order," Fredric said sheepishly. "I have no idea what most of this stuff does, and my knowledge of science is limited, but I do know that some of it is quite unique and I have only begun to scratch the surface as what these things are and can do."

Annika looked closely at some of the items on the counter closest to where she was standing with Fredric. She felt her self suddenly compelled to look even more in detail, and so she walked over to the counter. She became quite interested in one item in particular; it was strangely familiar.

Although her memories of being aboard the Voyager were not readily accessible, there were times when familiarity with an object, or even an emotion, would bring back the vague haziness of a memory.

"This control panel," Annika said to Fredric, "I recognize the technology as being from a warrior race known as the Vaadwaur."

"Really," Fredric said with a slight chuckle, "I'll have to take your word for it. As I said, I have no idea what most this stuff is. But, over here," he said as he walked toward another countertop, "is one of the more interesting pieces of technology, and the one that gave me a glimpse of the future."

Annika followed Fredric over to yet another messy work station. Two optical units were next to an old style syringe.

"Now, to be honest, I've only used this device once," Fredric explained, as he picked the device up and handed it to Annika, "and it was four months ago. After putting the device on, and injecting myself with the Lysergic acid diethylamide in that needle, among other things, I saw a Borg cube attacking a planet inside of Gorn space."

"Lysergic acid diethylamide," Annika said with prying arch of her eyebrow, "until now I was starting to believe your fantastical story, but now I think you're just a lunatic. You do know that this the chemical compound in this syringe can bring about false concepts of reality."

"Please don't discount that which you do not know," Fredric said. "If you were to contact Star Fleet I am quite sure they will tell that I did come to them four months ago with knowledge of the Borg attack just a few days ago. And, as I told you earlier, that's not all that saw."

"Yes I know," Annika said, "you also said that you and I would be married in some near future. I can tell you, emphatically, that will never happen. None of your statements can be proven to be more than random predictions."

"What if I was to prove to you that this device works," Fredric offered, "would that make you less of skeptic?"

"What are you going to do; inject yourself with more of this psychedelic drug and have more delusional thoughts of the future?"

Fredric handed Annika the strange looking optical device.

"Actually, Annika, that's not what I had in mind," Fredric said. "The tea you were drinking earlier was laced with the drug, and very soon you will start feeling the effects. And once I think you're ready; I'm going to send your mind into…the future."

A worried look came over Annika Hansen's face and it was filtered through anger!

CONTINUED…


	257. Queen Me  part two

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Queen Me (part two)**

A massive Borg vessel approached Earth, and as it did, several hundred starships attacked the new and improved cube shaped construct which was twice as large as the cube which had attacked Earth two decades earlier. The attacking armada of starships was the final stand that Starfleet Command had mustered in what was increasingly becoming a lost cause. The armada was mainly comprised of Federation starships, but there were several dozen Klingon, Romulan and Cardassian vessels as well, with a few Gorn and Breen ships sprinkled in tool.

On the bridge of the USS Titan, Commodore Riker stood in the center of the bridge, observing the battle on the main viewing screen, and he was flanked by Ambassador Jean Luc-Picard on his left, and the legendary James T Kirk on his right.

Riker was in command of the massive fleet, with the flagship of the Federation, the USS Enterprise having, already been destroyed a day earlier in a failed attempt to stop the Borg cube. With all tactics failing, Riker gave a last desperate order to the entire fleet.

"This is Commodore Riker," Riker announced, "all ships attack at will. If we're going to go down; let's cause as much damage to that cube as we can!"

"I can't believe it all comes down to this," Picard said to his former first officer.

"Commodore, we could order every ship in the fleet to ram it," came from First Officer Wesley Crusher, who stood at the tactical station.

"It won't work Wes," Riker fired back, "the Enterprise and the 9th fleet tried that very tactic yesterday at Wolf 359," Riker continued. "Our best hope is to battle on until the very end."

But then came this…

"I have an idea…" a voice said.

Everyone on the bridge of the Titan focused their attention on the man who had said those four simple words; a man who had never faced the Borg before… a man named James Tiberius Kirk.

At that moment, on the Borg cube, thousands upon thousands of Borg drones prepared to be transported to the surface of Earth; ready to assimilate the entire population of the planet, and make them part of the Borg collective. From her observation port, which was located several hundred feet above the gathering throng of drones, a human female who was now the central mind of all Borg, in essence their queen, prepared to give the final order. If Earth were to fall, today, the rest of the galaxy would soon fall as well. The Federation was the most powerful force in this part of the galaxy, and with its defeat, the empires of the Klingons, Romulans, Gorn and all the others, would soon fall as well. The Borg conquest of the galaxy would be certain and order would finally be brought throughout the stars; resistance was futile. The female Borg's human name was once Annika Hansen. In the past, she had the Borg designation Seven of Nine. But now that she was the central mind of the Borg collective, she had a new designation; Omni-1. But another human was standing behind her. Omni-1 turned to face this other human, a man. She recognized him from her studies of Earth's history, but his name escaped her.

At that moment, Annika Hansen opened her eyes. She was no longer standing on an observation port above the preparing Borg invasion force; she was actually stretched out upon a simple bed, with an old style Intravenous rack next to her, which held a transparent medical pouch from which an IV line was attached to the median-cephalic vein of her left arm. She looked up and saw the enigmatic Fredric Thorn staring down at her with a broad smile.

"Welcome home sweetie; you were on a trip," Fredric said as he slowly removed the strange optical device from Annika's head.

"You had no right to do that to Me." Annika said with coldness in her voice.

"I know, and I am really sorry I had to do that," Fredric said, with a somber tone to his voice. "But it was the only way I could prove to you that this device, when augmented with the LSD, can see into the future."

"It doesn't prove that at all," Annika said, as she tried to sit up in the bed. But, the lingering effects of the drug left her still very weak, so she gave up the attempt. "That thing is nothing more," she said, pointing at the optical device in Fredric's hand, "than alien technology, coupled with psychedelic drugs. Everything that I saw was nothing more than just my own imagination enhanced."

"Well it is true that most of the strange gadgets in this lab are alien tech," Fredric said, "however, my uncle didn't buy this device from an alien civilization. It was actually built by a very eclectic scientist who worked for my father; the scientist's name is Walter Bishop. And as to whether or not all of this was in your mind; you need to see something."

Fredric helped Annika out of the bed, and then, holding her hand to as to help her keep her balance, Fredric brought Annika over to a chair that was situated next to a control consol.

"This is an advanced Star Fleet communications array," Annika said to Fredric. "And if I'm not mistaken, it is classified technology; how did you get this into your possession?"

"It is probably better you didn't know," Fredric replied.

He pointed at the view screen on the device which began showing images of the Borg ship attacking the Gorn birthing world. The size of the Borg cube was breath taking, and Annika's eyes did not hide that fact.

"Let me guess," Fredric said to her, "that's the one from your vision of the future."

Annika didn't answer his question, not wanting to dignify the conclusion it would lead to.

"There's more," Fredric said as he pushed a few buttons on the control planet, "This Federation communication array is being enhanced by technology my uncle obtained from the Breen," Fredric went on to say. "It is detecting a Borg signal that is being beamed throughout this part of the galaxy. The signal has a unique property to it that I believe is atoned to the specific brain patterns of particular person."

"Me," Annika said to Fredric.

"Yes," Fredric, "and once they find you; they are going to come for you. I believe they want you to be their Queen. It is the future that I saw, and I know from the expression on your face, it is the future you saw as well."

"In my vision," Annika explained, "I saw Commodore Riker and Ambassador Picard, as well as James T Kirk standing on the bridge of the USS Titan. Earth was about to be assimilated, and I was the Borg central mind with a new designation; Omni-1. But there was another human, a man, standing there with me. I can see his face in my mind but I cannot recall his name. He wasn't a Borg, he was still human."

"I believe I know who that person may have been," Fredric said. "I saw him in my vision as well."

He activated another screen and the face of a man appeared on the screen, and it was clear from Annika's reaction that it was the man from her vision. A man named Khan Noonien Singh.

Continued…


	258. Man in the Mind

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Man in the Mind**

**Starbase 185…**

**Medical center…**

Colt MaCahan opened his eyes, and was motionless as reality settled in around him; he was still stretched out in a med-bed. Dr. Wang was standing next to him, and was observing the life signs that were being displayed on a monitor above MaCahan's med-bed. MaCahan tilted his head to the left and saw that Spock was standing on the other side of him; the Vulcan's hands were no longer touching him…the mind-meld they had shared was over. James T Kirk was standing next to Spock as well, and they both looked down at the man who claimed to be Colt MaCahan but, who in reality, was a younger version of their friend Leonard McCoy.

"Spock; did it work?" Kirk asked his Vulcan friend.

"Jim," Spock said, "there are what you would call wisps of memories inside his mind," Spock replied. "However; the majority of his mind has partitioned itself behind what I could only call a barrier. I do not believe a mind-meld will be able to bridge to that part of his mind. It is almost as if he is an entirely different person."

"I've had enough of this," Colt MaCahan said as he looked at the two strangers who were looking down at him. "Now, if you would excuse me, I want to get the hell out of here."

Colt MaCahan swung his legs over and attempted to stand.

"Please, Mr. MaCahan," Dr. Wang said, with a slight Asian accent, "you must take it slow. The lasting effects of the mind-meld will eventually fade, but the dizziness will linger for a while."

Colt MaCahan fought through the dizziness and stood up out of the med-bed.

"If you don't mind doc," Macahan said, as he put the sunglasses on again over his eyes, "just give me some of those damned pain killers and let me outta' here."

"Bones…" Kirk began to say.

"Hey, don't call me that again," Colt MaCahan said back to Kirk, "I am not your friend; I don't even know who the hell any of you are. I went ahead and agreed to do this so as to prove that point, and according to the guy with the ears, I think I have."

"Sir," Spock said to MaCahan, "although I could not access the bulk of your memories, the medical exam performed by Dr. Wang, as well as my mind-meld are clear points of facts that you are indeed Leonard McCoy."

Macahan, do to his bad balance, nearly fell again but Kirk helped to steady him.

"And for whatever reason," Macahan fired back at Spock, "I am not that person anymore. So I will tell the two of you one more time; leave me alone or things between us are going to get ugly."

Kirk and Spock could only watch as their friend left the medical room, just as Doc Zimmerman, the holographic doctor who had been helpful with Spock's own medical problems earlier, entered.

"I suppose the mind-meld didn't work," Doc Zimmerman said.

"No; it did not, at least, not to the degree we had hoped for." Spock.

"As I told Mr. Tuvok countless of times aboard Voyager," Zimmerman said to Spock, "I know more about mind-melds than any Vulcan alive. I wish you would have included me on this little trek inside of McCoy's mind; I may have been able to offer my expertise on the subject. Tuvok learned to trust me, I hope one day, other Vulcans will too."

"I shall endeavor to be more open minded with you on the subject, since I know Tuvok well, I would go so far as to call him a friend," Spock said, "and since his return from the Delta-Quadrant, he has become a Vulcan master."

Doc Zimmerman smiled.

"I am quite sure that the months he and I spent going over the Vulcan disciplines helped him attain that goal," Zimmerman said, "even if he never actually thanked me for it. As for your friend, Leonard McCoy, I believe his memories are lost to him due to the effects of some, as of yet discovered, temporal flux."

"Yes," Spock nodded in agreement. "I have come to that conclusion as well. It is quite obvious that his being here is the effect of some sort of as of yet unexplained phenomenon."

"Then what do we do about McCoy now?" S'vath said; who had stayed quiet from where he was sitting on a chair on the other side of the room.

"I pulled a fast one on him," Kirk said with a smug smile for all to see. He looked at Spock, "I did to him what you did to me all those years ago on the night we were accused of assassinating Chancellor Gorkon."

Spock nodded, as he realized what Kirk had done.

"You have planted a homing device on him," Spock said.

Suddenly the door to the medical room opened and one of the nurses came in. She walked over to Kirk.

"This message just came in from Admiral Picard," the young nurse said, as she handed Kirk the data pad and left.

A somber look overcame Kirk's face.

"Jim: what is it?" S'vath asked Kirk.

"It's Myran," Kirk said softly, "she's been murdered on Timus."

At that moment, Ryan Tolbert entered the medical room. He walked over to Kirk.

"Is that information about your ex-wife?" Tolbert asked, seeing the somber expression on Kirk's face.

"Yes; how did you know?" Kirk asked.

"Apparently Admiral Picard has pretty high-up connections," Tolbert told Kirk, "he pulled strings and got me assigned to Timus to help in the investigation of Myran's murder."

"That seems kind of odd," S'vath said, "I'm sure, from what I know of him, that the new Constable on Timus, Nog, can handle the investigation."

"I'm sure he can," Tolbert said, "but none-the-less, I have my orders."

"Jim," Spock said to his friend, "Why don't you take Doctor Zimmerman back with you, and then you and agent Tolbert look into this situation on Timus. S'vath and I can pursue McCoy and see where it leads."

"On one condition," Doc Zimmerman cut in and said to Spock, "you are to use that walking cain at all times and I don't want you over doing it. I didn't come all this way to save your life only to see you throw it away on some wild goose chase."

"Those are actually two conditions," Spock said to Zimmerman, who then looked annoyed.

"Alright," Kirk finally said. "But I want you to keep me posted."

"Jim," S'vath said to Kirk, "tell Amanda that I will return to Timus once this mission with my father is completed."

"I will indeed, and I want the both of you," Kirk said to Spock and S'vath, "to take it easy. Somehow I have the strangest feeling that whatever is going on with McCoy, it will definitely have some unexpected twists and turns."

And with that, Kirk, Ryan Tolbert and Doctor Zimmerman left the medical room. Moments later, S'vath and Spock did as well.

Kirk, Tolbert and Doc Zimmerman departed Starbast 185 via Quark's personal transport vessel, on their way back to Timus. Spock and S'vath went about trying to find a form of transportation so as to continue their investigation as to where Leonard McCoy had come from, and, where he was going now.

As for Colt MaCahan? He departed Star base 185 via his space-bike..and very soon he would find danger of his own!...

_Continued...Next time; Benjamin Sisko tries desperately to find his daughter Rebecca, who is trapped in a house of the living dead! Meanwhile, Admiral Janeway is visited by a mysterious Romulan with an interesting connection to Voyager!_


	259. How To Serve Man

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**How to Serve Man**

**The USS CRABTREE entered orbit of the planet Drobix…**

Ben Sisko had gotten very little sleep in the past two days. Captain Dan Fouts had been kind enough to transfer search equipment to Sisko's room so that the former Star Fleet captain could over see the search for his missing daughter, as well as the rest of the passengers aboard the missing transport vessel. Several control panels had been brought to Sisko's quarter, and each of them was tied into the science vessel's advanced sensors.

The past two days had been spent in a nearby star system where colony world Hemet-12 was located. After an extensive search, the conclusion had been made that the transport vessel had not entered that star system, thus the search was switched to the star system in which the colony world of Drobix was located. Ben Sisko knew that Drobix was his last chance to find his daughter. Admiral Kathryn Janeway, from her official post at the Naissance Dyson-sphere, had been kind enough to let the USS Crabtree continue its search for the missing transport vessel, even though the entire Star Fleet was under yellow alert status due to recent Borg activity in the Gorn Empire. The crew of the Crabtree knew full well that they would be no match against a Borg cube vessel which was said to be twice as large as the one which had attacked Earth years earlier. But even with that threat, the crew all decided to risk their lives to help the legendary former commander of Deep Space Nine find his daughter.

There was chime at Sisko's door.

"Come in," Sisko said, as he walked over to the small kitchen area and poured himself a hot mug of steaming coffee.

The door to Sisko's quarters slid open and Captain Dan Fouts entered.

"Let me guess Dan," Sisko said first, "Admiral Janeway has just reminded you that this is our last stop in our search for Rebecca and the others."

"I'm sorry Ben," Captain Fouts said as he accepted a second mug of coffee from his good friend, Ben Sisko. "That woman is a punctual as a Tholian. My yeoman had just awakened me when Janeway's call came through. She's given us eight hours to search this planet, and not one second more."

"The fleet wide yellow alert is still in play I take it," Sisko said, as he sipped his coffee.

"Yes, exactly," Fouts said. "There hasn't been any sign of the Borg since their attack in Gorn space, but I think the sheer size of that cube is what has Star Fleet up in arms. And I'm sorry to say," Fouts added, "but I would feel better about my crew's safety if we were safely inside the Naissance."

Sisko thought back to the time he had spent inside the Naissance Dysonsphere; just trying to stay alive.

"Safely in the Naissance," Sisko repeated with a slight chuckle. "It certainly didn't feel that safe when I was trapped inside there with James Kirk and Spock, fending off dinosaurs and omnipotent beings." Then he sighed. "But I understand your worry. Alert your search crews; we'll get started right away."

Fouts placed a hand on Sisko's shoulder.

"We'll find her," Fouts said with a firm sound to his voice.

Sisko nodded and then Fouts turned and exited the way he had entered moments earlier.

Sisko took one last sip of his coffee and went over to the array of control panels and prepared to search for his daughter.

He looked at the general map of the settlement on the planet below. As Janeway had reported, the Naissance had not been able to contact either Drobix or Hemet-12. In Hemet-12's case, it was due to a passing ion storm which left that system without any way of contacting the Naissance or Star Fleet. The settlement had a cluster of buildings where colonist could get food, and the center of the settlement was where the local government offices were situated as well.

As Sisko sat down and looked at the map, he listened to the communication traffic from the bridge as Fouts and his crew was unable to make contact with the surface below. Finally Fouts decided to deploy an away team to investigate the main area of the settlement. The citizens of Drobix, of which there were just over a couple thousand or so, were mainly farmers and miner. In fact, the simplicity of the colony's existence was similar to that of Timus.

* * *

**Drobix…an old style house, built by the colonist, and now a hiding place for Rebecca and her friends…**

Rebecca Sisko opened her eyes. Morning was coming to this part of Drobix yet again. For the past two days and nights, all had been calm. She, as well as Curtis Daystrom and LaL, had moved to the upstairs area of the house. Food items from the storage areas in the kitchen had been brought up, after being scanned to insure that the food items were safe to eat. Then, with LaL's strength, and Curtis's expert use of an old style hammer, the upstairs doors were all removed and hammered into the walls of the stairway, insuring that nothing from below could get up stairs. It also meant that they were stranded on the upper level as well.

LaL, who had stood watch as her two human companions slept, smiled at Rebecca.

"Was it quiet over night?" Rebecca asked, as she looked over and saw that Curtis Daystrom was still sleeping.

"Very much so," LaL replied. "I did see several flying animals, and what appeared to be a coyote, run across the field below, near the trees."

"The settlers probably brought Earth animals with them, just to make it feel like home. Then again; even on Earth, I'm not sure there are too many Coyotes running around."

"You'd be surprised," Curtis said from where he was laying down.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to wake you," Rebecca said to him.

"I was nearly awake. And as for what you were saying," Curtis said, as he sat up, "my uncle owns a house in the mountains of Southern California. When I stay there, in the summer, you can hear coyotes howling at the moon at night."

Rebecca was listening, but then she saw the look on LaL's face. Curtis saw it at well; and stopped talking.

"What is it?" Rebecca asked LaL.

LaL pointed, and then the three of them peaked out through the drapes of the window, down at the field below, which was ringed by trees of the nearby forest. One of the deranged looking humans emerged from the forest, and then another, and then another.

"Oh no," Rebecca said. "Can our barricade of doors stop them?"

"I think so," Curtis said. "They don't look that strong, but then again, you never know."

And then several more emerged from the forest, and then several more.

"I count seventeen of the deranged humans," LaL said. "And it appears they are all heading toward this structure."

"Shit," Daystrom said, "hold on."

Daystrom quickly ran to the other side of the upstairs area and looked out the window of the other room. Another group of the deranged humans was closing in on the house from that side as well. He ran back to where LaL and Rebecca were.

"What is it?" Rebecca asked Curtis Daystrom.

"We're surrounded," Curtis said, with worry in his voice. "I'm not sure those doors are going to stop them all."

* * *

**The USS Crabtree…in orbit of Drobix…**

Captain Dan Fouts and Benjamin Sisko rushed into the Transporter Room. The carnage they saw was repulsive. The earlier landing party had come under attack by what they described as a throng of deranged flesh eating humans. The landing party was beamed back up, but not before two of them had been killed by two of the deranged settlers, which had managed to bite of large chunks of their victims necks and arms before they had been beamed away. One of the deranged humans, a female, had been beamed up in the melee, and was kept alive behind a stasis field which encased the transporter pad. It was all Fouts and the others could do as to watch the deranged human feed on the remains of the two dead Crabtree crewmembers.

Dr. Nethorin, the Crabtree's chief medical officer, a green skinned Orion female, scanned the human with a Tricorder as the two others who had been beamed up were taken to sickbay.

"What the hell are you doing," Fouts barked at Nethorin. "Kill the damn thing."

"Sir," Nethorin said, "it appears as if most of the colonists have become these things, as least, that's what the landing party just reported. They saw dozens of them down there. If it is some sort of virus or disease, I need to examine one of them."

"What about that," Sisko said to Nethorin, as he watched the ghoulish human eating the remains of one of the landing party, "are we all at risk from beaming that thing up? What if it's an airborne virus?"

"I've already ruled that out," Nethorin replied. "It appears the only way one can become deranged like this one is if they are bitten by someone who is already deranged."

And almost as if on cue, Fouts, Sisko and Dr. Nethorin watched as one of the dead Star Fleet officers, a black human male, opened his eyes and sat up. Even though a chunk of his neck was gone, the Star Fleet officer was able to stand; the same deranged look on his face. And then, the black officer squatted back down and began to eat his fallen comrade.

"To hell with your examination," Fouts said to Nethorin.

Fouts pressed a button on the transporter pad and watched as the ghouls were beamed away into the coldness of space.

"My daughter could be down there," Sisko said softly.

"We don't know that for sure," Captain Fouts said to Sisko.

"Captain," a man's voice said from the ship wide communication channel, "This is Lt. Dawson on the bridge. We have found something. I am transferring the data to the Transporter's monitor."

"Very well," Fouts said.

The viewing screen on the Transporter Machine came to life, and showed the burnt wreckage of what appeared to be a space craft.

"Sir," Dawson's voice continued to say, "We have positively identified it as the missing transport vessel."

A look of stone cold came over Sisko as the obvious conclusion was made by all.

"No…" Sisko said softly…

Continued…


	260. Just a Moment

Quick story recaps…who are these versions of Kirk-Spock-McCoy…and who are the Sihg? Since this story is quite long now (370,000 words) I been getting emails asking me who these people are…so…here is what we know…

Leonard McCoy/Colt MaCahan…what is going on here? The USS ENTERPRISE was duplicated when it escaped the Tholian Web all those years ago. The duplicated Enterprise is stuck outside the Space-time Continuum. In fact, that is where Garak is. He is on that Enterprise, and was sent there by a secret Federation agency. The crew of the Enterprise has not aged; and is stuck in subspace bubble. Note that Kirk is not there (he was still in the space suit floating between the Defiant and Enterprise)…

In an earlier chapter, the Leonard McCoy of that trapped Enterprise came in contact with an energy particle charged with Quantum particles. He was immediately brought back into the normal universe, but without access to his memories. Two Ferengi found him on a desert planet, and Leonard McCoy became a space pirate, like his two Ferengi saviors. He now thinks he is some sort of bad-ass, and flies around on a space-bike (think of LOBO (DC COMICs) and you'll get meaning.) The moment McCoy vanished from that Enterprise, Garak appeared…more on that to come soon…

SPOCK…There are currently two Spocks in this story. One is the Spock who was on Romulas. He is the "old" version, the one we've always known. The other Spock is the one on the Enterprise I mentioned earlier, the Enterprise that is stuck in sub-space bubble outside the space-time continuum. We haven't seen much of him; but he is there.

James T Kirk…explaining him will take a bit…so…here we go. The Jim Kirk we met at the beginning of this story was a transporter duplicate. The episode where Kirk/Uhura/Chekov were all transported to a world where they had to fight in an arena setting for the "brains" that gambled on the outcome of the contests? I am saying that when they were abducted from the Enterprise, the signal was so powerful it created a split. One set of our heroes ended up in the episode mentioned a moment ago. The other set ended up in the future; five years after NEMESIS. Kirk was the only one who lived, and lived secretly on the planet Timus. Eventually this Kirk was forced into the NEXUS and his physical body was absorbed the echo of the "kirk" who had been there since the accident on the Enterprise-B. So, in essence, the Kirk who was with us at the start of this story has ceased to exist and has been replaced by the Kirk from the Nexus.

The Sihg

An occasional plot point in this story is called the Sihg. We know that Q has empowered the essences of Sarek-Jonathan Archer-Kmpec and Khan Noonien Singh (and Harrison Riker). They see themselves as a "star chamber" group. Meaning they see themselves as judge and jury in the galaxy, acting without permission of the Q. But we have seen a few episodes where it appears as if Khan is acting with duplicity. And with Annika's recent vision (a future where she is a Borg queen about to destroy Earth, with Khan by her side) may be a glimpse of Khan's goal; the destruction of Earth.


	261. Beyond the Fog

_**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**_

_**Beyond the Fog**_

_LaL pointed out the window, and then she, Rebecca and Curtis peaked out through the drapes of the window, down at the field below, which was ringed by trees of the nearby forest. One of the deranged looking humans emerged from the forest, and then another, and then another._

_"Oh no," Rebecca said. "Can our barricade of doors stop them?"_

_"I think so," Curtis said. "They don't look that strong, but then again, you never know."_

_And then several more emerged from the forest, and then several more._

_"I count seventeen of the deranged humans," LaL said. "And it appears they are all heading toward this structure."_

_"Shit," Daystrom said, "hold on."_

_Daystrom quickly ran to the other side of the upstairs area and looked out the window of the other room. Another group of the deranged humans was closing in on the house from that side as well. He ran back to where LaL and Rebecca were._

_"What is it?" Rebecca asked Curtis Daystrom._

_"We're surrounded," Curtis said, with worry in his voice. "I'm not sure those doors are going to stop them all."_

_Our story continues…_

Rebecca, LaL and Curtis waited in silence as they could hear the crazed humans smashing their way through the lower section of the house. Rebecca and Curtis both knew that LaL could easily escape the situation, if she had wanted too, due to her being just an android. But LaL had elected to stay. But even with her augmented android strength, even LaL would not last long against an army of the crazed humans.

Curtis sat back against the wall, and Rebecca leaned up against him. They knew that if death came, it would be gruesome. And over the past couple days, while on the run, their relationship had become more than friends; they were falling in love. Rebecca closed her eyes as Curtis's strong arms pressed her closer to him. But they both knew that the circumstances they were facing would not allow them time to find much more.

"I wish we had a phaser," Rebecca said quietly. "I'd rather take my own life than to die the way we will surely die."

Rebecca saw the look of disappointment in LaL's eyes.

"Maybe you could end our lives for us; when the time comes." Rebecca said to her friend.

"Are you asking me to kill you if those things make their way up here?" LaL asked.

"It's something to consider," Curtis regrettably said.

Before Rebecca could answer, there was a smashing sound, and it came from the stairwell outside the bedroom they were in. The growing sound of the moaning crazed humans became louder. Rebecca and Curtis both stood up, deciding to face their shared future on their feet.

"They've gotten through the barrier," Curtis said, with a somber tone in his voice.

"Maybe we could go out the window," Rebecca suggested.

They both looked out the window and saw dozens upon dozens of crazed humans down below.

"It wouldn't matter," Curtis said. "They're all around the house down there."

And then they saw the first crazed human, as it, a male, made its way to up the top of the stairs. LaL went over to the bedroom door and closed it immediately. She twisted the knob that latched the lock, just as the crazed human began to pound on the door. But the pounding became more pronounced as more of the crazed humans joined in on the other side of the door. The living human scent was attracting the crazed humans. They wanted to eat flesh of the living!

And then it happened. The door to the room caved in, and several blood thirsty crazed humans came bounding in. LaL grabbed the first one and threw it through the window. Two other ghouls came toward Rebecca and Curtis; with four more ghouls were behind them. Curtis shoved Rebecca with all his might, just as the ghouls grabbed him and pulled him to the ground. Rebecca screamed as she watched one of the ghouls smash Curtis's face with a boulder, crushing his skull, and then she watched in shock as the ghouls squatted down and began to devour bloody brain matter from the fractures in Curtis's skull. The moans coming from the ghouls were becoming louder and louder. The smell of death invaded Rebecca's sense of smell.

Rebecca turned in disgust, and saw that LaL was doing her best to counter attack the six or seven ghouls that were attacking her. It was all Rebecca could do, as she pressed against the wall as more ghouls flooded into the room and came for her. She slid down the wall and fainted. As she closed her eyes, she felt dizzy. And then she heard her father's voice!

* * *

**USS CRABTREE..in orbit of Drobix**

"Rebecca," Ben Sisko said, as he knelt down next to his daughter, who was sprawled out on the Transporter pad. "You're safe now; you can open your eyes."

Rebecca Sisko opened her eyes and saw her father looking down at her. She began to sob as her father reached down and hugged her.

"We've got to go back and get Curtis," Rebecca screamed, as she noticed that LaL had been transported away from the horrific scene as well.

"We can't," Ben Sisko told his daughter.

"WE HAVE TO!" Rebecca screamed, "WE CAN'T LEAVE HIM THERE!"

"Rebecca," Ben said, as he held her tight to his chest, "it's too late for him."

Captain Dan Fouts, LaL, and Dr. Nethorin, could only watch as Ben Sisko tried to comfort his daughter. Fouts was a father of two, and could understand the pain a parent went through when a child of theirs had nearly been killed.

Meanwhile, it was clear to all that something had gone terribly wrong on the planet surface of Drobix, and that Star Fleet would have to quarantine the planet. Nethorin's scans or Rebecca, LaL, and the two USS Crabtree crewmembers who had survived the attack on the planet below, were negative. With nothing more to accomplish, for now, the USS Crabtree left orbit, and headed for the Naissance Dysonsphere.

* * *

On the planet below, a lone figure was standing in the forest and watched as the throng of deranged flesh eating humans slowly made their way out of the farm house that Rebecca and LaL had been rescued from only moments before. Harrison Riker was his name, and he made his way toward the house. The deranged humans saw him, but did not attack him, because to their instinct driven minds, he was already dead.

So why had the Sihg brought him to this world of all worlds? Was this his penance for being immortal? He had wanted to help Rebecca, LaL and Curtis survive the carnage, but what would have happened to him had he been discovered? By now it was accepted that he had been killed during the attack on Ben Sisko by the Cardassian assassin back on Timus. His reappearance would only create more questions, questions he was unprepared to answer.

As he neared the house, however, he suddenly saw an interesting sight. An energy pattern could be seen exiting the window on the second floor, the room in which Rebecca and the others had made their final stand. The energy pattern condensed into a single beam and then shot out into the sky; and into space. What had it been? Was it the reason he had been sent to Drobix?

"Yes, it was," a voice said from behind Harrison Riker.

Harrison turned to see Jonathan Archer and Q.

"Why did you bring me here?" Harrison asked them both, with anger in his voice.

"Don't be so petulant, you young whipper-snapper," Q said. "You know your role, so I suggest you stay to it."

"Harrison; we had to see for ourselves," Jonathan Archer said to Harrison Riker. "You're the only one of us who we thought could go un-noticed on this world; and we were right. Through your eyes, we saw that energy pattern as well."

"What was it?" Harrison asked Q.

"I don't know; yet," Q said. "There have been whispers throughout the Continuum about such an energy pattern, though this is the first time it has actually been seen."

"Well, I'm glad I could help," Harrison said, "but what do I do now? I can't go back to Timus and be with Myran now; they all saw me die during the attack on Ben Sisko. And the Cardassian, Garak, saw me climb out of that grave on the Cardassian prison planet."

"Myran is dead," Archer said, with a somber tone to his voice.

"She's dead; how?" Harrison asked.

"It is a trivial matter that does not concern you," Q replied, cutting of Archer. "And as for your resurrection; I still have use of you, so don't worry, you won't be getting unemployment benefits anytime soon."

"I love her," Harrison Riker stated with anger.

"And so did Jim Kirk," Q countered with.

"But not the Jim Kirk who lives now," Harrison said back at Q. "The one that came out of the Nexus did not have feelings for her."

"Oh come on; this is a waste of time," Q said with disgust in his voice. "We've got more important matters to attend to."

And then Q waved his hand, and the three of them disappeared. What they didn't see, nor could they sense, was that they were being observed by someone who was standing in the second floor of the farm house. The man looked down at the remains of Curtis Daystrom, and then looked back out the window as where Q, Jonathan Archer and Harrison Riker had been standing.

"You are all fools," Khan Noonien Singh said, with a sinister smile. "You think you can play gods and decide who lives and who dies. No…not this time."

And then there was a flash of light, and Khan disappeared.

* * *

**The Naissance Dysonsphere**

Twelve hours later the USS Crabtree passed through the opening of the Naissance Dysonsphere, and soon took up a stationary orbit position above the Federation science complex, which was located on the fourth continent closest to the entrance. Ben Sisko, his daughter Rebecca, and LaL stood on the Crabtree's transporter pad. Rebecca Sisko was still visibly upset from the events earlier in the day. Captain Dan Fouts stood next to the transporter machine, as one of his ensigns prepared to beam Ben Sisko and the others down to the complex.

"Take care, Ben," Captain Fouts said.

"Thank you Dan," Ben said with a smile. "I owe you one."

Captain Fouts nodded, and then Ben Sisko and the others were beamed away.

Admiral Janeway smiled as Ben Sisko, Rebecca and LaL materialized in the Federation Science Complex. Rebecca's eyes lit up when she saw that her mother, Kasidy, was standing next to Admiral Janeway. Rebecca ran to her mom's opened arms.

"I thought I would surprise the two of you by having your wife brought here the moment I heard that Rebecca had been found," Janeway said to Ben Sisko. "The Emprenda was near Timus, so I had it divert there to pick her up."

"Thank you for giving us the extra time to continue our search," Ben Sisko said to his good friend Kate Janeway.

Janeway turned her attention to LaL.

"Welcome aboard, Ensign LaL," Janeway said with a pleasant smile.

"It is pleasant to see you Admiral Janeway," LaL said, "I am ready to take my post."

"No, not now," Janeway said to LaL, who was the daughter of the late Commander Data. "You and Rebecca have been through a lot, again, and I think the two of you should take a few days to decompress."

Rebecca looked over at Admiral Janeway.

"Admiral," Rebecca said, "I'm really alright. I think I'd like to get my mind of everything by getting to work."

"No way," Kasidy cut in with a wide smile, "They have some clothing stores at the promenade at this in the main complex, and you and I, and LaL, are all going to go shopping."

"Rebecca; your mother's quite right," Janeway said with a smile. "You are to have fun for the next few days, Ensigns LaL and Rebecca, and that is an order."

"Ben, are you coming?" Kasidy asked her husband, as she, Rebecca and LaL prepared to leave the transporter room.

"Actually," Admiral Janeway said to Kasidy, "I need to discuss some issues with your husband."

"Alright," Kasidy replied, "but I expect you to meet up with us for lunch later on."

And with that, Kasidy, LaL and Rebecca left the transporter room.

Admiral Janeway looked at Ben Sisko.

"I won't even try to fathom the terror your daughter went through on that planet," Janeway said, she and Ben left the transporter room as well, and walked down a corridor. "It must have been awful though. But, perhaps as she gets beyond the fog of what happened, she will heal. She is a Sisko, and I would be surprised if she didn't."

"She told me everything," Ben said to Janeway. "I only wish we had arrived earlier so that we could have saved Ensign Daystrom. From what she told me, that young man did his best to protect her."

"It is ironic you should say that," Admiral Janeway said, as the two of them stepped inside of a turbo-lift. "Deck twelve," she said to the computer, and then the turbo-lift zoomed into motion.

"I don't understand," Sisko said.

"Ben, I don't mean to sound doubtful," Janeway began to say, "but I know that I can count on Ensign LaL to obey orders and not reveal top secret information."

"If you're talking about what happened on that planet," Ben said to Janeway, "you should have probably told them not to mention it when they were in the transporter room."

"That is not what I am talking about," Janeway said back to Ben Sisko. "The events on that world, what they saw and what they had to go through to survive, have become common knowledge in the past twelve hours since you left that world. In fact, as soon as the fleet wide yellow alert is lifted, Star Fleet will no doubt send a science team to Drobix to find out what happened."

The Turbo-lift doors opened and Janeway and Sisko exited. They made their way down a corridor, and as they did, Sisko could tell that the level they were on was classified, due to the fact that Janeway had to enter a special code on the Turbo-lifts panel to even open the door.

"Kate, what is this level," Sisko asked. "And does this have anything to do with your doubts about my daughter keeping top secret information under wraps?"

"Yes it does," Janeway said. "Follow me,"

The two friends entered one of the compartments on the secured level. She escorted Sisko through what was obviously a laboratory of some kind, and then they entered a room. In the room was a med-bed, and on the med-bed was a person. Janeway walked over to the med-bed, with Sisko by her side. She looked down at the person, who was apparently sleeping.

"Who is this young man?" Ben Sisko asked, as he looked at the person on the med-bed.

"His name," Admiral Janeway said, as she looked over at Ben Sisko, "is Curtis Daystrom."

An incredulous look came over Sisko's face.

* * *

A small craft made its way toward the Naissance Dysonsphere. There were two passengers aboard the vessel, and they were both sitting at the controls of the vessel. A hailing signal was sent by the Naissance Sphere and then the image of a Star Fleet officer came into view.

"This is the Federation outpost, designation Naissance," the human Star Fleet officer said. "You have entered a restricted area. Entrance inside the Naissance cannot be allowed without proper authentication."

"Yes, I know. I am well aware of your Star Fleet protocols, as silly as some of them are," one of the passengers, a Talaxian, replied. "However, my name is Neelix. I am a friend of Admiral Kathryn Janeway, and I have urgent information for her."

"Please wait at your current position," the officer replied. The screen went dark.

"Do you think she will see us?" The other passenger, a young Romulan female named Shian, asked Neelix.

"I believe so," Neelix replied. "I have not seen her in many years, but I think the Admiral will let us in. I just hope all of this is worth the effort."

"It is, I assure you," Shian said to Neelix. "My father went through great lengths to conceal this information for your friend, Admiral Janeway. Only she will know what to do with it."

Several minutes went by, but permission finally came through and Neelix's small craft was allowed to enter the Naissance.

Continued…


	262. Outside the Box

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Outside the Box**

**The Planet Timus…**

Jim Kirk stared down at the lifeless body of the woman named Myran. She had been the wife of the Jim Kirk who had been brought into the future nearly five years earlier, and whose body he now possessed.* Even though Jim Kirk had not loved the woman, he had promised to care for the children that both she and the other Kirk had procreated if anything had ever happened to her, which it obviously had; she was dead, in fact, she had been murdered. He turned to face Constable Nog, the chief law enforcement officer of the town of Summit Grove. Standing next to Constable Nog was a woman whom Kirk had grown fond of recently; Dr. Suzanne "Pepper" Anderson.

"What happened," Kirk asked softly.

As Kirk spoke with Nog and Dr. Anderson, Special Agent Ryan Tolbert and Doc Zimmerman (Voyager's doctor) examined the corpse.

"What do you think?" Tolbert asked Zimmerman.

"Look at these markings," Zimmerman replied, "it is clear that the weapon actually expanded inside after it was thrust into her lower abdomen."

"So when it came out…" Tolbert began to say.

"…it did even more damage," Doc concluded for him.

As the Doc and Agent Tolbert continued to examine the body, Kirk listened to Nog and Anderson.

"When the first responders came upon the scene," Nog explained, "they found the two children in their crib unharmed."

"As you telling me they saw their dead mother in a pool of blood on the floor?" Kirk asked, with anger in his voice.

"Yes," Dr. Suzanne Anderson replied. "Being at such young ages, I don't think they were mentally scarred."

Doc Zimmerman, who was listening, spoke up.

"Or it's quite possible," Doc said," especially for the older one, the boy Mathew, that there could be some sort of mental trauma. I suggest he be watched closely, just to make sure."

"I agree," Dr. Anderson said. "Again, we won't really know for several months; or maybe even years. We can't be sure as to not only what they saw, and how it will affect them,…"

"But what they heard," Kirk complete Dr. Anderson's conclusion.

Jim Kirk turned and faced Nog.

"Why," Kirk said to the young Ferengi man. "I know that Myran had a questionable past, but who would go through the trouble of murdering her in such a way, and yet leave the children unharmed? Even in the 23rd century, where I'm from, these kinds of murders scenes were very rare."

"Jim," Ryan Tolbert said, before Nog could reply, "it may seem as if humanity is less violent than we were centuries ago, even a hundred years ago, but my wife and daughter were killed in such a matter only a few short years ago."

"Yes," Doc Zimmerman said, "you humans and your violent tendencies. I saw all of them manifested during my time on Voyager."

Nog cut in.

"If you're asking me if I have a suspect in mind," Nog finally replied, "then the answer is no. Now, as you said a moment ago, she did have a checkered past, and I have sent a request to the Federation for her complete records, or at least, any information they have on her. As for suspects, after we found her body, I implemented security scans for all visitors, coming and going. Its the best I can do for now."

"Perhaps the murderer left the planet before you started your scans," Dr. Anderson said to Nog. "That Cardassian assassin who killed Mavis and abducted Mathew was surely able to get off the planet, why couldn't a murderer."

"Jim," Ryan Tolbert said, "can I have a word with you in private?"

Kirk nodded his head, and then the two of them walked over to a secluded area of the medical lab, while the others continued to converse about the murder.

"I want to contact someone, to help with this situation," Ryan told his friend. "But I must warn you; his methods are a bit, well, out there on the _FRINGE_ area of rational thought and theories."

"What do you mean by that?" Kirk asked Tolbert.

"I have used him on a couple of occasions to solve cases I was working on," Ryan Tolbert went on to say, "He is eclectic, and that's putting it mildly, but if Myran died suddenly, as it appeared she did, the man I am talking about might be able extract her final memories of her life."

Kirk thought for a moment.

"Alright," Kirk said. "She may not have been my wife, but I owe to her, being that I replace than man she loved, to find out who did this to her. Where can we find this man you are talking about?"

"Well, that's the tricky part," Ryan Tolbert said. "He resides at the Tantalus Penal Colony."

"Tantalus," Kirk asked.

"You've been there before?" Ryan asked back.

"Oh yes," Kirk said as he thought back to the last time he had been there, "I've been there. Is this man a doctor there?"

"No," Ryan replied, and then he smiled, "he's a patient. His name is Walter Bishop, and he might very well be either the brightest man ever to live, or the craziest man ever to live."

Kirk cocked an eye brow, very much in the same manner Spock would have.

"Which do you side with?" Kirk then asked.

Ryan Tolbert did not answer the question.

Doc Zimmerman, who had listened in, came over to where Kirk and Tolbert were standing.

"Excuse me Agent Tolbert," Doc said, "but I think you are purposely leaving out the fact that Dr. Bishop is incarcerated at that penal colony due to his ethics, including experiments on children."

Kirk looked at Tolbert.

"Is he right?" Kirk asked.

"Look, Jim," Ryan Tolbert said after a pause, "he is there for questionable reasons. But the fact is, he could help us solve Myran's murder, and that is what we are talking about, aren't we?"

"If you go to Tantalus to see this man," Doc Zimmerman said, "then I'm going with you. And if you are worried, I assure you that you have no need to be; Admiral Janeway was nice enough to send my advanced emitter over here to Timus, so I no longer need to travel inside Moriarty's cage."

"Why would you come?" Kirk asked.

"Because I consider you a friend," Doc Zimmerman said, "and I want to help."

"Very well," Kirk said.

"I will keep her body in a stasis field over at the hospital until you return," Dr. Anderson.

"Nog," Kirk said, "you have to keep Myran's body secure until we get back. And none of us," he said to others, "should discuss with anyone anywhere what we are doing. If that murderer didn't get off this planet, and gets wind of this wild goose chase, who knows what kind of problems come."

"You can count on me," Nog said. "I will see to it."

"What about the children," Kirk asked Dr. Anderson. "Wasn't it you who told me earlier that Ben and Kasidy were off world due to some incident with Rebecca?"

"That is right," Dr. Suzanne Anderson said. "But don't worry, your friend Sulu and his companion Baybok are watching after them. But Jim," she added, "what are you going to do with those children. I know they technically are not yours, but what will happen with them in the long run?"

Kirk thought for a moment.

"Once this situation is settled with Myran, I'll come up with something," Kirk said. "Dahme was nearly killed by that madman who kidnapped Mathew. And from what S'vath told me, Mathew may one day grow up and be an omnipotent being that existed fifty-thousand years ago," ** Kirk said with a smile. "I will see to their care."

An hour later, Jim Kirk and Ryan Tolbert left Quark's hotel/casino. Kirk had gone there to thank Quark for letting them use his transport vessel. Tolbert and Kirk would now be leaving Timus in Tolbert's private vessel which had been parked inside the space-station in orbit of Timus sometime back.

Soon, Kirk and Tolbert were at the visitor center waiting for the next transport vessel which would take them to the space station.

"What about this Borg threat I keep hearing about," Kirk asked Tolbert. "Isn't travel being restricted?"

"Yes," Tolbert said, "but who cares," he added with a smile.

Kirk smiled back at his friend.

Moments later, the transport vessel arrived, and it took them up to the space-station. Soon they were on their way to the Tantalus Colony, a place Jim Kirk never thought he'd return to.

(* Jim Kirk from "Gamesters of Triskellion was brought into the future, along with Uhura/Chekov who both died. Kirk survived because of intervetion by Trelane, and later ceased to exist after being forced into the NEXUS by Q. Q's plan backfired, and the echo of Kirk, from Enterprise B, merged with the Kirk from "Gamesters".)

(** in an earlier storyline, a "Mathew" from the future was found to be an omnipotent being thousands of years ago...)

Continued…


	263. Now You See Me Now You Don't

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Now You See Me…Now You Don't**

Previously…

_**On an abandoned Cardassian prison planet**_

_Garak rested his bleeding head back down on the ground, content to just let death come over him, because, quite frankly, there wasn't much else he could do. He thought about what he had just witnessed; Harrison digging his self out of the ground. What forces were at work, Garak wondered, that would explain such a strange event?_

_With nothing else to do, Garak decided to look back on his life, in his final moments. But just as hope had seemed lost, Garak's eyes caught a most interesting sight in the near distance; Transporter beams solidifying. There were three of them, and soon three figures appeared. They were all wearing white containment suits, with helmets, thus giving Garak no clue as to who they were. One of the three new comers looked over in Garak's direction and came over to him, as the other two went over to the hole in the ground from which Harrison had crawled out of. It was at that moment when Garak's strength gave out…and he was lost to the dark abyss…for now…_

_**Garak opened his eyes. He was no longer on the Cardassian prison world, but on a desolate world** in the middle of parched dry lake bed. And then he heard footsteps behind him, and he pivoted around to see who the stranger was._

_"Who are you?" Garak asked._

"_My name is Commander Randolph Donnelly." I am well aware of your services with the Obsidian Order. I could have left you to die on that prison world, but I need your skills as covert operative. I cannot go into specifics, just yet, but suffice to say I need you to go on a mission for me."_

_Commander Donnelly helped Garak up and they walked for a several yards, until Donnelly stopped walking and pointed at the ground. What appeared to be a tiny spec of light, the size of a tiny pebble, was hovering just above the ground and it was ever so slowly spinning, giving off a sparkling light._

"_My team believes this particle could be a doorway to another dimension, or perhaps even outside the laws of reality. That's why I have brought you here. I want you to reach down and pick it up."_

"_Why would I do something as risky as that? What's in it for me?" Garak fired back with._

_"When we brought you with us, and scanned your body, we found some very strange readings from an unknown force of energy, almost as if by touching you, Harrison Riker had passed on a small fraction of energy. When we scanned his empty grave, we found the same residual energy patterns, and lots of it."_

_"And now you think," Garak concluded, "that the energy he passed on to me might somehow interact with that spec of light?"_

Donnelly nodded.

_Garak reached down and picked up the spec of light; and instantly Garak was gone!_

_Outside the Space-time continuum, aboard the USS ENTERPRISE…_

_As Spock approached the spot McCoy had vanished from, there was a sudden burst of light; and someone was standing where McCoy had been standing only seconds before; it was Garak._

_Garak smiled. He knew of the legendary Spock, since Garak considered himself a friend of James T Kirk, and had heard, from Kirk himself, about the adventures he and Spock had shared._

"My name is Garak," Garak replied. "Just plain… simple… Garak," and then he smiled.

_OUR STORY CONTINUES…_

**Sickbay…**

Commander Spock observed as Nurse Chapel scanned the stranger who had suddenly appeared where Dr. McCoy had been standing in an Enterprise corridor only moments earlier. Garak was stretched out upon one of the med-beds, his life scans displayed upon the monitor upon the wall, the thumping sound of his pulse reverberating through the sickbay.

"You are very lovely person," Garak said to Nurse Chapel as she continued her scans.

"Why thank you," Chapel said, "and you are a very pleasant patient."

"We Cardassians are known for our compassion," Garak said with a smile. Though, lucky for Garak, his comment could not be verified by anyone aboard the Enterprise.

Chapel stood back, and watched as the med-bed pivoted down, which Garak stepped off of.

"Other than the heeling wound on the back of his head, he seems fine to me," Chapel said to Spock.

"You say you are Cardassian?" Spock asked Garak.

"Yes, though I am not quite sure if you will have much data on my world, if any," Garak said to Spock. "I come from what you consider the 24th century."

"Actually, Mr. Garak," Spock said, "the crew of a previous starship with the designation Enterprise mentioned your species a hundred years ago in a report, and if I recall correctly, I believe a Cardassian came to live on Vulcan approximately around that same time."

"Well let me tell you something," Garak said with a friendly smile, "your father, Ambassador Sarek, as well as your future self, will have some very interesting debates about Cardassia. If I am correct, it led to a major disagreement between the two of you in public circles of the Federation."

"Interesting," Spock said back. "Thank you for your assistance," Spock said to Nurse Chapel as he and Garak left sickbay.

They made their way down the corridor, and continued their conversation.

"Where exactly am I?" Garak asked. "And; is James Kirk still the captain of this vessel."

"To answer your first question; you are aboard the USS Enterprise," Spock replied. "On or about stardate 5693, though in actuality, I cannot tell you the exact stardate due to the fact that this ship, after being duplicated for reasons I cannot explain as of it, and is trapped in what appears to be a subspace bubble that exists outside space-time."

"And what about Jim Kirk," Garak asked.

"At the time we became trapped in the subspace bubble," Spock replied, "the captain was out of phase, and I believe he is either dead, due to the oxygen supply of his space suit running out, or, he completed the transfer and was beamed aboard the other Enterprise, and continued to live his life; which your questions seem to collaborate."

"So what you're telling me," Garak said, as they entered a turbo-lift, "is that this ship has been stuck in this bubble for over a hundred years, time hasn't passed, and none of you have aged. The other Enterprise made it back, with the Jim Kirk I know, as well as the Spock I spoke of a moment ago, is from that ship that made it through."

"Speculative, at best, but that theory is becoming a more viable plausibility;" Spock said, "from my perspective. You stated a moment ago that you come from the 24th century."

"That is right," Garak said, "56850.2 to be more exact. In the time I am from, I am a friend of Jim Kirk. His knack of finding adventure, even in my time, knows no bounds. And your future self is alive and well I might add, and from what I know of current events, he's with Jim Kirk on a planet called Timus. (though, readers, we know much has passed since Garak was last on plane Timus, and Kirk and Spock are not currently together.)

"Jim Kirk, if he is indeed alive, would be well over a hundred years old. I know that humans can live long lives, however…" Spock said.

Garak chuckled.

"Pardon me for laughing," Garak said, "but trying to explain how Jim Kirk is still decades from a hundred years old would give us both a headache."

"Very well," Spock said, as they exited the turbo-lift and then entered a briefing room.

"Go ahead and take a seat," Spock said to Garak. They both sat down.

"I would say that you're more interested as to how I got here, and why," Garak suggested to Spock.

"Affirmative," Spock said, as he activated the computer panel. "Our ship surgeon, Dr. McCoy, was standing in the exact same place in the corridor. Seconds before he vanished, Mr. Scott and I both noticed a small particle of light. When it made physical contact with the doctor, he vanished and you appeared."

"On my end," Garak said, "the particle was on the parched ground of a dry lakebed. When I reached down to pick up the particle of light, I was instantly brought here."

Spock thought for a moment.

"Computer," Spock said.

-WORKING- came from the female voice of the computer.

"Scan the individual sitting with me," Spock said.

-SCANNING-

"I suppose you are going to scan my temporal signal," Garak asked.

"Precisely," Spock said.

-COMPLETED-

"Report," Spock then said.

-INDIVIDUAL'S TEMPORAL SIGNAL IS OUT OF PHASE, AS WELL AS HAVING A CONCENTRATION OF SPOROCYSTIAN ENERGY LEVELS. RECOMMEND THOUROUGH ATOPSY BY SHIP'S MEDICAL SURGEON FOR CLOSER STUDY.-

"Fascinating," Spock said as the computer completed its report.

"Well," Garak said, "I hope we don't have to go that far."

Spock pivoted his seat and looked directly at Mr. Garak.

"Mr. Garak," Spock said, pointedly, "our captain is gone, our chief medical officer vanished before my very eyes, and now you are here. If I may be so bold; why are you here?"

Garak was confused as well.

"I was sent here by a Federation organization," Garak replied. "I don't work with them, but they came to me, and from what I know about Sporocystian energy, that is probably why I was able to make a successful transition to here. Now, as to why, I do not know. I assumed, by the tone of my relationship with them, that they were looking for some sort of tactical knowledge of this place."

"It is quite logical to assume that if they sent you here," Spock said, "they intend for you to return back to them."

"If I do make it back to my place in time," Garak said, "then what do I tell them? Do I say that I found a duplicate starship Enterprise, and its crew, stuck in some sort of subspace bubble?"

Spock thought for a moment.

"For now, that is all you can do. Please tell them we are, and perhaps," Spock began to say.

"They might find some means to free you from this subspace bubble of yours," Garak concluded. "The question now has to be is; how do I do that; how do I go back?"

Spock nodded in agreement.

"A logical question, and since the light particle did not appear when you did," Spock told Garak, "then it is quite possible that your higher levels of Sporocystian energy absorbed the particle. Perhaps that is how you will return, I cannot say for certain. There is also another question in all of this; where did Dr. McCoy go?"

"Since we don't know when I will be going back," Garak finally said, "can I bother you some water; I am quite thirsty."

"Come with me," Spock said.

They both walked out of the briefing room, and as they did, a particle of light suddenly appeared in the corridor above them.

"Do you see it?" Garak asked Spock.

"I do indeed," Spock replied, "it appears to be the exact size of the light particle that came into contact with Dr. McCoy the instant before you appeared."

"And yes," Garak said, as he looked up at it as well, "It does resemble the light particle I touched before I arrived here. Maybe it is here to take me back."

And then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the tiny light particle vanished.

At that moment, in engineering, Scotty was speaking with one of his crewmen when suddenly they both saw a tiny light particle, very bright, suddenly appear. The beam of light seemed to be twisting with streams of energy, and then it streaked toward Scotty and then…Scotty vanished.

Continued…


	264. Security Departure

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (New COVER-ART link at my profile..)**

**Security Departure**

**Previously…**

_(In an earlier plotline, it was revealed that the sexy female Asian character of Azami, who was attending Starfleet Academy, was in fact from a race of super shape-shifters called the Imeyah. It is eventually revealed that very few of them still exist, but they had once dominated the galaxy tens of thousands of years ago. Azami had secretly joined forces with Laas, the Founder shape-shifter, in an attempt to abduct the Moriarty holoprogram. Apparently the dreaded Sherlock Holms character, with his advance intelligence (i.e. as intelligent as Data) had created a means that would allow holo-created characters to exist in reality without the need of emitters. Both Azami and Laas had wanted to use that technology to create armies to destroy the Federation. Both shape-shifters were eventually found out, and in a final act, Azami killed Laas before she herself was captured._

_The former leader of the Dominion, known as Lady Founder, had this to say of the Imeyah;_

_"They are known as the Imeyah," Lady Founder said, in a soft tone to Odo. "Like us, they are a race of shape-shifters, with abilities far beyond our own, but a race that we had long thought been extinct; obviously we were wrong. And if they have returned," she added, "then I fear for the Great Link; for only we can stop them."_

"Perhaps they can be reasoned with," Odo said to her.

"No Odo, though I am pleased to see you still use compassion to guide your thoughts. They cannot be reasoned with," Lady Founder said. "In fact, there is a reason that both they and the Borg cannot not be reasoned with; the Imeyah created the Borg and their single purpose; assimilating the entire galaxy."

"_Excuse me," Picard, who had observed the conversation, said, "I was assimilated by the Borg, and I have no memory of any information about these shape-shifters you call the Imeyah."_

"_You may have memories, but I have experiences, thanks to the Great Link, that stretch back through thousands of your years," Lady Founder said. "If the Imeyah have returned, they will most surely destroy the Great Link, and then I have no doubt they will try to regain control of that which they created, the Borg.")_

_Our story continues…_

**Nimath Star system…home of Starfleet's maximum security Penal detention center…**

Captain Tom Paris brought the Delta Flyer 2 out of warp just outside the Nimath star system. As Ambassador Picard and Captain Jonathan Canary manned the communication and opts alcoves of the small ship. Upon hearing about the Borg attack on a world inside Gorn territory, Picard thought it best to question Azami, the Imeyah shape-shifter. The Lady Founder's warning about the connection between the Imeyah and Borg had intrigued Picard ever since it had first heard of it.

"Go ahead and bring us to a dead stop," Picard said to Paris. "Do not raise the shields under any circumstance."

"Aye sir," Paris said.

The Delta Flyer-2 slowed to a complete stop, as was protocol before entering the Nimath star system.

"I still don't understand why we have to jump through so many hoops to come to a penal colony," Paris said. "Don't you two think this is just over kill?"

"I'm with you," Canary said. "Then again, this is what happens when you let Klingons run a penal colony."

The Nimath penal colony was indeed under the control of the Klingons, under agreement with the Federation. Due to the escape of Chakotay at the Tantalus Penal colony a few years back, and the ease of how it had been accomplished, it had been decided that after that event all Penal colonies would be under the control of the Klingons.

"Well, to tell you the truth," Picard said, "I believe these extra precautions are warranted. Take for example why we're here. Azami's shape-shifting abilities are still not totally understood. If she were to escape, one can only imagine what she might do. And then you have the Lady Founder, who is also at this detention center. For all we know, there could be rogue Jem-Hadar fleets that could stop at nothing to help her escape."

"Thanks a lot Chakotay," Paris said about the late Chakotay, who had become a criminal and had recently died, with a knowing tone in his voice. "So what do we do now?" Paris asked. "We're out here, all alone going nowhere, and from what I can tell; we may be here for quite a while."

"I should have brought a deck of cards," Canary said.

"No kidding," Paris said with a laugh. "We could have played some slap-jack."

"Oh wow," Canary said with a chuckle, "I loved that game as a child. So, Tom," Canary said, "Tom, I was thinking, when this is all over and I go back to the Naissance and take back command of the Emprenda, have you given any thoughts of coming with me? I mean, with all due respect to the Ambassador, I'd have to think that being a glorified limo driver would have its short comings. "

"A limo driver," Paris said with an annoyed look, "you sure know how to rub it in."

"Once this is all over," Picard cut in, "Captain Paris is going to be offered a starship of his own, trust me on this."

"You don't have to do that Ambassador," Paris said with a smile. "Being your assistant has been an honor and I expect no special awards."

"You've earned it Tom," Picard said. "Ferrying an Ambassador about does indeed has its reward, and this is one of them. The only question will be; will your wife B'Ellana let you."

Before Paris could reply, Canary cut in as he looked at new readings on his operations panel.

"We've got four Neg'var class Klingon battleships uncloaking directly ahead of us," Canary said, with urgency in his voice.

"Our welcoming committee has arrived," Picard said calmly.

The Delta-Flyer 2 was a small ship as it was, and now it seemed even smaller as the four massive Klingon ships came to encircle it.

"They are hailing us," Picard said, "I'm putting them on the screen."

The face of a rugged looking Klingon appeared on the main screen.

"Federation vessel Delta Flyer-2," the Klingon said in a calm manner, "Present your authorization code now. If you are off by even one stroke, or, if you do not enter the code in the allotted time, your ship will be destroyed, and you will all die." A fanged filled smile spread across the Klingon's face.

Ambassador Picard did as instructed, and entered the fifty-seven digit code into his panel. Once completed, Picard turned to face the screen.

"Completed," Picard said.

There was no reply from the Klingon, who just stared back at them; finally one came. Six Klingons shimmered into view aboard the Delta-Flyer 2, and they did not look friendly at all. All Six of the Klingons trained their hand held disrupters at the three humans. Suddenly another transporter signal shimmered into a view, and then a large Cardassian appeared, and he looked even meaner. The Klingon on the screen spoke again.

"The Cardassian will take a blood sample from each of you," he stated. "It will be scanned."

"You're trying to determine if we are shape-shifters," Paris said back at him.

"Yes," the Klingon on the screen replied with his devilish smile. "I hope one of you is, so that we can have the glory of a kill."

"What if we were to change our minds, and decide against going to the penal colony and refuse the screening process?" Picard asked. "Forced blood screenings are against Federation laws."

"We run this Penal colony and the surrounding space, Ambassador Picard," the Klingon on the screen said, "Whether or not you go to the colony no longer is a concern; your blood will be screened."

Realizing there was no choice; Picard, and then Paris and Canary, offered up their arms for a blood screening. The Cardassian, who was the screener, stepped out from behind the Klingon guards.

"The blood sample will not be taken from your arms," the Cardassian said, with a tone of arrogance in his voice.

Paris gulped upon hearing that.

"Then from where?" Canary asked.

"Remove all your clothing," the Cardassian said with a devious smile, "and then you'll find out."

Picard, Paris and Canary all glanced at each other…and began to take off their clothes.

Fifteen minutes later the Delta Flyer-2 was escorted into the Nimath star system, still encircled by the four massive Klingon ships. The three men had passed the blood screenings. Picard, being the highest ranking Federation official, was ordered to pilot the ship into the system, as the six Klingon guards remained aboard.

Jonathan Canary whispered from the operations alcove over to Paris, who manned the communication alcove.

"Seriously; a Klingon tattoo on both of your tes…" Canary said, before being cut off by Paris.

"It was B'Ellana's idea on our anniversary; she actually did it for me," Paris cut in with. "Apparently it is a Klingon tradition, and yes, it was painful."

The Klingon nearest to Paris nodded his head in agreement, having gotten a tattoo in the same place as well…

Continued…


	265. The Wanted

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**The Wanted**

**Nimath Penal Colony…**

Ambassador Jean-Luc Picard was escorted by the Klingon warden of the Nimath Penal Colony. Although the Penal colony was located deep inside Federation territory, the Klingons, allies of the Federation, were in charge of its operations. Captains Tom Paris and Jonathan Canary had been left in the visitor's center because only one visitor at a time was allowed into the detention complex. The Klingon warden was an older Klingon, and his name with T'lak.

"It is an honor to meet you Ambassador," T'lak said, with his deep gruff voice. "Commander Worf was a friend to my house, and his death was most unfortunate." *

"Yes it was," Picard nodded in agreement. "Warden T'lak, I must commend you on your security measures, though I must admit, the blood screening method was, quite honestly, a surprise."

"As it should be," T'lak said. "We have seven different methods to scan for changelings, and all of them are quite effective."

"I see," Picard said. "Azami has been here for a few months," Picard went on to say, "has she attempted escape?"

T'lak shook his head.

"No, she has not," the Klingon warded replied. "Her ability to change her shape has been countered by the polaron-emitters that the Romulans provided, based on specs provided by to them by the other shape-shifter in our custody (the Lady Founder)."

"That is reassuring," Picard stated.

"She sits in her cell," T'lak continued to say, "And has not uttered a single word since the Earth Security Forces brought her here.

"And that worries you?" Picard asked.

"It is almost as if she is waiting for someone to come and free her," T'lak told Picard. "If an escape does come, I have a fleet of cloaked vessels in this system to make sure it will not go beyond this star system."

"Has she received visitors?" Picard asked.

"Visitation to this penal colony is restricted," T'lak replied. "Her next scheduled visitor is Earth Security chief Mike Stone (_who readers should recall is secretly an Imeyah shape-shifter as well_) who, ironically, is arriving in the next hour as well."

"That's good to hear," Picard said. "Commander Stone and I are friends; it will be good to see him again."

The two arrived at a secured door that had four Klingon guards posted at it. T'lak presented a special identification code, and then the door opened and Picard and he both went inside. Picard was taken over to a stool which was situated in front of a display window.

T'lak pressed a button and then the massive wall, made of neutronium, raised up and revealed Azami in her naked female Asian form sitting on the pavement ground of her cell. Picard couldn't help but a tiny amount of sympathy. She was facing sideways, but then she adjusted her head so as to see Picard. And then, for the first time in the nearly four months she had been a prisoner, she said a word; a name actually.

"Locutus," she said, with a slight smile. "I was wondering when I would see you again."

"I am not Locutus," Picard said back to her, "and if you think you can gain some sort of psychological advantage by using it, then you are sadly mistaken."

"I am quite amazed, Ambassador Picard," T'lak said from where he was standing behind Picard, "As I said, until now, not one word had come for her cowardice voice since she arrived."

"I know why you are here," Azami said, oblivious to the words of the Klingon warden. "You want to know about the signal that is being transmitted by the Borg."

Picard found that bit of information quite interesting. (_Readers should recall that there is indeed a signal being beamed throughout the Alpha-Quadrant, but it has not yet been detected, except by an enhanced subspace device in the possession of Fredric Thorn. In issue #263 part two, Queen Me, it was discovered that the signal thought to have been sent to just one person; Annika Hansen_.)

The look on Picard's face revealed a little bit too much.

"Ahh," Azami said, as her smile became more evident, "your highly advanced Federation technology has, as of yet, not detected it."

"Yes Azami, that is quite right," Picard said. "However, the fact that you are aware of the signal's existence is even more interesting than my not knowing about it."

Picard looked back at T'lak.

"Is it possible that she has some sort of communication device on her body?" Picard asked T'lak.

"We scanned her for twelve hours before we put her inside that cell," T'lak said. "This signal she speaks of; how can you be sure she isn't telling you the truth?"

Picard looked back through the glass and force field at Azami.

"Let us take it on face value that there is such a signal," Picard said, "if it is some sort of hail, or warning of assimilation from the Collective, masking it serves no purpose."

Azami shook her head and laughed.

"You humans, and your pathetic beliefs," Azami said. "You find it more easily to accept a message for all of you than a message meant for just one of you."

A look of concern came over Picard.

"What are you trying to say," Picard said. "That the signal is meant for a particular person?"

Azami laughed again.

"I did not say that at all," she told Picard. "However, I will make it easy for you. The signal is meant for two humans in particular."

"They being," Picard asked.

"They being," Azami said with a pause, "you and human female; her Borg designation was Seven of Nine, and very soon it will become Omni-1, but her human name is…"

"Annika Hansen," Picard finished her sentence.

Outside the Nimath star system, a Federation runabout came out of warp, and piloting the craft was the Imeyah shape-shifter currently in the form of Federation security chief; Commander Mike Stone.

* * *

**The Naissance Dysonsphere…**

Admiral Kate Janeway was standing next to Benjamin Sisko as they were both looking at the body of Curtis Daystrom.

"I don't understand, Kate," Ben Sisko said to Janeway, "we left this young man back on the planet Drobix. We were unable to save him from being killed by the infected colonists," Sisko said.

"It may seem as if you left him there," Janeway said with a smile, "but I assure you, he is quite well. What I'm about to tell you is…"

Admiral Janeway was cut off by a young human ensign, her name was Erica Barnes.

"Excuse me Admiral Janeway," Ensign Barnes, "but as per your orders, you wanted to be notified when the Talaxian has arrived; he is in your office."

And then the ensign left.

"Ben," Janeway said, "I will get back with you when I can. But please, for the time being, do not let your daughter, or any one, know what you have seen here."

Picard looked back down at Curtis's body, then back up at Janeway.

"What exactly have I seen here?" Sisko asked her.

"I'm sorry," Janeway said, as she made her way out of the lab, "I can't get into it right now. I'll be back in a bit."

Janeway took a Turbo-lift up to one of the upper levels, and entered her office. True enough, Neelix was there, and he had a guest; a young Romulan female.

"Neelix," Janeway said with a broad smile as she hugged her long time friend. "it is very good to see you again."

Neelix smiled back at her.

"Well, the past few years have been interesting for me; which I will tell you about later," Neelix said. "However, I was saddened when I heard about Harry Kim's unfortunate death ** a couple years ago, and the more recent death of Chakotay***. It is a shame the twist his life took into the world of crime when Voyager returned."

Janeway nodded in agreement.

"It was indeed, now tell me;" Janeway said, "What brings you here, and who is your friend," she asked, as she looked at the Romulan female whom she judged to be no more than twenty or twenty five Earth years old.

Before Neelix could answer, the Romulan woman did instead.

"My name is Vaarim R'mor," Varrim said, "and I am honored to meet you at last, Admiral Janeway."

The name seemed familiar to Janeway.

"I'm sorry," Janeway said with a smile, "your name sounds familiar to me, though I can't quite place it."

"Neither did I," Neelix said, "at first. Think back Admiral Janeway; back to a few short months after you and your crew were trapped in the Delta-Quadrant. If you will recall…"

Janeway snapped her fingers when she made the connection.

"The subspace conduit we were able to send a signal through," Janeway said, as her memory came back to her, "It had actually tunneled back into the past, some twenty years as I recall, and the Romulan we made contact with, we beamed across time and space. His name was," she closed her eyes and then opened them, "Telek R'Mor of the Romulan Astrophysical Academy. And as I recall, he told he had a young child; a baby girl."

"Yes Admiral," Vaarim said, with a slight smile of her own, "that child was me."

* * *

Continued…


	266. Lighthouse

Star Trek: Shadow and Light

Lighthouse

**The Planet Timus…Quark's Hotel/Casino**

It was mid-morning as a greeter showed Constable Nog sat to one of the dining tables located near the windows on the second floor of Quark's hotel/casino. There wasn't much on Nog's agenda, except to continue his investigation into the murder of Myran. He moved a vase of flowers out of the way from the center of the table, so as to make room for the three data-pads he placed on the table. Quark, Nog's uncle and owner of the establishment, came up to the second floor and came over to where Nog was sitting.

"Would you like your regular?" Quark asked. "Let me see; two eggs, over easy, a side of hash browns and two pieces of toast?"

"Yes uncle; thank you," Nog said, as he rubbed his eyes.

"Looks like you didn't get much sleep last night," Quark said as he poured his nephew a drink. "I hope it's because you brought home one that Dabo-girl I saw you speaking with last night."

"I was speaking to her," Nog replied, "because according to the afternoon manager of the clothing store across the street, Myran and that Dabo-girl, Cynthia is her name in case you didn't know, were in some sort of argument."

Quark's eye bulged.

"Well stop the presses, two women were having an argument in a clothing store," Quark said in mock excitement, "Knowing women as I do, they were probably fighting over a pair of shoes," Quark said dismissively.

"Well, it doesn't matter," Nog said, as he sipped from his mug of coffee, "what was said to me is part of my investigation and I can't go into it any further."

Quark shook his head.

"Sometimes I just don't understand you," Quark said. "You join Starfleet, lose a leg, you go back to Starfleet and then later we all thought you were killed by that doomsday machine, or whatever they call it, and now here you are investigating murders."

"So?" Nog fire back with.

"All I am saying is this; is there any drop of Ferengi blood in you at all?" Quark asked. "You should own your own businesses by now, and be saving latinum for your later years."

"Uncle," Nog said, "I think by now, after all these years, I've made it clear to you and my father that I'm trying to blaze a new path for Ferengi. You've done a great job following the old ways, my father is the Grand Nagus and that is all well and good. But I think, overall, I've done quite well for myself."

Quark smiled and patted his nephew on the back.

"Yes you have Nog," Quark admitted. "And despite what I just said a moment ago, your father and I are both very proud of you. But, you can't blame me for trying to lure back."

"I would have been disappointed if you hadn't," Nog said with his own smile.

"Now," Quark added, "drink up that coffee and continue your investigation. I'll see to it that if any other customers come in for lunch, they are kept on the first floor so that the two of you can have peace and quiet."

"The two of us; what do you mean?" Nog asked, as Quark headed back downstairs to place his nephew's lunch order.

At that moment, what Nog believed earlier to have been a vase of flowers, began to change shape and in mere seconds, sitting across from Nog, was Odo; the Prime Minister of the founders of the Great Link.

"Prime Minister Odo," Nog said with total shock, "what are you doing here?"

"Hello Nog, or should I say; Constable Nog," Odo said, "Oh and please; just call me Odo. You wouldn't believe how much I miss being called by my simple name."

"Yes sir," Nog said, barely able to contain his excitement as seeing the former Constable of Deep Space Nine.

"No…" Odo came back with, "Not sir…just plain and simple Odo."

"I'll try my best," Nog said with a smile. "But what are you doing here?"

Odo, who was dressed in black tunic, looked at the young Ferengi man whom he had once chased about DS9 when he was much younger Ferengi boy; getting into trouble at a moment's call.

"Quark sent me a coded message," Odo replied. "By the way, he hacked into a coded frequency that has my Vorta advisors pretty angry at him for doing so."

"My uncle will never change," Nog said with a knowing smile, "and I'm glad he won't."

"All too true," Odo said. "Quark's message asked if I would come here and offer advice to you, and as fate would have it, I was in a nearby star system attending conference about the Borg threat when I got the message and came as soon as I could."

"Quark doesn't think I can handle the investigation?" Nog asked, with disappointment in his voice.

"No, it's not that at all," Odo replied. "Your uncle is very proud of you, just as he said a moment ago. He just isn't confident that the powers that be are going to provide you with the necessary support; that is where I come in."

"What does that mean?" Nog asked. "The Federation has already sent me any relevant information pertaining to Myran's past."

Odo handed Nog data rod.

"No," Odo said, "they haven't. This data rod includes information that has been sealed and is not among the information they provided you."

"Sealed," Nog said, with a suspicious tone to his voice. "What does that mean?"

"Think about it Nog," Odo said, "Myran's criminal past on Bajor; the black mailing of that Vedic, is one thing. But of all the people for her to have been involved with, she was involved with Jim Kirk, the one that was the result of a transport duplication accident that propelled him a hundred years into the future, and into our time."

"That Jim Kirk no longer exists," Nog said back to Odo.

"Yes, I know," Odo said. "But, as you said earlier, this is your investigation Constable Nog, and I don't want to intrude. I think if you go through the data on that rod, there may be information that can be useful. Now," Odo said as he stood back up, "I need to be getting back to that conference. Listen, Nog," Odo added, "if you need any further assistance, you tell Quark to notify me and I give you my word; I will help you as best as I can."

And with that, the changeling pivoted and walked away, leaving Nog with a new found feeling of confidence, and a data rod to investigate.


	267. The Last Bridge

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**The Last Bridge**

**Previously…**

_**Aboard Fredric Thorn's private vessel…somewhere in space…**_

_Annika Hansen's LSD induced vision of the future, with her as the new Queen of the Borg about to oversee the assimilation of Earth, came to an end._

_"There's more," Fredric said as he pushed a few buttons on the control planet, "This Federation communication array is being enhanced by technology my uncle obtained from race known as the Vaadwaur," Fredric went on to say. "It is detecting a Borg signal that is being beamed throughout this part of the galaxy, in fact, this special device is the ONLY subspace radio that can, as of yet ,detect the signal. The signal has a unique property to it that I believe is atoned to the specific brain patterns of particular person."_

"Me," Annika said to Fredric.

"Yes," Fredric, "and once they find you; they are going to come for you. I believe they want you to be their Queen. It is the future that I saw, and I know from the expression on your face, it is the future you saw as well."

"In my vision," Annika explained, "I saw Commodore Riker and Ambassador Picard, as well as James T Kirk standing on the bridge of the USS Titan. Earth was about to be assimilated, and I was the Borg central mind with a new designation; Omni-1. But there was another human, a man, standing there with me. I can see his face in my mind but I cannot recall his name. He wasn't a Borg, he was still human."

"I believe I know who that person may have been," Fredric said. "I saw him in my vision as well."

He activated another screen and the face of a man appeared on the screen, and it was clear from Annika's reaction that it was the man from her vision. A man named Khan Noonien Singh.

**Our story continues…**

"I know of this man," Annika said, as the effects of the LSD slowly ebbed from her system. "His name was Khan, and he was the result of genetic engineering that took place on Earth centuries ago."

"Yes I know," Fredric Thorn said, "my family, even back in those times, was a player in questionable fields of science. Apparently my great-great grandfather was involved with the DNA coding sequence, but again I assure you; I am not like the others of my family."

"And yet you abducted me," Annika came back with. She returned to the subject at hand. "However, this man, Khan, died over a hundred years ago when the ship he was on exploded in the Mutara sector."

"I am well aware of that," Fredric said, "so his being in both of our visions is an anomaly I cannot explain at this time."

Annika stood up out of the med-bed.

"Fredric," she said to him, "all of this is quite interesting, and I am trying to be as open minded as I can be, however, what does the Borg attack on the Gorn birthing world and this LSD induced vision, which I am not totally convinced of as being authentic, have to do with me?"

"Annika," Fredric said to her, "this next part may seem hard to believe, but if you connect the dots, it is all there to see, and you will realize that it all leads back to you."

"I'm listening," Annika said, as they left the lab.

"The Borg attacked the Gorn Birthing world for a precise reason," Fredric said. "What you don't know is that they attacked another world deep in the Beta-Quadrant, a civilization the Federation had never encountered. They called themselves the Nibaq. They, like the Gorn, were a reptilian based form of life and are now extinct because of the Borg. The Gorn will survive this recent attack simply because, unlike the Nibaq, they have colonized other worlds."

"So they are attacking reptilian forms of life; why?" Annika asked.

The two reached the small galley on the ship, where Fredric poured them each a cup of tea. They sat at one of the tables that had a view of space.

"I believe they are fascinated with the reptilian brain," Fredric answered. "I think they believe that it holds the key to their eventual control of this entire galaxy. However, that view was not originated by me."

Fredric handed Annika a data-pad, which she began to read through.

"As you can see," Fredric said as she watched Annika reading the data-pad, "exobiologists, including Dr. Harris Bethow, who was noted expert in the field of cross DNA evolution in the 21st century, as well as T'nara, a Vulcan scientist in the same field, both believed that reptiles and insects shared a common ancestor hundreds of millions of years ago. As it is, reptiles and insects share a DNA coding sequence. And as fate would have it, when the Borg assimilates a sentient being, the DNA code that supplants the victim's own DNA code releases microscopic T-level neurons that seem to have patterns that come from this common reptilian/insect ancestor. It is a most efficient process."

Annika looked up from the pad, as she realized what Fredric was really trying to say, in a roundabout way. She placed the data-pad down on the table.

"I know where you're taking this," Annika said with a slightly defiant tone. "Your inclusion of these two scientist's theories is for a more tactical reason; my father. Magnus Hansen, based most of his theories about the Borg on the work of these two scientists. What are you trying to say; my father is doing this, leading the Borg in this effort to obtain understanding of the reptilian brain so as to become more efficient in their ability to use it to assimilate Earth and the rest of the galaxy? I have news for you, Fredric; my father, the last time I saw him, was a drone, just like I used to be, and he died when the Borg vessel he was on was destroyed."

"As was Khan, on his ship. I am telling you, your father lived," Fredric countered. "I know, because in one of my visions, I saw him, and he was not a drone any longer."

Annika became more defiant in her tone.

"I don't know how many times I have to keep telling you this, but these so called visions, which are induced by chemicals that alter the function of your brain, and are filtered by that silly optical device, cannot be taken as pure facts," Annika said. "My father died, and his theories died with him."

"No; you're wrong Annika," Fredric shot back. "He is alive, he is behind all of this, and in the next 48 hours that massive Borg cube is going to attack Cardassia. And then, if my view of the future is true, he is going to come for you."

"If he needs me; and is beaming that signal into the Alpha-Quadrant in order to find me, or to awaken some hidden Borg element inside of my mind," Annika said, "then why doesn't he just come for me? This ship of yours would be no match for that cube."

"He can't find you because this ship has technology, again thanks to the Vaadwaur, that for now it appears, the Borg's scanners cannot penetrate, though in time I' m sure they will adapt and will." Fredric said. "In all of this, Annika, my number one goal is to see to it that Earth is not assimilated. And because my vision, like yours, depends on your being there for that happen, I will play hide and seek with them until you go along with my plan."

"And what plan is that?" Annika said.

"I believe your father is pulling the strings," Fredric said, "and you have to come to the realization that only you can stop him, because only you can get close to him."

Annika smiled.

"You want me to be captured by the Borg, and then, once I am in close proximity to my father," Annika said, "then you want me to kill him."

"Something along those lines," Fredric said. "Right now we are heading to the Tantalus Penal colony," Fredric went on to say. "Once there, I will implore Dr. Bishop to find away to block the Borg assimilation process, so that when you are taken by the Borg, you will be able to control your mind even after assimilation. And then you've either got to convince your father to stop this madness, or, you've got to kill him in order to save Earth."

"Fredric, even if I believe you," Annika said, "then the best course of action would be to stay on this ship and put as much distance between me Borg as possible, but even then, you're not figuring in the random element in all of this."

"You mean Khan," Fredric concluded,

"Exactly," Annika said. "I understand you are doing all of this to protect Earth, but I think it is all based on questionable data obtained through questionable means, meaning, these visions."

Fredric clapped his hand twice.

"According to my vision, the Borg attack on Cardassia is only 48 hours from now," Fredric said. "If it does happen, in 48 hours, will that proof enough that our visions of the future are true."

Annika cocked an eyebrow.

"It might help," she allowed.

"Then we wait, Annika Hansen," Fredric said.

"Or you could warn them," Annika countered with.

"No, I can't," Fredric said after a moment. "Warning the Cardassians might alter the Borg timeline, and delay the outcome. If this is the only way you will believe me, then it has to happen this way. Besides; you think my visions are just created by the effects of my mind being altered by the LSD. You can't have it both ways, Annika. Either you believe me or you don't."

"There is a third option," Annika said. "What if I believe you now? Think about it Fredric. If your vision is true, then the Borg will attack Cardassia, another reptilian race. And whatever the knowledge is they find by completely assimilating the home world of the Cardassians might be the final key in this new effort of theirs to not only assimilate Earth, but the rest of the galaxy." 

"So you're saying that you believe me?" Fredric asked.

"Yes, I do," Annika said. "I don't know why, but I do. But I want to save those innocent lives on Cardassia that are about to be assimilated. I will only help you defeat my father if you send a signal to Starfleet and let them at least warn the Cardassians."

Fredric nodded his head in agreement. What he didn't know, nor did Annika realize, was that the Borg signal being beamed throughout the Alpha-Quadrant, and aimed at both Annika and Jean-Luc Picard, had finally gone unnoticed and had penetrated the shields around Fredric's vessel; Annika's hidden Borg protocols had been activated.

Continued…


	268. A Child's Paradise

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**A Child's Paradise**

A small and sleek vessel came out of warp and entered the Tantalus star system, en route to the Tantalus penal colony. Federation Special agent Ryan Tolbert piloted the vessel, which was his, as S'vath and Jim Kirk sat behind him in the small passenger cabin.

"So let me get this straight, Jim," Tolbert said, as he piloted the ship, "You were here, at Tantalus, over a hundred years ago?"

"That's right," Kirk said. "We had brought routine supplies for the colony, when a stowaway made it aboard the Enterprise, as I recall, his name was Simon Van Gelder. We eventually came to find that the colony's administrator, Dr. Tristan Adams, was using a device that could remove memories, or even create new ones, and was illegally testing it on the population under his care."

S'vath, who was sipping from a mug of herbal tea, nodded his head as he was familiar with the story.

"My father once told me about this incident you're describing," S'vath said. "He said it came at a time when you, the ship's captain, would routinely beam down into potentially hazardous situations."

"Oh, trust me S'vath," Kirk said with a smile, "after that first five year mission, I remember being the target of several opinion pieces, both in and outside of Starfleet, questioning my beaming down to planets and, as some said, pounding my chest with reckless abandonment." He paused for a moment. "I guess I just didn't believe in sending men or women down into a situation that I wouldn't be willing to face myself."

"But you were the captain," S'vath countered, "a tactical asset of value."

"Back in those days," Kirk said, "at least on the Enterprise, myself, your father, McCoy, Scotty, or any number of my senior crew, were all tactical assets of value. And I can't tell you how many scrapes we got out of because your father was up there on the Enterprise; scrapes I'm not sure we would have gotten out of had he not been there."

"Don't let S'vath beat up on you, Jim," Ryan Tolbert said with a chuckle, "I, like most every kid from this time, have read at least one or two of your exploits. I liked the fact you got your hands dirty. I think it makes you that more cognizant of the responsibility of sending others into harm's way."

"I am not beating up on Jim," S'vath said, "I too have read some of Jim's exploits, and thanks to my father, I have heard most of the others. My father has told me on many occasions that Jim Kirk was the finest captain he had ever served under. He is very fond of those times, and the excitement that came with them."

"You're father," Kirk said with a slight chuckle of his own, "caused a lot of that excitement. Did he ever tell about the time when his brain was stolen?"

S'vath, who wasn't like most Vulcans, rolled his eyes as he recalled the story.

"Unfortunately, yes," S'vath said. "He also went through great lengths to limit the spread of that event due to some of the hard to believe aspects of it," S'vath added.

"We are entering orbit of the penal colony," Ryan announced. "If I recall from my last visit here, it will be another twenty minutes or so before we can beam down."

Kirk and S'vath nodded their heads in acknowledgement.

"Jim," S'vath said, in a serious tone, "There's something I think you should know, and I want to apologize on behalf of my wife for not telling you until now."

"Alright," Kirk said.

"My father thought it was best to keep this information to ourselves, when we first heard of it, because at that time you weren't here; the other Jim Kirk was." S'vath explained. "And the period of time this information is particular to was after the point of time that other Jim Kirk was pushed into the future via the transporter accident that created him. So since it did not pertain to him, we didn't reveal this information to him."

"I'm a big boy," Kirk said with a smile. "I can handle it."

"Now, I must say," S'vath said, "in honor of Leonard McCoy's memory, we cannot explain his actions in this regard; and my revealing this information must not be seen as biased against him."

A serious look came over Kirk's face, as it became apparent to him, that whatever Spock's son was going to reveal, it had something to do with McCoy. Even Ryan Tolbert could sense a seriousness to what S'vath was about to say.

"Go on," Kirk prodded with.

"On Stardate 4842," S'vath began to say, "You became lost on an uncharted planet. A…"

Kirk cut in.

"An asteroid was on a collision course with that planet," Kirk went on to explain. "With my memory lost, I was welcomed into a tribe of Native Americans who had been brought to that planet by a mysterious race known as the Preservers. I ended marrying one of the native women, who eventually became pregnant with my child. But, when I was unable to use my supposed divine powers to save the tribe from the growing threat of the asteroid, my native wife, Miramanee and I were attacked. Your father," Kirk said to S'vath, "beamed down with McCoy. Spock used a mind-meld to restore my memories, and eventually we saved the planet. My wife was too wounded to recover, and both she and the unborn child died."

"I'm sorry for your loss," Ryan said to Kirk. "There's nothing more devastating than losing a wife and child, believe me I know."

"Jim," S'vath said, as the somber tone of the story hung in the air. "As it turns out; the child lived."

Kirk, who had been lost in thought, cleared his mind and looked directly at S'vath.

"What do you mean the child lived?" Kirk asked.

"Believe me Jim, when I tell you," S'vath assured Kirk, "we do not have all the facts. But what I can tell you is this. My wife's Grandmother was Christine Chapel. You will recall that she was beamed down to that planet to assist McCoy while he tended to Miramanee."

"That's right," Kirk said.

"Before her death," S'vath explained, "Chapel made a visual recording, an admission, and that recording ended up in my wife's possession; I've seen it (_Author's note. What S'vath is revealing to Kirk has been common knowledge to us for some time now_). The child was saved by McCoy, and for whatever reason, he never told you. Chapel honored McCoy's wishes and never revealed the truth as well."

A slight look of anger came over Kirk's face.

"Why didn't he, or Chapel, tell me?" Kirk asked.

"I do not know," S'vath replied softly.

"Did your father know?" Kirk shot back with.

"No," S'vath again replied. "I told him the same thing I just told you just a few months ago. He was as shocked as you are now upon hearing about it."

Kirk was about to say something in anger, but S'vath cut him off.

"Listen to me, Jim," S'vath said. "Before you get angry at McCoy for what he did, just let me say that the child was a boy, and he lived a wonderful life on that planet. And then, when many of the Native American tribes returned from worlds they had settled on in the demilitarized along the Cardassian border, your son's tribe returned to Earth as well. He lives, on Earth now, and is the chief to all the Native American tribes that have resettled on their ancient lands in North America."

"Are you saying Jim has a son living on Earth?" Ryan asked. "How old can he possibly be?"

"Well over a hundred and twenty years," S'vath replied. "Tuvok, a friend of my father's, has had many dealings with your son," S'vath told Kirk.

"I want to meet him, I want to meet my son," Kirk said after a moment.

"Of course," S'vath said.

"What is his name?" Kirk asked.

"I'll do better than that," S'vath said, as he accessed the ships library, which because Tolbert was an agent of the Federation, was tied into the Federation's main computer.

In a quick moment, the image of a Native American was displayed on the screen, and beneath the image was a name; a tear of pride came down Kirk's face as he said it.

"Satangkai…"

Continued…


	269. Shattered

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Shattered…**

The Tantalus Penal Colony was nothing like Jim Kirk remembered it to be, though it had been over a hundred years since he had last been to this place. Kirk, as well as Agent Ryan Tolbert and S'vath, were walking through the massive visitor center, which was where friends or family members could meet with inmates. Their guide was the installation's chief administrator, a Klingon female named Eck'va. Apparently she and Ryan Tolbert knew of each other, due to his being here on several occasions, be it bringing new inmates, or testifying in parole hearings for others. But Eck'va knew of Jim Kirk, due to his fame as a Starfleet Captain, and his past history with the Penal Colony.

They eventually made it back to her office where the tour had began, and once again Kirk, Tolbert and S'vath took seats across from where Eck'va would be sitting in a moment. The operations center could be seen just outside the glass partition that encircled the office and Eck'va was speaking with one of her officers just outside the sliding door to the office, and would rejoin them soon.

"S'vath," Kirk said, taking a brief moment to change the subject, "have you heard anything from Spock since he was recalled to Vulcan?"

"Not yet," S'vath told Kirk. "I know he and I were both going to follow McCoy and try to figure out this Colt MaCahan nonsense; but we're going to have to wait until a later time now."

"Look," Kirk said after a moment, "if Bones really thinks he is this Colt MaCahan, then I guess there is very little we can do about it."

"I don't know about that Jim," Tolbert said. "You could have him committed to a place like this so they can study him and try to figure out what's wrong with his mind."

Kirk was about to reply, but then Eck'va came into the room and stat behind her desk.

"As always, Administrator Eck'va," Tolbert said, with a smile, "Thank you for the quick tour for my friends here."

"It was no bother," Eck'va said, "and besides," she added, looking over at Kirk, "meeting James T Kirk was an honor that my father's House will treasure."

"Thank you," Kirk said.

"As for why you are all here," Eck'va went on to say. "I take it from the subspace message you sent to me that you wish to meet with Dr. Walter Bishop in order to seek his help pertaining to a murder investigation."

"That's right," Tolbert replied. "Jim Kirk's ex-wife Myran was murdered in a vicious cold blooded manner."

"You must be seeking the right of vengeance," Eck'va said to Kirk. "Or as you humans state it to be; justice."

"You could say that," Kirk said.

"Anyway," Tolbert continued, "I once worked on a case with Dr. Bishop where he was able to access a dead witness's memory by connecting their mind with mine."

"Excuse me," S'vath interjected, "but is Dr. Walter Bishop an inmate here, or is he serving in some official scientific or medical capacity?"

Eck'va looked to Tolbert before she replied.

"It is alright Eck'va," Tolbert told her, "I have cleared them with Federation security."

"Dr. Bishop," Eck'va said, "was committed to the Tantalus Penal Colony after being convicted of illegal medical practices."

"However," Tolbert continued for her, "Bishop's value in forensics, where he uses a unique brand of fringe science, made him too valuable of an asset to let waste away in a cell. And since most of the legal challenges against him called into question his mental stability, being allowed to continue his work will hopefully prove to the Federation that his mind is sound, and they will eventually drop the charges and let him go."

Suddenly, and without warning, alert klaxons began to sound. Eck'va slapped her hand on a switch located on her desk.

"Report," she barked.

The voice of a man came over the communication's unit.

"An un-authorized vessel has just entered orbit," the voice replied.

"Why is it we are only detecting it now?" Eck'va fired back with.

"From what we can tell," the voice reported, "they are using tachyon phase shifts to mask their ship."

Suddenly the voice of a female officer came over the system.

"Administrator Eck'va," the female's voice said, "the unknown vessel has engaged their Transporter and it is trying to override the security force field around the planet."

"How can that be possible?" Eck'va demanded.

"We don't know," the voice replied. "They haven't succeeded, though I fear it is only a matter of time. They are trying to bypass our system. Wait, I am sensing a…"

Suddenly there was a power surge, and sparks could be seen streaming from the control panels in the operations center just outside the office.

Eck'va stood up and stormed out of her office, with Kirk and the others right behind her. There was a flurry of action as the operation's staff tried their best to get the power back, and to check on the status of the Penal Colony's population. A haze of smoke began to blur the area as the lights began to flitter on and off at various degrees of brightness.

"I would suggest you three remain here," Eck'va said, as she looked back at Kirk, Tolbert and S'vath, and then she ran off to help the situation. Sparks continued to fly and even a few flames could be seen in the distance.

"Listen," Tolbert said to S'vath and Kirk, "I'm going to go after Dr. Bishop. I'll go get him, and then we'll get out of here."

Kirk and S'vath watched as Tolbert darted off.

"Just our luck for something like this to happen," Kirk said to S'vath.

Suddenly a power conduit overloaded, and there was mild explosion in the command center. The shock of the explosion threw Kirk and S'vath backward, and they lost their balance. S'vath landed smoothly on the ground, but Kirk's head was showered with broken glass. There were cuts on his face that were superficial. Kirk, still on the ground, leaned up against a wall as S'vath came over to him.

"Are you alright?" S'vath asked.

"I'm fine," Kirk said, as he dabbed the side of his head, and saw blood on his fingers. "The cuts are not deep."

"You stay here," S'vath told Kirk as the sounds of concerned voices could be heard yelling in throughout the command center, which was filling up with smoke. "I don't think the fire is as bad as it looks. I'll go get a medical kit."

Kirk nodded as S'vath ran off into the shroud of smoke and debris.

S'vath ran over to one of the many colony officers attempting to restore order and asked them where a medical kit was. Upon hearing where the kits could be found, S'vath ran out of the control room and toward a supply compartment to retrieve as many of the kits as he could. Unknown to S'vath, he was also prey. Because following him was a cold blooded killer who had a re-born blood lust. With a systematic breakdown in the security structure of the colony, many of the inmates were now free from their cells; but the person coming after S'vath was not one of the inmates at all.

Smoke shrouded the corridor, as the lights that were normally on, were winking on and off throughout the ordeal. Reaching the storage compartment, S'vath went in and grabbed two emergency med-kits, and then, with one in each hand, he turned to leave the compartment; Ryan Tolbert was standing before him.

And before S'vath could say anything, Ryan Tolbert rammed a knife into S'vath's lower abdomen, and into his Vulcan heart; and then S'vath fell to the ground on his back. Ryan Tolbert leaned down and smiled down on the dying Vulcan.

"….why…" was all that S'vath could muster to say.

"It's nothing personal, Vulcan," Ryan said. "I just saw this as a chance to satisfy my need to kill. I prey on men who have families; men like you and Ryan Tolbert. I wish I could make this need go away, but I can't; it is what I am. I've been living inside of Tolbert since my last host, Alistair Martin, fell to his death on Risa (issue #198). And now I will bury myself deep inside of Tolbert's mind, until the desire comes back."

S'vath could only stare up at Ryan Tolbert, or at the being that was in control of Ryan Tolbert's body. And then S'vath closed his eyes…and died.

Meanwhile, beneath the Penal Colony, there was special area where a unique sort of laboratory was maintained. Dr. Walter Bishop ran the lab. One of the unique fixtures of the lab was a real flesh and blood cow, but it was no ordinary cow; it was a milking cow.

Dr. Bishop could hear the mayhem going on above him in the main area of the colony, but it did not disturb him from carefully using his fingers to manipulate the teats of the cow. As he slowly slid his fingers down the teats, a stream of milk sprayed out and into a bucket between his legs. What did get his attention was a stream of light that appeared in the center of his lab; it was a Transporter signal. A pleasant looking man appeared who pivoted where he was standing until their eyes met.

"Hello Dr. Walter Bishop," the man said. "My name is Fredric Thorn."

Continued…


	270. Who Holds the Dagger!

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Who Holds the Dagger?**

**Outside the Nimath star system**, a Federation runabout comes out of warp, and piloting the craft is the Imeyah shape-shifter currently in the form of Federation security chief; Commander Mike Stone.

* * *

The Maximum Security Prison facility in the Nimath System…

Ambassador Jean Luc-Picard looked through the security window that separated him from Azami; the Imeyah shape shifter who was imprisoned for crimes against the Federation, as well as two murders charges that were still under investigation. She also implied that she had been working in union with the Borg, and revealed thousands of years ago that the Imeyah were partially responsible for creating the Borg; though that point had not been verified.

"I know why you are here," Azami said, with a snide look on her face, as she looked at Picard. "You want to know about the signal that is being transmitted by the Borg into this quadrant. And you're worried that it might only be meant for you; Locutus."

A look of concern came over Picard.

"Is that true?" Picard asked.

Azami laughed again.

"You amuse me," she told Picard. "However, since none of this will matter very soon, I will make it easy for you. The signal is meant for two humans in particular."

"They being," Picard asked.

"They being," Azami said with a pause, "you and a human female; her Borg designation was once Seven of Nine, and very soon it will become Omni-1, but her human name is…"

"Annika Hansen," Picard finished her sentence. "The woman whom you are referring two has not had an easy adjustment since leaving the Borg collective and returning to Earth," Picard told Azami. "In fact, from what I know of her condition, she has no recollection of ever having been a Borg drone."

"Maybe not," Azami continued to say, "but they remember her. As for why they want her; I believe the Borg have concluded that Locutus, you, are too old to usher Earth into the collective, and have instead decided to use her for that purpose."

"Why are you telling me this?" Picard asked.

The Klingon warden, T'lak, cut in before Picard Azami could reply.

"She is just trying to get under your skin, Picard." T'lak said, who had been observing the conversation between Picard and Azami.

Picard had considered that possibility, but as he looked at Azami, he couldn't help but wonder if there wasn't more going on.

* * *

Four Negh'var battle cruisers de-cloaked and surrounded Commander Stone's shuttle. When Stone refused to lower his shields and submit to a blood screening, the Negh'vars prepared to open fire, but suddenly a transwarp conduit opened up, and a massive Borg cube exited and fired its weapons at the Klingon vessels. Unprepared for such an attack, all four were easily overpowered, and they all exploded.

* * *

Aboard the Delta-Flyer 2, which was in orbit of the planet Nimath, Captains Tom Paris and Jonathan Canary were in the middle of a systems check, when their sensors had detected the explosion of the Negh'var ships outside the star system, and were now detecting the massive Borg cube as it made its way toward the planet Nimath.

"How long until it gets here," Paris hurriedly asked as he rushed to the helm of the small ship.

"Two minutes," Canary replied, from the small opts station next to where Paris said, "maybe three? Tom," Canary added, "I'm detecting several more Klingon ships converging on the Borg cube."

"They're going to get slaughtered," Paris said back to Canary. "We've got to get the captain and get him out of here."

Jonathan Canary ran to the two-man Transporter-pad.

"I'll go get him," Canary said, "you just be ready to haul ass when we get back."

Paris looked back at his friend who prepared to beam down.

"John; be careful," Captain Paris urged, "But get Picard out of there."

Canary nodded as he beamed away.

* * *

Meanwhile...on Nimath...

Azami stood up from her chair and walked toward the security window.

"I know what's going on here," Picard said to Azami as she slowly walked toward him. "You expect the Borg to rescue you, and you see us as posing no threat to your union with them."It will never happen."

"In fact," Azami said with a slight laugh in her voice, "you have no idea what is about to happen," then she looked at T'lak. "But I think he does now."

Suddenly, upon hearing a signal from the transmitter planted in his own ear, the warden reached down and without warning he grabbed Picard by the arm and rushed him toward the exit.

"What are you doing," Picard demanded, trying to resist the warden.

"Listen to me," T'lak barked back at Picard, "a Borg cube has just entered this system, and its heading here."

"They're going to try and rescue her," Picard told T'lak. "We can't let that happen."

"Trust me," T'lak said with a sinister look on his face, "that will not happen."

A Turbo-lift door opened, and T'lak shoved Picard inside, but he didn't join Picard inside the lift.

"What are you doing," Picard demanded of the warden.

"What must be done," T'lak said as the door closed.

Moments later, Picard exited the Turbo-lift and found pandemonium abounds, as Klingon shock troops rushed about, preparing for the coming battle with the Borg. Suddenly emerging from the whirlwind of action was Captain Jonathan Canary.

"Ambassador," Canary called out, "we've got to get you out of here."

"We've got to help these Klingons," Picard replied back.

"No sir," Canary fired back, "your safety is paramount."

Canary slapped his com-badge, and then he and Picard were beamed away.

* * *

Meanwhile, in space, the large cube approached the planet Nimath. As it did, nearly two dozen Klingon battle ships, of various classes, attacked it. But it was clear to the Klingons that their battle was in name only; their attack, though spirited, was no match against the massive cube.

* * *

Picard and Canary materialized on the Delta-Flyer 2 and took their seats.

"Strap yourselves in," Paris suggested, "this might get a little bumpy," as he pivoted the Delta-Flyer 2 away from the planet, and powered it away from the Klingon/Borg battle that could be seen going on in the near distance.

And then, at that instant, there was a bright flare of light; the planet Nimath suddenly exploded just seconds before the Delta-Flyer 2 went into warp.

"Holy cow!" Paris said, as he closed his eyes, as he was sure the other two had done as well, to clear his eyes of the massive flare of light they had just seen.

"I wonder if that explosion took the Borg ship out," Canary asked Picard.

"I doubt it," Picard said. "I just hope T'lak's death wasn't in vain."

"Do you think the shape-shifter died in the explosion?" Paris asked, as he piloted the Delta-Flyer 2 through the streaks of light of warp speed space.

Picard thought for a moment.

"I don't know," he finally replied, his voice tainted by the sound of doubt.

Picard looked out the window at the streaks of light of warp space. Had Azami been destroyed in T'lak's final act? Picard could only wonder. He also thought about what the Imeyah shape-shifter had said; was the signal the Borg sending out meant not only for him, but for Annika Hansen as well? He looked over at Canary.

"Find out where Annika Hansen is," Picard told Canary, "and then give Tom the coordinates; and hurry." Picard added. "We may not have much time."

_Continued…but now read on below! A special retro issue that will explain how Jim Kirk came to be in a post-Nemesis Star Trek universe...it features Picard and Janeway discussing Kirk's past...and future. This was originally published as issue #10_

* * *

**JAMES T KIRK; The Next Generation #10**

**Ripples**

It wasn't often when Jean-Luc Picard found himself on Earth, but the moment he had come across the top secret communiqué mentioning the existence of James T Kirk in the Bajoran sector and since the Enterprise was near Sector-001, he altered his mission profile immediately and ordered the Enterprise to Earth.

The Enterprise had been on its way to Janus VI with new up-to-date equipment for the mining planet's mineral refinement plant, but since the Enterprise was ahead of schedule by three days, Picard decided that a detour to Earth would not be out of the question.

Once the Enterprise had reached Earth, and after he announced a two day Liberty-Call for the crew, Captain Picard beamed down to Starfleet Command, and headed straight for Admiral Kathryn Janeway's office.

"Jean-Luc," Admiral Janeway said with a pleasant smile as Picard entered her office. She stepped out from behind her desk and came over and the two old friends shared a brief hug. "I was just informed of your arrival ten minutes ago, and," she added with a wry smile, "I bet I know why you're here."

The two friends walked over to her desk, and sat down.

"You look really good behind that desk," Picard told her, "The admiralty suits you much better than it could ever fit me."

"That's bull Jean-Luc," Janeway replied with slight laugh. "And I'll have you know; I have made sure that there will be no more ships named Enterprise for at least twenty-years after the E. So, once this one runs out of gas, you'll have no choice but to accept an Admiral's chair."

"We'll see about that," Picard replied with a chuckle of his own. "Kate," Picard said in a more serious tone, "James T Kirk on Bajor? How can that possibly be true?"

"He isn't the same James T Kirk you encountered on Veridian III," Janeway said, as she poured them both a cup of tea. "According to Ben Sisko, this James T Kirk, as well as the Kirk you brought out of the Nexus I might add, were both created when a transporter signal was split, duplicated would be the better description. Anyway, one set of signals ended up on Triskelion, over a hundred years ago, and the other signal arrived on Triskelion three years ago."

"If that is true," Picard said, after he took a sip of tea, and spoke with wonder in his voice, "then this James Kirk never encountered the V'GR anomaly or survived the wrath of Khan, or…" Picard's voice trailed off as his mind followed the path.

"…died on Veridian III," Janeway said, picking up on Picard's train of thought.

Picard set the cup of tea down and stood up, and walked over to the large oil painting that showed legendary officers from Starfleet's past that was hanging on the far wall of Admiral Janeway's office; a painting which included the prominent images of James T Kirk and Spock. It depicted them both as they looked over a hundred years ago, during the second year of their original five year mission together.

"Astonishing," Picard said, as he looked at the image of Kirk on the painting. "Excuse me Kathryn," Picard went on to say, "Did you say that he has been here, in our time, for the past three years?"

"Yes, and again I am ahead of you Jean-Luc," Janeway said as she too stood and came over and joined Picard viewing the panting that adorned her office wall. "You're wondering how we are only finding out about it now?"

"That is precisely what I was thinking," Picard said to her.

"Again, according to Ben's report," Janeway explained, "Jim Kirk was apparently contacted by The Department of Temporal Investigations. They set Kirk up a new life on the planet Timus, where he later met a Bajoran woman, married, and settled down to a new life. He and his wife were visiting her relatives on Bajor when Kirk just happened to witness an attack on Ben Sisko, and the abduction of Ben's daughter."

"Rebecca," Picard added. "As I recall it is her birthday pretty soon." Picard looked to Janeway. "I assume you will treat James T Kirk with the utmost respect; he at least deserves that much."

"I will treat him with the respect, to the extent protocol will allow," Janeway came back with. "However, I have been generous in that I have given him a field rank of Commander, and that's largely ceremonial I must add, until he returns to Starfleet for debriefing. And even then, Jean-Luc, I can't guarantee what kind of career a man from his time can be afforded."

"The crew of the Bozeman fitted in just fine," Picard reminded her.

"Jean-Luc, the crew of the Bozeman was twenty years or so beyond the time frame this James T Kirk came from." Janeway explained to Kirk. "I do not need to remind you of all people the new regulations that came about after this Jim Kirk's five year mission. The Bozeman's crew matured under those new rules and regulations I might add, where as Kirk never really did."

"Perhaps, but news like this is going to spread like fire," Picard said to Janeway. "To many people Jim Kirk is an icon, perhaps that adulation is based on his romantic image from the past, but none-the-less it is true."

"He's just a man Jean-Luc," Janeway said with skepticism in her eyes.

"No," Picard added, as he looked at her, "He's a legend Kathryn. You're worried if he can adapt to our time and our rules and regulations? I think it will be more fascinating to see the effect he has on this era." Picard suddenly smiled. "Speaking of the word fascinating," Picard added with a whimsical tone in his voice, "eventually Ambassador Spock will learn of Kirk's return as well. I have a feeling we will be receiving a coded message from Romulas soon enough."

"Jean-Luc," Janeway said, cutting through the excitement in Picard's voice. "Jim Kirk has technically been AWOL for the past three years, or over a hundred years; depending how you look at it. Now that his cover has been exposed, I expect him to act like any trained Starfleet officer and return to Earth for a debriefing. If he doesn't," Janeway said with a serious tone in her voice, "I will have no choice than to dispatch a Starfleet security team to retrieve him."

"Let me do it," Picard suddenly said to Janeway. "The Enterprise was due for an extended liberty after our transport mission to Janus VI."

"You want to go get Kirk and bring him here? Remember, Jean-Luc, this James Kirk has never met you."

"I realize that," Picard came back with. "However, I think I can relate to him, being the Captain of the modern age Enterprise."

Janeway thought about it for a few moments.

"Alright," she finally replied. "I'll have the USS Arrowhead finish your mission to Janus VI and grant the Enterprise crew their month worth of liberty."

"Thank you," Picard said, as he headed for the exit.

"Jean-Luc," Janeway said, as Picard reached the door, and turned to face her. "Make sure Jim Kirk understands that coming back to Earth isn't an option; it is an order."

Picard nodded his head and left her office.

**Continued…**


	271. Escape

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**ESCAPE**

(Our story picks up where #269 left off)

_Previously…_

_**Beneath the Tantalus Penal Colony,**there was special area where a unique sort of laboratory was maintained. Dr. Walter Bishop ran the lab. One of the unique fixtures of the lab was a real flesh and blood cow, but it was no ordinary cow; it was a milking cow._

Dr. Bishop could hear the mayhem going on above him in the main area of the colony, but it did not disturb him from carefully using his fingers to manipulate the teats of the cow.

As he slowly slid his fingers down the teats, a stream of milk sprayed out and into a bucket between his legs. What did get his attention was a stream of light that appeared in the center of his lab; it was a Transporter signal. A pleasant looking man appeared who pivoted where he was standing until their eyes met.

"Hello Dr. Walter Bishop," the man said. "My name is Fredric Thorn."

_**Our story continues**_

"Are you here to collect Gene's milk," Walter asked, as he offered the bucket of liquid to the young man named Fredric.

Before Fredric could answer, the door to Walter's laboratory flung open, and the warden, a buff female Klingon named Eck'va, came rushing in. She held the door open, and then a man who was carrying another man in his arms rushed in. Dr. Walter Bishop, who was a fan of history, recognized the man holding what appeared to be a dead man in his arms.

"James T Kirk," Bishop said with wide smile.

A third man came rushing in, a man who Dr. Bishop recognized as well.

"Hello Walter," Agent Ryan Tolbert said to the eclectic scientist, "this man is dead," Tolbert said as he pointed at the lifeless body of S'vath. "Please bring him back to life; if you can."

"Who are you?" Eck'va demanded of Fredric Thorn.

As Eck'va approached Fredric, Walter Bishop rushed over and motioned for Kirk to put S'vath's body on one of the examination beds in the lab.

"I am honored to meet you, James." Dr. Bishop said to Kirk. "I have read of your exploits all my life, and even more so since your return a couple years ago; quite amazing," then Walter became more focused, and he looked down at S'vath. "What happened to this Vulcan?"

"He was stabbed; probably by one of the inmates during the power outage," Tolbert explained. _(Of course, reader, it was really the entity hiding in Ryan's mind that did the dirty deed!)_

"You can bring people back to life?" Kirk asked Bishop, as he watched Bishop bend over and put his ear to S'vath's mouth.

"Come now James," Bishop said, with his ear over S'vath's mouth as he looked up at Kirk, "you of all people should know that death isn't always a constant." Bishop stepped back and put on a pair of medical rubber gloves.

"Are you talking about S'vath's Katra?" Kirk asked.

"Not in this case, James," Bishop answered, as he stuck his fingers into S'vath's mouth, "but that is definitely one avenue of escaping death. However, in this case, the body, be it Vulcan, human, or even Klingon, is a complex machine that, at times, needs to be re-started. Ahhhh yes," Bishop said, as his fingers were still in S'vath's mouth. "The third gland that reaches up from his thorax is still filled with liquid. Thankfully, for us, the Vulcan placed himself in a deep state of Nochq'ta; a Vulcan meditation state. The liquid in his third gland is an indicator that his brain is being kept alive by a higher function in the seventh globe of his central sulcus."

Bishop stepped back, and pressed a button on a control panel and then an energized field appeared around S'vath's body.

"What are you doing?" Tolbert asked.

"I have tended to the wound made by the knife," Bishop replied, "but as for your friend here, I think he should be coming out of it pretty soon, and as best as I can tell, he will be fine."

"Then if you don't mind," Fredric Thorn said, "I would like to take you with me Dr. Bishop."

"Then you're the one who broke through our shielding!" Warden Eck'va shouted, as she rushed toward Fredric.

Fredric, who was wearing some sort of wrist device, pressed a button on it as Eck'va rushed him. As Eck'va tried to grab him, an energy stream pulsed out of the wrist device, zapping Eck'va, dropping her to the floor instantly.

Agent Ryan Tolbert drew his weapon and aimed it at Fredric.

"Who are you," Tolbert said to Fredric, "and what are you doing here?"

Bishop and Kirk rushed over to Eck'va.

"How is she?" Kirk asked, as Bishop helped him move Eck'va to yet another examination table next to the one S'vath was on.

"You have to tell me," Bishop said, losing focus, as he looked at Kirk, "how did it feel when your," he searched for the right word, "soul was transferred into the body of Janet Lester."

Before Kirk could answer, Fredric answered Tolbert's question, which got Kirk's attention.

"My name is Fredric Thorn," Fredric said to agent Tolbert. "And unless Walter helps me; the Borg will assimilate everyone on Earth."

S'vath, who had come around, opened his eyes at the sound of Fredric's voice.

"Fredric Thorn," S'vath said, with a groggily voice.

Kirk and Tolbert rushed over to their fallen friend as the force field that covered the med-bed dissipated.

"How do you feel," Kirk asked S'vath.

"Actually; I don't remember what happened," S'vath said. "How did I get here?"

"You were apparently stabbed by one of the inmates during the power outage," Tolbert explained.

S'vath nodded, but then looked over at Thorn.

"Are you related to Lawrence Thorn?" S'vath asked.

"I am his nephew," Fredric explained. "And believe me when I tell you, Earth faces the ultimate danger."

"You know this man?" Kirk asked S'vath.

"No, but I do know about his uncle, Lawrence," S'vath explained. "He was a wealthy individual who, among other things, kidnapped my father, and your other self, and brought them to the Naissance."

"Ben Sisko told me about that," Kirk said.

"He wasn't an evil man," Fredric cut in with, "but he wasn't all together there either. Look," Fredric countered, "we don't have time for this."

"Young man," Bishop said to Fredric, "What do the Borg have anything to do with me?" Walter Bishop asked Fredric.

"Does the name Magnus Hansen mean anything to you? Now look; it is a long story, and we don't have time," Fredric explained. "But if you don't come with me, it will be too late."

"Yes, I knew Magnus quite well. But I will only go with you," Bishop countered, "if James comes too."

"Me," Kirk said in surprise, "why me?"

"I am estimating," Bishop replied, with a smile, "that whatever this young man has in mind, it will be a hornet's nest of trouble; and I want to live, thank you very much. And I can't think of anyone else to face that unknown with than the man who pretty much made escaping death a career; you James."

"What about finding Myran's killer?" Tolbert asked Kirk.

"Dr. Bishop," Kirk said, "My ex-wife was killed, murdered in fact. We had come here to seek your help in finding a clue as to who killed her. Her body is being kept in stasis on the planet of Timus."

Bishop nodded his head at what Kirk was inferring.

"Alright," Bishop replied. "As long as her body is not disturbed for three weeks, I think I can help you with that matter."

"Trust me," Fredric said to Kirk, "if we don't stop of the Borg, none of this is going to matter at all."

Kirk nodded and then he turned to face Ryan Tolbert and S'vath.

"You're too weak to come," Kirk told S'vath, "and I'd like you," Kirk said to Tolbert, "to get S'vath back to Timus and help Constable Nog investigate Myran's murder back there. I know it's too much to ask, but…"

"Would you just shut up and go already," Tolbert said with a laugh. "I'll get S'vath home and help the Ferengi; now go. And don't worry about Eck'va," Tolbert added, "I'll handle her too."

Kirk smiled, and then he and Dr. Bishop walked over to where Fredric was standing.

"Wow, James," Bishop said with a giddy smile on his face, "I can't believe I am doing this."

"Doing what?" Kirk asked.

"Going on a great adventure with you," Bishop said. "I think I'm getting an erection."

A worried look came over Kirk's face as he, Bishop and Fredric Thorn beamed away.

Tolbert looked back at S'vath, totally oblivious that is was he, Ryan Tolbert, that had stabbed the Vulcan earlier. But deem inside of Tolbert, content that S'vath's memory loss of the event was genuine, the entity buried itself even deeper into Ryan's mind; a hiding place that would hold him until the need to kill came back again.

Continued…


	272. Momentary Victory

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Momentary Victory**

A fleet of twelve Federation starships came out of orbit near the Nimath star system. They had been grouped and sent to investigate, and if necessary, battle the Borg cube which had attacked the Klingon defense fleet which was charged with the security of the system, and more specifically, the prison facility located on the planet Nimath.

One of the vessels on the scene was USS Titan, under the command of Commodore William Riker. His first officer, Wesley Crusher, stood by him as they looked at the destruction before their eyes on the main screen; which included the smashed remains of the super Borg cube, as well as chunks of planetary debris.

"I don't believe it," Commander Crusher said to Riker. "The Borg ship was destroyed when the planet exploded." A smile slowly crept across his face as he looked over at Riker. "I have feeling the Klingons will soon have a new opera based on what happened here."

"It is amazing," Riker agreed. "It certainly appears as if we've been spared from another battle with the Borg."

"This time," Crusher added softly.

It had indeed been a last ditch measure to insure that the Borg were not successful in their attempt to rescue the Imeyah shape-shifter, Azami. The Klingon warden had activated the self-destruct measures of the planet, to destroy the shape-shifter, and had also managed to destroy the massive Borg cube in the process. At least, for now, it appeared that was indeed the case and the threat was over.

* * *

**The Naissance Dysonsphere…**

_The Naissance is, in essence, a giant ball in space that was constructed around a star. On the inside were 12,000 continents, hundreds of massive oceans. Animals that faced extinction throughout the galaxy were brought to the Naissance, which was under the command of Admiral Kathryn Janeway. The project was headed by her, as well as Doctor Julian Bashir. (Reader; you can read all about the specifics in issue #82.)_

Word of the destroyed Borg cube spread like wildfire throughout the quadrant. With the threat neutralized, Fredric Thorn kept his word and took Annika Hansen, as well as the two new passengers aboard his ship, Jim Kirk and Walter Bishop, to the Naissance Dysonsphere, and then Fredric surrendered himself to Star Fleet authorities. His attempt to kidnap Bishop had led to the deaths of seven people on the Tantalus Penal colony, and he would have to pay for his crime. A starship arrived at the Naissance to take Fredric Thorn into custody, and to ferry him to Starbase 241 for an official hearing.

Annika Hansen and Admiral Kathryn Janeway were in the Naissance's main transporter room; located in the Starfleet complex that was located inside the massive sphere shaped construct. Fredric was with them, as he waited to be transported to the starship charged with his transfer. Annika walked over to Fredric, who had kidnapped her two weeks earlier from Earth, but whom she had grown fond of.

"I guess your vision of us being married in the future isn't going to happen," Annika told him.

"Well, the future is just that; the future," Fredric said with a smile, "so who is to say?"

"Do you really believe my father was alive and on that Borg vessel destroyed in the Nimath system?" She asked.

"I know you find that hard to believe," Fredric told her, "but I swear; he was alive, in my vision of the future."

"But most of your vision has already been disproven," Annika told him. "The Borg have not abducted, me, and are certainly not on the verge of assimilating Earth."

"Obviously," Fredric replied after a moment, "something happened that changed the course of time. Perhaps a butterfly did indeed flap its wings differently this time around, causing a rippling effect through all of time; we'll never know. But those things I saw did happen, or would have happened. But above all else Annika; I love you. And part of me wishes that the terrible future I saw did happen, so that we could be together."

And then, on impulse, he reached out and pulled her close, and kissed her.

Janeway smiled, and then turned away to give them a sense of privacy. And then seconds later Fredric was beamed away.

"An interesting man," Janeway said.

"Yes he is," Annika said back to the admiral. "I hope they take into consideration that by shielding me from the Borg, he may have delayed the Collective's plans to assimilate Earth."

"Don't worry, I will make sure they take it into account, and," Admiral Janeway added, "I'm quite sure Jim Kirk will put in a good word as well. Now listen," Janeway said, as she and Annika headed out of the Transporter room. "While you're here; I could you use your help on another matter."

"Certainly," Annika said to her former commanding officer, "I would like to continue my Star Fleet career, even if only as a civilian adviser; and getting to take that next step, here with you, would be a great place to start."

"Well, I will try to remember that when I introduce you to someone else I have asked helped from," Janeway said with a knowing smile, "Neelix."

The name didn't seem to affect Annika Hansen, which made sense, since most of her memories from the time she had spent on Voyager had been buried after a unique mind-meld with Tuvok and a Native American chief named Satankai (Kirk's 137 year old son with Miramawnee).

"You really have piqued my interest now; just what is this matter?" Annika asked as the two entered a Turbo-lift.

"A couple years before you came to us, on Voyager," Janeway explained, "we came upon on small singularity which was in fact a conduit to the Alpha-Quadrant."

"Fascinating," Annika said. "Why didn't you return to home then?"

"Unfortunately it was too small to send the ship through, but we were able to contact a Romulan scientist on the other side, in the Alpha-Quadrant. Too make a long story short, it turned out that not only was it a conduit to the Alpha-Quadrant, it also tunneled through time, some twenty years into the past. The Romulan scientist offered to pass on messages to our families that we were still alive in the but only until after we were thrown into the Delta-Quadrant in order to avoid tampering with time."

"An interesting idea," Annika said, "did he follow through?"

"No," Janeway said softly, "apparently he died two years before the Caretaker pulled us across the galaxy."

The Turbo-lift doors opened and the two women exited the car and walked down a corridor.

"So; what has happened now." Annika queried in curious tone of voice.

"Well," Janeway replied, "that is where Neelix and the young woman I am about to introduce you to come into the picture."

They made their way down the corridor.

* * *

_The promenade inside the Star Fleet complex of the Naissance was very spacious, with several store fronts. There were clothing stores of all kinds, as well as many other types of stores, and of course, eateries of all kind were well represented. The guests were officers and scientists, and even tourists. With growing interest in the animals and plant life that had been saved and transported to the Naissance, on any given day, school children from all over the Federation could be seen. These groups of students were kept in groups of 30-40, and brought the term "field trip" back into the lexicon of widely spoken words. _

After hearing that Jim Kirk had arrived, Ben Sisko, who had arrived a week earlier after rescuing his daughter from her predicament on the colony world of Drobix (Planet of the Living Dead!), had arranged a special celebratory dinner at one of the Italian restaurants. At first there were no reservations, but once Ben Sisko mentioned to the _Maitre_'_D_

Ben Sisko, Kasidy, Rebecca and Lal had arrived early and had gotten a large table. They were all very happy to see their good friends Jim Kirk, Ryan Tolbert, S'vath join them, as well as a new-comer. Jim Kirk introduced the new comer as Walter Bishop.

Everyone sat around the table and placed their orders and engaged with small talk. Finally, from across the other side of the table, Ben raised his glass. Several plates were being delivered, but even in the confusion, the others were able to follow suit.

"I suggest a toast;" Ben said to the others, "according to Admiral Janeway, Star Fleet has declared the Borg threat over."

"How sure can they be about that?" Rebecca asked her father, as they all brought their glasses to the center of the table and clanged them together.

"From what I gather," Ben continued, "the Borg were attempting to rescue the female shape-shifter; Azami."

Lal and Rebecca knew Azami quite, since the shape-shifter had attended Star Fleet Academy and had not gotten along with many of the cadets; but especially Lal.

"I can't believe, for all the time she was at the Academy, that no one suspected she was a shape- shifter," Rebecca.

"I've wondered about that too," Jim Kirk said from where he sat next to Walter Bishop. "If I'm not mistaken, wasn't there another shape-shifter at the Academy? You'd think that if anyone could have known that Azami was a shape-shifter, it would have been him."

"His name was Myn," Lal said to them all. She had not only been a friend of the shape-shifter named Myn, but she had been his lover too.

"Not to be rude," Kasidy said, as she sipped her glass of wine, "but before we talk about shape-shifters, what happened to the Borg?"

"Like I said," Ben continued to say, "they tried to rescue Azami, and in a last ditch effort, the warden on the penal colony she was being held, blew up the planet; the resulting explosion took out the Borg ship as well."

"And so just like that," Ryan Tolbert said, from where he sat next to Kirk, "it's all over."

"I would think," S'vath said, from where he sat next to Ryan, "that Star Fleet would not have made such a statement without some facts leading them to do so."

"I hope so," Ben replied.

Small talk broke out again.

"I have to sa,y James," Walter Bishop said, in a shy low tone, "I find this Dyson-sphere to be quite amazing. Is it true they have Tyrannosaurs-rex on one of the continents?"

"Please don't remind us," Kasidy said with a laugh, upon over hearing Walter, "that thing almost killed us last time we were here."

As the conversation continued, Ryan Tolbert sipped his wine, and then for a moment, the entity trapped inside of his mind took over Ryan's thoughts. He stared at the gathered guest, and the urge to kill began to grow as his gaze settled on Kasidy Sisko.

Continued…next time; Colt (Leonard McCoy) Macahan crash lands on a world in dire need of a hero!


	273. Corvana

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**The Adventures of Colt Macahan**

**Corvana**

Colt (Leonard McCoy) Macahan piloted his spacebike down through the atmosphere of a planet he had been lucky to find in the first place. The small warp core that powered his bike bad become unstable, causing him to head to the nearest inhabited planet to do repairs. With time running out, he came across a small uncharted world. As his bike emerged from a thick cloud cover, he aimed it toward a large empty field. With his braking thrusters firing intermittently, all he could do was activate the force –field bubble which, when activated, surrounded him and his bike, and pray that he would survive the rough landing. The last thing he remembered, as his bike hit the ground, was a loud thud…

The next thing he saw, when he opened his eyes, was the face of a little girl, no more than twelve years old, staring down at him. She was humanoid, with a small ridge of skin that came down from her forehead and all the way down to the tip of her nose. She smiled at him.

Colt got a glimpse of his surroundings. It was clear that the girl was nothing more than a simple peasant, as her dress was very tattered and torn; her face smudged with dirt.

"Hello mister," she said, as she dabbed at Colt's forehead with some sort of rag.

As she pulled the rag back from his head, Colt could see that it was stained with blood; his blood.

"What happened?" Colt asked the little.

She didn't answer, right away. Instead, she got up from the bed Colt was laying on, and then she walked over to a small sink and wringed the blood coated rag out. Colt tried to stand, but the moment he tried to sit up in the bed, waves of pain came over him, as dizziness as well. The little girl came back over and pushed Colt back down on the bed.

"You are badly injured," she said in a near whisper to Colt. "You mustn't try to stand, or you will surely make things worse for yourself. I think you have a concussion, and your left leg has been badly hurt too."

Colt looked down at his left leg, which was indeed in pain. The girl had put his leg in a crude splint. Though he was grateful for what she had done, he could tell that at best it was an ankle sprain, but it was severe enough that he knew it would take days to recover from it.

"How did I get here?" Colt asked the girl as she handed him a cup of water.

"I was tending to the garden," the little girl explained, "when I heard a loud noise. It scared me, but I am brave, so I ran past the pond and I found you there on the ground, with that strange contraption next to you."

Colt surmised she meant his spacebike.

"Where is the contraption now?" Colt asked.

"Do not be worried," the girl replied, still in a near whisper, "I hid it behind a wall of shrubbery; no one will find it."

Colt was about to ask the girl another question when suddenly they both heard the sound of a horse followed by the sound of a man's voice in near the distance. She put her index finger up to her closed mouth; the universal "be quiet" signal.

"That is my step-father," the girl said in her soft whisper, "he is a very vile man, and if he were to find out you were here, he'd whip me until sunrise, and kill you immediately. For both our sakes, I must ask you to be as quiet as possible."

The man outside yelled again.

"Corvana!" the man yelled, "Get your butt out here now and tend to my steed! And tell your mother that dinner better be on the table, or I will bring the belt to her tonight!"

"I better go," the little girl said to Colt.

"Is that your name; Corvana?" Colt asked the little girl.

She smiled and nodded her head, and then she scurried away and out the door of the small shack. There was a small window next to the bed, and Colt pulled the rugged drape slightly to the side and saw the man whom was calling for the girl. He was quite large, and brutish looking. Corvana walked to the large man, and then he struck her so hard, the force of the slap smashed her to the ground. The man pulled his belt off and raised it up to strike her. Colt instinctively reached for his own side arm, but it was gone, as was his holster. He could only wonder where his two shotguns were. Luckily, before the man could hit the girl, Corvana, with his belt, she had instead scurried to her feet and had grabbed the reins of the horse and guided the animal toward the barn. From the window, Colt got a good look at the barn in the distance, and the main cottage. These people were definitely peasants, living menial lives, and now Colt was stuck with them for the time being. He was glad that the girl was swift enough to avoid the belt, and as she made her way toward the barn, Colt kept his attention on the man; her step-father. And then Colt saw sickness in the man's eyes; it was the look of insatiable sickening lust.

Colt could sense that, at this point, the man had not acted on his twisted sexual impulses, but it was only a matter of time until he would. But right now, in his current condition, there was nothing Colt MaCahan could do about it.

* * *

**Starbase 185...near Gorn space**

The medical staff at the Starbase could were very tense, and why not? It wasn't everyday that an eight-foot tall Gorn visited the medical bay on the massive Starbase. He had come to claim that which was his; an egg. The egg had been brought to the Starbase by a man named Colt MaCahan. The Gorn retrieving the egg was named Do'neth, who then, upon being handed the egg, left the medical bay.

Continued...


	274. The Taste of Oblivion

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**The Taste of Oblivion**

His name was Talla, and he had murdered Myran. It had been two weeks since he had killed the woman he had loved in so very much in the past, and he had managed to hide in the back streets of Summit Grove; but he knew his time was running out. The dragnet that Constable Nog had put out across the town was getting tighter. Whereas before he was able to get food scraps from the various merchants as did other homeless individuals that lived in the alleys; he was also aware of the fact that wanted signs were showing up all around town with his face on them. Constable Nog had done his homework, and had correctly deduced the truth.

It was early morning, and neither of the two suns in the Timus (the planet Summit Grove is located on) sky had risen yet. Talla was hiding behind a row of garbage chutes, where most of the homeless citizens of Summit Grove gathered. There weren't many homeless folks in the town of Summit Grove. And most of those who were homeless had tried their luck in the speculative field of precious metals and mining; and had failed. Talla wasn't a miner, and had returned to the planet Timus for a far more, darker reason. He had come back to kill the one person who knew his dark secret; he had killed before. In more recent times Myran had been married to James T Kirk, but her past had been checkered ever since her childhood on Bajor.

(The following is a recap of events that have transpired during this story, sometime between issues #120 through #150. For those who may have started reading the story recently and don't want to have to go back and read about these events in full, this recap is for you. 

New Material follows)

_Myran had once loved Talla, even though their relationship had been born out of his exploitation of her on the streets of Rigel-7. He was one of the last remnants from her former past and well hidden criminal life. For as it turned out, Myran's real name was Deena, and just like her sister, Tyla, the two girls grew up on the mean streets of Rigel-7. They had migrated to Rigel-7, from Bajor, with their mother, a prostitute and con artist herself, who dabbled in many small time crimes that kept food on her children's table. It was a paltry living, but such was the life. Deena and Tyla, unfortunately, would also turn to a life of subsistence on the streets. Their mother had borrowed and conned her way to a point that the only way she could repay the syndicate was to sell her daughters to the criminals who owned her soul._

Unfortunately for the two girls, laws against child prostitution existed on Rigel-7, but with the planet being a cesspool of corruption, the laws were easily dodged by the syndicate. Child prostitution and holo-pornography were the norm. The Orion Syndicate pretty much owned all of the politicians and most of the law enforcement officials. So, at young ages, Deena and Tyla were exploited by the men and women who paid for their services. Deena and Tyla were no different than any number of young souls that lived such a life; they existed in a dark world that was far from the protection of normalcy.

Eventually, when Deena (Myran) and Tyla (Cynia) were arrested for sex solicitation by a law enforcement officer, the two girls were put into the foster care and orphanage system. It was there that they met Talla and Omath, two young Bajoran adolescent boys who had lived mirrored lives of Deena and Tyla, and who wanted to become pimps. The two young men worked their charms on Deena and Tyla and promised them riches if they all worked together, and found an area on the mean streets to corner as their own. The girls would sale their sexual services, while the two young men hustled illegal items such as drugs and small time arms and weapons. At first it worked, but as usual, desire for even more success brought higher demands.

It was a fateful night when one of Deena's paying clients offered more than just the $$$ from a couple hours of paid sex. His name was Ashala, and he was a wealthy visitor who was visiting from Bajor, of all places. But he wasn't just a Bajoran male; he was a Vedik. After a night of passion with Deena, Ashala was so enamored with Deena, he asked her to come back with him to Bajor and to marry him. Talla, the ring leader of their small group, saw this as their golden ticket, and told Deena to accept the marriage proposal, and then, once she had settled into her new life on Bajor, he, Omath and Tyla would come to Bajor to finish the scam.

Everything went according to plan. Deena married Ashala, and began her new life as a married woman, but with one problem, Deena (Myran) was actually falling in love with the man she was destined to con. When Deena (Myran) told the husband she loved the truth, he attacked her. In self defense, Deena ran from the house but a fire had started, and it gutted their home. Believing Ashala to be dead, Deena ran. She changed her name to Myran, and paid her share of the scam for a new life. Attaining a new name and a new past, with forged credentials and a viable "paper trail" was expensive, but it was the only avenue left to her.

_She ended up on the planet Timus, living in the small town of Summit Grove, where she began to live a simple life as a school teacher. She would later meet and fall in love with a man named Robert Crane. Crane ran an antiques store and soon they were married._

_It was three years after they were married, and visiting her family on Bajor, when Robert Crane was revealed to be James T Kirk; a legendary Starfleet officer. With her new found notoriety, it didn't take long for Myran's past to catch up with her. Ashala had survived the fire and had hired Talla, Myran's former lover and pimp, to find her. Both men came to Timus, where Myran and Robert Crane had returned to. Talla had come to Timus so as to blackmail Myran; by holding her past against her. Ashala, her former Bajoran husband, had come to kill her. Eventually Talla risked his life to save Myran, and though injured, he managed to kill Ashala and then escaped. _

(Author's note; Talla may think he killed Ashala, but that is not what happened. K'mpec, the former Klingon Chancellor of the High Command, was living under a new alias as well on the planet of Timus; as the mayor of Summit Grove. He had killed Ashala, and Talla had witnessed it, and fled the planet with fake memories planted in his mind that he, Talla, had done the crime. K'mpec, as well as Jonathan Archer and Sarek, are part of Q's elite group of "dead" characters that are involved with Q.)

_But knowing that Myran knew about his criminal past, Talla came back to Timus to kill Myran as well, and did so in front of her two infant children. He had been hiding on the backstreets of Summit Grove ever since. He had been successful in dodging Constable Nog's attempts at capturing him, but his time had run out._

The ally was flooded with bright lights.

"This is Constable Nog," the voice of Nog could be heard via a bullhorn. "We have the ally surrounded. Talla, we know you are hiding somewhere in this ally, give yourself up now!"

Talla opened his eyes, and did what all criminals did when their backs were up against the wall; he ran. Nog, who was standing next to his landspeeder, its headlights flooding the ally with brightness, saw a lone figure rundown one of the darkened paths, took pursuit.

The path Talla chose to make his escape led to a large field where, on most weekends, various sports clubs played their games. But at 3:00 in the morning, it was just a large grass field with a hint of morning dew and light fog covering it. Nog could see Talla running up ahead.

"Stop now, Talla," Nog yelled. "There is no way off this planet!"

Although Nog's artificial leg had never given him too much of a problem, it did cramp up easily in extreme cold, and he could feel a cramp coming on as he pressed in his pursuit of Talla. He slowed his pace and could only watch as Talla vanished into the nearby wooded area; but Nog still followed. A tiny white bird flew past Nog, and almost as if taunting the Ferengi, the bird paused, and then just kept flying when Nog finally caught up.

Talla, for his part, felt satisfied as he entered the woods. He looked back through the light fog and saw that Constable Nog had slowed his pace. This mean Talla could just disappear into the woods and, hopefully, find the means to get off the planet. So, with Nog no longer a threat, Talla let his guard. He stopped for a moment, to catch his breath. He leaned up against a tree, to rest, when suddenly he saw someone walkout from behind another tree.

"Who are you?" Talla asked the stranger.

"My name is Harrison Riker," Harrison replied. "Myran was to be my wife; and you killed her."

Talla stood up, but kept his back upon the tree.

"And I suppose you want to kill me now, or take me in and arrest me." Talla said with a smile, as he slid a knife out of his pocket. "You will now have something more in common with that slut Myran now; I killed her with this knife, just as I will kill you."

Suddenly, from above, there was a cracking sound from high atop the tree, and then suddenly a large branch broke off and fell toward the ground at speed to fast for natural causes. The branch impaled Talla, killing him instantly. There was a bright flash and then Q stood beside Harrison Riker.

"I hope this little affair," Q said, as he looked down at the dead body of Tally, "has finally cured your obsession with this thing called love. I tell you now," Q added, with all seriousness, "I have saved you grief. I had a wife once, and a snot nosed kid, and they both left me. Having a family is not worth the trouble it causes."

"But I loved Myran; you never loved Q," Harrison said, as he looked at Q. "If it weren't for that Cardassian assassin, I would have married Myran. In fact, Q," Harrison continued, "that assassin was an expert and I find it very hard to believe he could have missed that badly and hit both Mavis Sisko and me. Was that of your doing as well?"

"And what if it was?" Q fired back. "Let us not forget one simple fact; I brought you back from oblivion, Harrison. If that is what you want to go back to, oblivion, so you can be with your beloved in the next beyond, which does not even exist; then let me know now."

"I believe what lies beyond, is far beyond your comprehension," Harrison said with a smile, "so yeah; send me there."

Q nodded his head.

"Very well," Q said.

And then in a flash, Harrison Riker was gone. Q looked through the maze of trees of the woods and saw that Nog was finally coming upon the scene. Q looked down on the dead body of Talla, smiled, and decided to create a mystery and then…poof…Q was gone.

Moments later, huffing and puffing, Nog came upon the gruesome scene of Talla's body. The branch had actually split the dead Bajoran in half, but both halves were still clinging on the branch. But more interesting was a pouch that was next to the body. Nog bent down and picked up the pouch and opened it. Inside the pouch were two bars of gold pressed latinum, and some sort of data-rod. Nog reached into his pocket and pulled out a Tricorder. In mere moments he accessed the data on the datarod, and came across a number. He recognized the number sequence immediately; it was an account number. Nog had no idea where the account was located, but he had a pretty good idea who would know; his uncle Quark.

Nog pulled out his communicator and called for his deputies to meet him in the forest, and to contact Dr. Suzanne Anderson as tell that she would need to do an autopsy. The tiny white bird, which had flown past Nog earlier, sat on a branch. It had been there entire time, even when Q had been there, Harrison and when the branch had killed Talla. But the bird was no ordinary bird, it was actually a shape-shifter, and his name was Odo.

Continued…


	275. The Tomorrow Door

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**The Tomorrow Door**

**Naissance Dysonsphere…**

James T Kirk, Ryan Tolbert, S'vath, Walter Bishop and Benjamin Sisko sat in a special conference room in the Star Fleet complex located inside the Naissance Dysonsphere. They all looked at the large screen on the forward wall, and the image of Constable Nog on the planet Timus. He had just briefed on the events that had transcribed on Timus, and the death of Talla; the man who had killed Myran.

"So he was crushed by a fallen branch," Kirk stated flatly.

"It would seem so," Nog said.

"What about the matter of the gold pressed latinum and the account number?" Ryan Tolbert, who was an agent of the Federation Security Bureau, asked.

"I am looking into that now," Nog said. "The account number definitely originates on Rigel-7, and you should know, being an agent of the FSB, how shifty the banking system is on that planet."

"Constable," Jim Kirk finally said, "thank you for letting us know what has happened. I will be returning to Timus very soon to see to the welfare of the two children."

Nog nodded, and then the screen went blank.

Ben Sisko reached out and placed his hand on Kirk's shoulder.

"Those children are so very young, and yet, they have had to persevere so much." Sisko said to Kirk. "But if you need help, you just say the word; you're not alone in this."

"He's right, Jim," S'vath added, "Amanda and I are ready to help."

"I know S'vath, and I appreciate it; believe me," Kirk said with a smile. "In essence, those two children have lost both their parents. I'm not the Jim Kirk who fathered them, and now Myran is dead. But my responsibility to those two children is the same is if they were my very own, and I will not shy away from it."

There was silence.

"With Jim's former wife's murder solved," Walter Bishop finally said to Ryan Tolbert, "I guess you will be taking me back to the Tantalus Penal colony."

"Maybe not," Tolbert said. "I have been approached by Admiral Janeway; apparently she has need of your knowledge. I have already received permission to let you speak with her, and if you like, to allow you to remain here and assist her."

"Certainly," Walter said with a nod of his head.

Ryan Tolbert looked over at Kirk.

"Jim, I have to get to back the agency," Tolbert said to Kirk. "I've pretty much been A.W.O.L. ever since the assassination attempt on Ben, and that entire ordeal with Chakotay."

"I understand," Kirk said, as he reached out his hand and shook Tolbert's hand. "You've been a good friend Ryan, and I will miss you."

"If you ever need help," Ryan said to Kirk, "you know how to reach me."

Kirk bowed his head and watched as Ryan left the conference room, accompanied by Walter Bishop. Sisko stood up and prepared to leave the room as well.

"Kasidy and I are heading back to Timus within the hour," Ben told both Kirk and S'vath. "You're both welcomed to hitch a ride."

"Thanks," Kirk said, "but I'm heading to Earth first, and then to Timus to tend to Dahme and Mathew."

"Oh," Sisko came back with.

"I recently found out that I have a 137 year old son," Kirk said, as he looked over at S'vath, and then back at Sisko. "I want to meet him first."

"I believe Kate told me that a Federation transport vessel is leaving later today for Earth," Sisko said. "If you hurry, you might be able to board her."

"Thanks," Kirk replied, "I think I will."

"What about you S'vath?" Ben Sisko asked. "You could always come back and be the Constable of Timus like you were before."

"Nog is doing a fine job, he deserves to keep it." S'vath said, after a moment. "You know what? Amanda has been bugging me for the past couple years for a trip to Earth. We haven't been there since before our wedding. I think I'll book passage there with Jim, and tell her to do the same, and to bring the kids, yours and ours, with her. If we time it right, we might be able to meet up with them on DS9, and then head to Earth from there."

"Sounds like a plan," Kirk said, "we better go book our voyage while we still have time."

Then the three of them headed out of the conference room.

* * *

In another part of the complex, Neelix listened intently as Doctor Zimmerman recounted his recent adventures with Jim Kirk. They were sitting in Admiral Janeway's office, waiting for the Admiral and Annika to return, as well as Vaarim R'mor.

"And finally, I ended up here," the Doc said as he finished his story. "You could well say that I had a most incredible journey."

"Did you ever meet him," Neelix asked, "the other hologram inside the library device?"

"Thankfully no," the Doc said. "I knew Moriarty was inside the device, but for whatever reason, he chose never to reveal himself to me. And from what I know of him; that was probably for the better."

The door to the Admiral's office opened and the three women came in.

"It is good to see you, doctor," Annika Hansen said, as she sat next to the former doctor of Voyager.

"It is good to see you as well, Annika," the Doc said.

"Alright," Admiral Janeway said to Vaarim R'mor. "When you arrived here with Neelix, last week, you told me you couldn't reveal anything specific until Annika, and the Doctor, were both present; now they are. I should let you know straight off that I found that request to be somewhat interesting since Annika came to us nearly three years after we made contact with your father, who was himself, was twenty years in the past."

"I am sorry for the intrigue," Vaarim R'mor said, "but it was necessary. One week before my father made contact with Voyager; my mother, my two younger brothers, and I, were all kidnapped. My father was not home at the time as he was part of a scientific expedition. The person behind our kidnapping contacted my father, and told him to leave the expedition and to head directly to a set of coordinates; and to wait. Fearing for our lives, he did. And so he went to those coordinates and waited."

"For Voyager's signal, I'm willing to bet," Janeway said.

"Yes," Vaarim continued to say.

"That would mean," Annika said from where she was sitting, "whoever it was who kidnapped you and your family had knowledge of the future, since Voyager's signal was tunneling through time."

"Precisely," Admiral Janeway said to Annika. "And now you're telling us, today," Janeway said to Vaarim, "that it was all staged; why? And who would have done such a thing?"

"And what did it ultimately accomplish anyway," the Doc added.

Vaarim removed a datarod from her pocket, and inserted it into a slot on the computer next to her. She pressed a button and an image of the man who had kidnapped her and her family, thirty years in the past, appeared…

* * *

At that moment, several light years away, the Starship Bozeman came across another Starship, the USS Everett, just drifting in space. Upon beaming over, a landing party from the Bozeman found that the Everett's crew had all been placed in some sort of time suspension; frozen where they stood. After restarting the main power of the ship, the crew came out of the affects of the time dilation; and there had been no casualties, other than pride. It didn't take long to realize that the passenger they were ferrying to the Tantalus Penal colony was gone…and who he was.

* * *

Annika Hansen recognize the person on the screen immediately; Fredric Thorn.

Continued…


	276. Outside the Reasonable

**STAR TREK: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER ART AT MY PROFILE)**

**Outside the Reasonable**

Previously…

_Garak found himself aboard a USS ENTERPRISE which was in an area space outside the space-time continuum. (Author's note: Leonard McCoy, who believes he to be Colt Macahan, came from this very same ship; but without his memories…) _

* * *

_"I was sent here by a Federation organization," Garak replied. "I don't work with them, but they came to me, and from what I know about Sporocystian energy, that is probably why I was able to make a successful transition to this place. Now, as to why, I do not know. I assumed, by the tone of my relationship with them, that they were looking for some sort of tactical knowledge of this place."_

_"It is quite logical to assume that if they sent you here," Spock said, "they intend for you to return back to them."_

_"If I do make it back to my place in time," Garak said, "then what do I tell them? Do I say that I found a duplicate starship Enterprise, and its crew, stuck in some sort of subspace bubble?"_

_Spock thought for a moment._

_"For now, that is all you can do. Please tell them we are, and perhaps," Spock began to say._

_"They might find some means to free you from this subspace bubble of yours," Garak concluded. "The question now has to be is; how do I do that; how do I go back?"_

_Spock nodded in agreement._

_"A logical question, and since the light particle did not appear when you did," Spock told Garak, "then it is quite possible that your higher levels of Sporocystian energy absorbed the particle. Perhaps that is how you will return, I cannot say for certain. There is also another question in all of this; where did Dr. McCoy go?"_

_"Since we don't know when I will be going back," Garak finally said, "can I bother you some water; I am quite thirsty."_

_"Come with me," Spock said._

_They both walked out of the briefing room, and as they did, a particle of light suddenly appeared in the corridor above them._

_"Do you see it?" Garak asked Spock._

_"I do indeed," Spock replied, "it appears to be the exact size of the light particle that came into contact with Dr. McCoy the instant before you appeared."_

_"And yes," Garak said, as he looked up at it as well, "It does resemble the light particle I touched before I arrived here. Maybe it is here to take me back."_

_And then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the tiny light particle vanished._

_At that moment, in engineering, Scotty was speaking with one of his crewmen when suddenly they both saw a tiny light particle, very bright, suddenly appear. The beam of light seemed to be twisting with streams of energy, and then it streaked toward Scotty and then…Scotty vanished._

_Our story continues…_

* * *

At that instant, Scotty reappeared in a desert surrounding. He had no memory as to who he was, but when started to look about, he saw a man. The man was holding a device, and scanned Scotty with it.

"Excuse me," Scotty said to the stranger, "but; where am I? Who are you?"

The man looked at Scotty.

"Your name is Montgomery Scott," the stranger said. "My name is Commander Randolph Donnelly and, I'm very sorry," he pulled a phaser out from his holster, "but you don't belong here."

Before Scotty could say a word, Donnelly fired his phaser, and Scotty was incinerated instantly.

Donnelly took another device from his holster, and spoke into it.

"This is Commander Randolph Donnelly," he said into the device, "Under the Failsafe Protocol-564, I have terminated Montgomery Scott-A-12520." A look of remorse came over Donnelly's face. He put the phaser and recording device back to his holster. Suddenly there was a bright flash and Q appeared.

"Tell me again, Q; this is the only way," Donnelly said to Q.

"Unfortunately, yes," Q replied. "That ship is in area that my powers can no longer touch. The ship, and the people on it, must be eliminated or the very fabric of this reality will be ripped apart. Generally I would have taken this to Picard, or maybe even Janeway."

"But you didn't," Donnelly cut in with, "because you knew those two would never condone murder to fix the Continuum's screw-ups from the past. The only reason I am doing this is because you went to the Federation President with this. He had to find someone to do the dirty work, and they dredged up crap on me, and then dangled a Starship command to sweeten the pot."

"And I love the codeword you gave this operation," Q said with a smile, "Operation Failsafe Protocol-564," Q chuckled. "What about the Cardassian?"

"Garak has no idea what is happening," Donnelly came back with. "And if all goes as planned, that ship, and those people, will no longer exist."

"Good," Q said after a moment.

"What about McCoy?" Donnelly asked. "We both know he's out there, and now Kirk and Spock know that he exists; what are you going to do about him?"

Q shook his head.

"How I hate those two do-gooders; Kirk and Spock." Q whined. "Did you know that I even tried to eliminate Kirk a few months back, by throwing him into the Nexus, but only made the matter worse? That man, Kirk, WILL SIMPLY NOT DIE!" Q took a deep breath. "But, for now, I don't see McCoy as a concern; he doesn't even know who he is. And if events would just go my way for once, he's going to be killed on a desolate world and the matter will be taken care of naturally."

"What about Harrison Riker?" Donnelly asked, with doubt in his voice. "What if he shows up?"

"Don't worry about Riker," Q said, with absolution, "he chose death and I gave it to him. Once this matter with the Enterprise is dealt with, and the Cardassian is gone as well, all of these loose ends will be tied up."

Donnelly nodded.

"All we have to do," Q continued to say, "is hope that the Cardassian doesn't come back soon. The Sporocystian energy will eventually do what I can't do, and that will be that."

"How long do I wait?" Donnelly asked. "If all this happens outside of time; then we might never know."

"Oh, that is quite true; we'll know," Q corrected Donnelly. "And when I find it's been done, I'll tell you."

And with that…Q was gone.

Continued…


	277. Here We Go reissue of 115

The Naissance…

This is a giant Dyson-sphere that is now Federation property. It is not the same one where Picard and company found Scotty's crashed ship (the TNG episode "Relics"). This one is somewhat a smaller. A large part of our story took place inside of the Naissance…her e is a classic "re-release" issue. I have been doing these for newer readers who might like to catch up on an old plot.

In this part of our story, the Jim Kirk who is featured was still the Jim Kirk who had been created due to a Transporter accident, and was found to be still living on the planet Timus…

**James T Kirk: The Next Generation **

**ISSUE #115**

**Here We Go…PART ONE**

**Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere…**

**The Klingon D7 cruiser in high orbit above the main compound…**

The Klingons had given the D7 battle cruiser to the Federation, or to be more precise, Martok gave it to Janeway out of a favor he owed to his new friend Jim Kirk. Kirk had been very instrumental in saving the Chancellor's life, and so, when Admiral Janeway asked if the Klingons could spare a ship for Project Naissance, Martok decided to repay his debt to Kirk via giving the ship to Janeway.

And now that ship was Captain Jonathan Canary's to command. Since the D7 didn't have a Star Fleet designation, Canary decided that sinec he was the ship's first Star Fleet captain, he would name it. At first he wanted to name it the Red Bitch, however, he knew Janeway would never have approved. So, after getting another bottle of scotch, after Janeway had confiscated the previous one, Canary and Scotty made their way down to the bowels of the D7, where no one could find them, to discuss the issue of naming the ship.

They bantered about several names, amid several shot glasses of scotch. After each name they came up with, Canary scribbled it down on wrinkled piece of paper. After about an hour of coming up with names, they had ten on their list. Most of them were, unfortunately, either curse words or derivatives of women sexual body parts. However, there were two names that were devoid of such language.

"I like that one," Scotty said, as he leaned over and looked at the list, with a slight burp escaping his mouth.

"Whew," Canary said, fanning the scotch tainted aroma he smelt, "we better get some Lisnterine before Janeway or Spock …" (Nice to see Listerine is still in existence in the 24th century. I should buy some stock!)

"S'vath," Scotty corrected him.

"…S'vath finds the two of us."

"They can wait," Scotty said. "So what about that one; Emprenda," Scotty said softly, reading from the list. "It has a note of class."

"It's Spanish," Canary reminded him, "not Scottish."

Scotty stuck out his tongue and made the all too famous sound of "ppppssstpsptpstpstp…."

"What was that for?" Canary asked with a chuckle, as he was sprayed by the older man's spit.

"We Scottish can build ana'thing," Scotty said, proudly, "but when it comes to naming ships? We couldn't name a wheel barrel."

Canary was about to respond when the alert klaxon sounded.

"Red Alert," the voice of S'vath could be heard saying, "Captain Canary to the bridge."

"How can we have a red alert inside of a Dysonsphere?" Scotty asked, as he and Canary made their way to the nearest Turbo-lift. Then, as they walked on, Scotty thought about what happened when he and Geordi Leforge had to rescue the Enterprise-D from another Dysonsphere, "oh crap," Scotty sighed, "this could get ugly."

**Earth**

**Star Fleet Academy**

Jim Kirk, having finished the tour of Star Fleet Academy, followed the directions given to him to Lal's and Rebecca's quarters. He hoped the others hadn't eaten dinner yet because he was hungry. As he made his way across the campus, up ahead he saw three others walking, and recognized one of them immediately.

"Spock," Kirk called out.

Spock, Elizabeth Pike and Geordi Leforge all came to a stop and turned to see who had called out for Spock.

"What are you doing here?" Kirk asked as he caught up with them. "Is this Elizabeth Pike?" Kirk also asked, as he looked at the beautiful woman who was with Spock.

"Yes I am," Elizabeth said with a smile. "You must be James T Kirk. My father told me much about you."

"You're father was Christopher Pike?" Kirk asked. "Spock told me as much in a message he sent me, but seeing you here, right in front of me, makes it so hard to believe."

"Jim," Spock said, "you, of all people, should understand the uncertainly of space and time. She is indeed Captain Pike's daughter, and, she has proved to be valuable in my investigation."

"Spock," Kirk said, in a quiet tone, the denoted doubt in tone, "you're not still clinging to the notion that Nog is still alive are you?"

The mention of Nog brought a look of doubt on Leforge's face.

"Ambassador Spock," Geordi Leforge said, "is that what this is all about?"

"Yes Mr. Leforge," Spock said. "I no longer believe that Commander Nog died on the Enterprise when it exploded inside of the Planet Killer."

"What do you base that on?" Leforge asked.

"He's your friend," Elizabeth Pike cut in, with her words aimed at Kirk. "Why don't you just trust him?"

Kirk thought for a moment, and came to the conclusion that she was right.

"Alright Spock," Kirk said, "I believe you. Just tell me what you want us to do, and we'll do it."

Spock was about to explain his plan when Leforge cut in.

"Hey guys," Leforge said with a smile on his face, "I know you two are living legends and all, but I just can't suddenly dismiss the doubts I have," Leforge said. Then he turned to Spock, "Does this have something to do with the TX-z neutrons we found in Rebecca Sisko's quarters?"

"Indeed," Spock said. "When the Enterprise exploded, I was in an indirect mind-meld with the Keeper on Talos IV."

"I thought you told me that the Keeper died," Kirk interjected.

"The Keeper is indeed dead; this was before the Keeper had died," Spock said to Kirk. "I never believed Nog was dead because through the entire cycle of events, while I was in the meld with the Keeper, the Keeper was controlling Nog's mind, thus, I could sense the Ferengi's mind with mine."

"The Keeper did this all the way from Talos IV," Leforge asked with a tone of skepticism in his voice.

"Trust me," Elizabeth Pike said to Leforge, "the keeper had extraordinary abilities."

"Go on," Kirk said to Spock.

"After the Enterprise exploded, and sometime later, Elizabeth and I returned to Talos IV. We found the Keeper, near death. Just before dying, the Keeper told me that Nog had not died, and that somehow he had been taken off of the Enterprise."

"The Planet Killer's hull is made of solid neutronium," Leforge countered, "There is absolutely no way a transporter beam could have beamed him off of the Enterprise, when it was inside of the Planet Killer." Then Leforge snapped his finger. "The TX-z neutrinos; you believe Nog was taken off of the Enterprise by way of a quantum singularity, just like the one that appeared here at the Academy, in the quarters shared by Rebecca and Lal."

"Precisely," Spock said. "TX-z neutrinos are specific to the quantum singularities that create them. When Elizabeth Pike and I returned to the area of space where the Enterprise and the Planet Killer were destroyed, we found trace readings of TX-z neutrinos."

"And when you heard about the one here, you wanted to check if the two matched," Leforge concluded for Spock.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Kirk asked with a smile. "Besides, I'm supposed to be here visiting with Ben and his family."

"Follow me," Leforge said.

As Kirk and the others made their way toward the dorms, they were unaware that they were being followed; followed by Nog!

continued...in issue #116!


	278. If Only

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (NEW COVER ART AT MY PROFILE…featuring Colt MaCahan!)**

**If Only…**

_Previously…_

_When his spacebike suffered a malfunction, Colt (Leonard McCoy) MaCahan crash landed on an obscure world, and was severely injured. A little peasant girl named Corvana pulled Colt from his wreckage, and using her horse to pull him on a tarp, she took him to her home and hid him in a barn. Later that night, when her father returns, Corvana pleads with Colt to remain silent. She tells Colt that her father is vile, and would no doubt kill Colt. Colt looks through the window shades and sees the brutish looking man who takes pleasure in whipping his wife and daughter. Colt also gets the sense that the man has obscene desires for his own daughter._

_Our story continues…_

It had been three days since Colt had crashed on the planet. Corvana had been able to smuggle Colt some bread and water, and a few cups of gravy. Each morning the same routine would happen. Corvana would come out to the barn and ready her father's horse. Her father, his name was Taran, would ride off to the mines which were four miles away, and he would return after sundown.

Colt got a few glimpses of Corvana's mother; Cella. Cella had simple looks, but Colt could tell that at one time in her life; Cella had been a beautiful woman.

Although their lives were hard, and they were poor and had very little possessions, it was clear that Corvana and her mother were doing their best to survive.

It was mid morning when Corvana came into the barn with a slice of bread, a cup of gravy, and some water. Colt's ankle was still too sore to walk on, but the dizziness from the concussion had started to subside. Corvana sat on a stool next to the bed Colt was laying on. She watched him eat.

"I'm sorry we don't have more to give you," Corvana said.

"It's alright," Colt said with a smile. "You pretty much saved my life, and I'm sure it hasn't been easy getting me the food and water you've brought. But," Colt said as he looked down at his ankle, "I think I'm going to try and see if I can put some weight on that ankle of mine."

"I will help you," Corvana said with a smile. "I think my mother has an old pair of crutches in our house. I'll sneak them out here in a little while."

"Great," Colt said.

She watched as Colt took a bite from his bread.

"You never say much about yourself," Corvana said, after a moment. "I know your name is Colt, but other than that, I know nothing more."

Colt sipped on his water, and then smiled at the girl.

"It's funny that you should ask that question," Colt said after a moment. "Would it surprise if I said I may actually be two different people?"

Corvana giggled.

"What does that mean," she asked as Colt handed her the empty plate.

Colt didn't want to worry her by telling her of his smuggling past, and the vagabond existence he had lived over the past couple months.

"Well," Colt replied, "I've lived a," he searched for the best word, "nomad existence."

"Does that mean you don't have a wife and kids?" Corvana came back with.

"I think so," Colt explained. "But, then again, I seem to have a problem remembering much that I have done. But just before I crash landed on this world, I met two men (Kirk and Spock) who claimed I am someone else; a doctor no less."

"You're a doctor?" Corvana asked with a broad smile on her face. "I think, in the entire area, there is but one doctor, and he's very old."

"Well, like I said, my memory is shot, so I have no idea what it takes to be a doctor," Colt said, "and for all I know, those two men could have been lying," Colt said. "Now," Colt said, after a moment, "why don't you see about getting those crutches?"

Corvana smiled and then she stood up.

"I'll go get them now," she said, as she took the dishes and headed toward the barn door.

When she got to the barn door and opened, she found her mom standing at the door.

"I heard you talking with someone in there," Cella said to her daughter. "Who is in here with you?"

Before Corvana could answer, Cella charged past her and into the barn. Corvana ran after her.

"Mama," Corvana said, "I was just talking to the animals like I always do."

Cella had a determined look on her face, and looked at her daughter.

"Don't lie to me," Cella said. "Or I will certainly have your father use his belt on you!"

And then, as she approached the back area of the barn, where a there was a cot, Cella saw Colt MaCahan. Immediately feeling threatened, Cella grabbed a pitch-fork and came after Colt.

"Mister, I want you out of this barn," Cella said, "and if you've touched my daughter, I will kill you!"

Corvana ran past her mother, and put herself between her mother and Colt, with the pitch-fork aimed right at her.

"Mama," Corvana pleaded, "he is injured. I found him by the pond, and I have been nursing him back to health. His name is Colt."

"Corvana," Cella said to her daughter, as she lowered the pitch-fork, "if your father finds out this man is here, he…"

"I know," Corvana said, as tears came down from her eyes, "but I couldn't just leave him there where I found him. The night animals would have gotten to him and he'd be dead."

"I don't want to be the cause of trouble," Colt said as he struggled to stand. "I'll leave immediately."

But as he tried to stand, Colt fell back to the ground. Corvana and Cella ran to his side, and helped Colt back on to the cot. As Colt and Cella looked at each other, Corvana saw that, for a brief instant, there was a mutual attraction between the two of them.

"Well," Cella said, as she dusted herself off, "you can stay. But hear these words; if my husband finds you, he will kill you. And I can't imagine what he would do to Corvana," she added. "Corvana," Cella said to her daughter, "go to the house and fetch Colt some clothes. The ones he is wearing need cleaning."

Corvana nodded her head, and then headed away. She looked back for an instant and watched as her mother sat down next to Colt; and then Corvana smiled again. Perhaps it was nothing more than a simple wish that could never come true, but Corvana could sense that her mother and Colt could be happy together. If only…

After changing out of his clothes, and putting on some spares, Colt took to the crutches. He had help steadying himself from Corvana, and under the watchful eyes of her mother Cella, Colt began to rehabilitate his ankle. There were a couple times he fell, but strategic placing of hay had cushioned Colt's fall. A few of the falls caused Corvana and Cella to laugh, as well as Colt. As Colt watched the mom and daughter laugh, he had a sense that laughter wasn't something they knew often. He was right…

Later, as evening came, Taran was coming back home after a long day of work at the mineshaft. It had also been payday, and so with his small smitten of coinage, Taran had stopped by the general store where he had bought some spirits. The alcohol was affecting his mind, and during the long ride back home on his horse, Taran's vile thoughts turned to his daughter; Corvana. As he sipped on the bottle of hard liquor, and the horse trotted past the pond, his eyes caught a reflection. He stopped his horse, and climbed down, well more like, fell off the horse, due to his drunkenness.

He stumbled toward the reflection and found a pile of branches stacked on something. He pulled a few of the branches off and found what appeared to be some sort of vehicle; a spacebike. Someone had hidden it there; but who? He covered the spacebike with the branches. It was his plan to return the next day and see about dismantling the bike so as to sell its parts for as much as he could.

After several attempts, Taran was able to mount the horse, and continued on his way; toward home. Once again his thoughts turned to his daughter, and he smiled fiendishly.

"Tonight," Taran said to the image of Corvana in his mind, "After the belt, I will make you into a woman."

And as he rode on, he tossed the empty bottle of hard liquor off to the side of the dirt path; anxious to get home to act on his sick desire.

**Planet Vulcan…**

Ambassador Spock and his new wife, Elizabeth Pike, were finally reunited after he had left Vulcan to investigate the matter of the hieroglyphics that had been round on Romulas. With that issue settled, for now, Spock was content to spend time with Elizabeth at the home. On the second morning of his return, Spock opened his eyes and found his wife sitting next to him on their bed. She was smiling down at her husband, with a smile that was more broad than usual.

"You look beautiful," Spock said, as he brought his hand up and caressed her left cheek.

"I love staring down at you when you are sleeping, Elizabeth said. "You look so content. But on this morning, I hope you will be happy."

"Elizabeth," Spock said, as he sat up in bed, "you should know, by now, that as a Vulcan, happiness is just another state of mind. One need not be, as you would say, giddy with excitement."

"Unless that person was to find out," Elizabeth began to say, "they were soon to be a father."

Spock was indeed wrong; for he smiled.

Continued…


	279. The Currents

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**The Currents may Shift…**

**The Naissance…**

Benjamin Sisko and Admiral Kate Janeway walked through the busy Promenade. The admiral had convinced Ben Sisko, and his wife Kasidy, to remain for a couple more days so she could visit with them, though the true reason she had asked them to stay she was about to reveal to Ben Sisko as the two of them made their way from the Promenade to the large botanical area located near the giant food court.

Sisko was impressed by the vast amount of plant life that was on display in the botanical garden. Most of the plant life had come from worlds that no longer existed; the Naissance Project was doing exactly what it had been created to do; saving endangered species, and bringing them to the Dysonsphere.

"This garden is truly amazing," Ben Sisko said to Admiral Janeway. "Though I can help but believe you've brought me here to do more than look at flowers."

"I was that obvious?" Janeway asked with a coy smile.

"I've known you for many years now," Ben told her, "and I can tell when you've got something else on your mind. In fact, before he left for Earth an hour ago, Jim Kirk warned me that even he could detect something going on with you."

"I want you to stay here, on the Naissance," Janeway said, cutting to the point. "I am about to leave on a very secret mission, and I wouldn't trust anyone to run this place other than you. You know Julian Bashir as well as anyone, and he wouldn't trust anyone to just come in and take over."

"Kate," Ben said, "I am not in Starfleet any longer, you know this."

"I have already talked to Star Fleet," Janeway said to Sisko. "They have agreed to reactivate your commission, and promote you to the rank of Admiral during the duration of me mission."

"Star Fleet and I never really saw eye to eye during my time on DS9," Sisko told her, "and they are willing to forget that history?"

"Not at first; however," Janeway said, "I managed to accidentally send my recommendation through a Klingon relay station near the Naissance. Needless to say, Chancellor Martok got wind of my recommendation of your temporary reassignment, and let's just put it this way; Star Fleet was okay with it."

"I might have known," Sisko said with a smile. "Kate; just where are you going?" Sisko asked. "Does it have something to do with the Daystrom android my daughter encountered on Drobix?"

"It's a totally unrelated matter," Janeway replied, "but while we're on the subject, I need you to keep the matter of the Daystrom android secret, for now."

"How long will you be gone?" Sisko asked. "If you recall, I am the mayor of Summit Grove on the planet Timus."

"I'm sure Summit Grove and do without you for a little while longer," Janeway said, "besides, and don't get mad at me for telling you this, but I already asked Kasidy if she' d like to stay her for a little while; close to Rebecca during her first assignment."

"That's hitting below the belt," Sisko said with a knowing smile.

"True, but needless to say," Janeway added with a chuckle, "she wants to stay."

"Aright, I'll stay," Sisko said after a moment.

"Great, and trust me," Janeway said, "Bashir and his science teams really do most of the work. And, I just got word from Jean-Luc that Captain Jonathan Canary is returning, so the Emprenda will have her CO back. It will be like a vacation for you and Kasidy."

"How long will it be until you leave," Ben Sisko asked as they ended up near a massive window that looked out upon the massive insides of the Naissance. The star, which was at the direct center of the enclosed Naissance, could be seen shining in the distance as well.

"Tomorrow," Janeway replied. "Captain Tom Paris will be arriving with the Delta-Flyer 2."

"I know enough about the Delta-Flyer 2 to know that if you're using her," Sisko said, "you're either going somewhere very far, or somewhere you're not supposed to be."

"I wish I could tell you more," Janeway said, "and I wished I could have brought your or Jim along with me; but this is something I have to do."

Sisko stopped walking, causing Janeway to face him head on.

"You are beginning to warn me, Kate. You're making this mission sound like the one way variety," Sisko said to his close friend.

Janeway arched an eyebrow and kept on walking. Sisko could only wonder what the mission was, but although he felt worried about Admiral Kathryn Janeway's future, he also know that her ability to escape death was just about as legendary as Jim Kirk's.

* * *

**Planet Vulcan****…the medical complex located in the Shikahr providence. **

Ambassador Spock and his wife Elizabeth, who was pregnant with their baby, exited the examination center, and they had both heard great news. The baby she was carrying inside of her was healthy; and it was girl. They were about to leave the complex when someone they knew very well came up to them; Ambassador Picard.

"Ambassador Picard," Spock said, as he rendered the Vulcan hand salute, "it is good to see you."

"I was worried, since I've been gone for so long," Picard said with a smile, "that I was going to be relieved from my duty as Earth's Ambassador to Vulcan," Picard added with a slight chuckle. "I heard the news about the baby," Picard added, "congratulations."

"We had hoped to keep the pregnancy secret," Spock said to Picard, "however, I have found out recently that the human need to spread," he paused to find the right word, "gossip may not be indigenous to Earthlings alone."

"Well, you let know if you need anything," Picard said to Elizabeth.

"Thank you, I will," Elizabeth said with a smile. "The gardens up here on Vulcan have never got the knack of growing pickles."

As the three friends made their way down the walkway, someone else entered the medical complex and made their way to one of the access computers that were spread throughout the complex. After bypassing many security measures, the person was able to tap into the data files, and soon the medical conditions of Elizabeth Pike and the baby inside of her were displayed.

Continued…and next time...Cardassian is assmiliated!


	280. A Father's Game

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**A Father's Game**

**The Naissance…**

Generally, the food-court inside the large Star Fleet complex of the Naissance was busy with dozens and dozens of shoppers and visitors, and the sounds of the large crowds was that of excitement. But not on this day; there was very little conversation going on due to the terrible images being displayed on the various monitors located throughout the food-court; the Borg had attacked Cardassia.

Images of all sorts had been recorded, but the destruction was the same. The massive cube vessel, twice as large as the one that had attacked Earth decades ago, sliced the planet up. The Cardassian defense fleet could be seen in several images attacking the Cube, but to no avail. Admiral Benjamin Sisko, whose commission had recently been reactivated, had stared at the carnage being transmitted on the monitors.

Admiral Sisko had come to one of the small cafes on the food-court for some hot brewed coffee when the News Bulletins had first started. The café was owned by a Nausicaan named Huak'tha. One wouldn't normally associate a Nausicaan with the mundane task of owning a café, but it just goes to prove; prejudice was still alive and well in the universe.

After getting a cup of coffee, Sisko sat at one of the small tables where he was soon joined by Commander Julian Bashir. Bashir shook his head as he saw the repeating images of the Borg attack on Cardassia.

"I hope Garak wasn't there when it happened," Bashir said. "When was the last time you saw him?"

Sisko had to think for a moment.

"The last time I saw Garak," Sisko said, after thinking back for a moment, "he had left Timus to investigate a man named Harrison Riker. He was friend of mine, and Jim Kirk's, but more and more his existence was becoming an enigma. But Riker was killed during the attempt on my life, and I haven't seen Garak since that time. But if I know our friend Garak," Sisko said, as he sipped from his coffee, "he will show up sooner or later."

"I assume after this," Bashir said, motioning at the images on the screen, "Star Fleet will reinstate the fleet wide yellow alert."

"You can bet on it, which means," Sisko said, "the Emprenda will have to remain here inside the Naissance until all of this blows over. I have already informed Captain Canary to cancel today's operations."

"What about Admiral Janeway and her mission," Bashir asked.

"Her party left the Naissance seven hours ago," Sisko replied.

"Do you have any idea what sort of secret mission she is on?" Bashir asked as he sipped on his cup of green tea.

"She didn't tell me much, due to its classified nature, only that it has something to do with an incident that happened while Voyager was in the Delta-Quadrant," Sisko said. "So, Julian, how have you been?" Sisko asked. "I heard things didn't work out between you and Ezri."

"She found her career here on the Naissance to pedantic," Bashir replied, with a smile as he thought back on his time with Ezri. "I couldn't blame her for wanting to continue her Star Fleet career aboard a Starship. We thought it was best for the both of us to go our own ways. But," he added with a cheerful tone to his voice, "we're still good friends, and that's all that matters. Now, enough about me, what about you? You're a mayor?"

Sisko smiled. Both he and Bashir looked up at the screen. The views of destruction were replaced by an announcement informing all viewers that a message was coming from the President of the Federation. And, seconds later, the image on the screen faded into a view of the President sitting at his desk on Earth; the Eifel Tower could be seen in the window, far off in the distance.

The current President of the Federation was a woman from Earth, and her name was Pauline Jefferies. She had served for many years as a Federation Council member, representing Earth.

As the President prepared to speak, the food-court was abounded with "hush" pleas from those who wanted to hear what she had to say.

"_Fellow citizens," President Jefferies said, with a pleasant tone to her voice, "as you are all aware of, the Borg have attacked and have devastated the home world of the Cardassians. The Federation has dispatched relief efforts, and working with the Romulans, we are bringing relief supplies as fast as we can. This is the second Borg attack in recent weeks, the previous one being their attack in Gorn space. I want to assure everyone that Star Fleet is doing its best to confront this threat. I hope to have more information for you in the future. Please, follow the travel restrictions that have been reinstated for your own safety. Thank you…"_

The President's image was replaced by continuing coverage of the Borg attack on Cardassia

"I'm confused," Julian said to Sisko, "I thought it was reported that the Borg vessel was destroyed in the Nimath system just a few days ago."

"As did I," Sisko said after a moment. "I just hope this isn't the precursor for a war with the Borg. I'm not sure how that would end for us."

The two men continued to watch the news coverage.

* * *

**The Delta Flyer III was speeding through space**. The ship, over the past three years, had been built to the specs drawn up by Captain Tom Paris, who was piloting the craft as well. It was twice as large as the Delta Flyer II, and had a larger passenger cabin. Sitting in the central cabin were Admiral Kathryn Janeway, Annika Hansen, Neelix, Dr. (the Doc) Zimmerman, Dr. Walter Bishop and the Romulan woman named Vaarim R'mor. They had all just seen the images of Cardassia. A look of worry was on Annika's face.

"None of this was your fault," Neelix told the former Borg drone. "There's nothing you could have done to stop it."

"Fredric warned me that Cardassia was going to be attacked by the Borg," Annika said.

"And that warning was sent to the Cardassians," Janeway reminded Annika. "After the Borg ship was destroyed in the Nimath system, the Cardassians probably assumed it had been the Borg vessel that had attacked the Gorn, and for all we know, it was. Unfortunately, as we are all painfully aware of, the Delta-Quadrant was swarming with Borg vessels, so there is no reason that more than one could be at play here in the Alpha-Quadrant."

"Excuse me Admiral," Walter Bishop said, "but where exactly are we going? And who is this individual Fredric Thorn and how does any of this involve Varrim?" Walter looked over at Varrim, and wanted to tell her that her beauty was causing him to have an erection, but decided against telling her; for now.

"I'm glad you asked," Janeway said to Bishop, "Several years ago, while Voyager was stranded in the Delta-Quadrant, we made contact, via a subspace conduit, with a Romulan scientist in the Delta-Quadrant. That Romulan was Varrim's father."

"I see," Walter said.

"However," Janeway continued, "the conduit was also tunneling through time. So when we made contact with her father, it was twenty years in the past. He had promised to pass on messages to our families after Voyager was thrown to the Delta-Quadrant so as not to contaminate the timeline. Her father died before he could pass those messages on. However, it appears that is not the entire story."

Janeway nodded to Varrim.

"My father did not just happen to be at those coordinates to receive that message from Voyager, all those years ago," Varrim explained. "My mother, myself, and my siblings, had been kidnapped. We were freed after my father had made contact with Voyager."

"If I understand you correctly," Bishop said, "your father was coerced to those coordinates. That would imply that who was ever behind your father being there, had knowledge of the message's existence from the future."

"Yes," Annika said, before either Varrim or Janeway could respond. "And the man, who had orchestrated those events, the kidnapping of Varrim and her mother and siblings, and coercion of her father, was Fredric Thorn."

"And this Fredric Thorn is the same individual," Walter began to ask, "who abducted you, and told you that not only would you be assimilated by the Borg, and you would oversee the assimilation of all of Earth."

Annika didn't respond; she only nodded her head. She looked directly at Walter Bishop.

"Did you know my father; Magnus Hansen?" Annika asked.

"Yes I did," Walter said, softly. "Your father was a rebel scientist, meaning that much of his studies were considered archaic by other scientists; the elite. I can tell that I was not one of them. Your father had his quirks, but we all do."

"Dr. Bishop; do you believe," Janeway interjected, "that Annika's father would actively support Borg efforts to assimilate Earth?"

"As I said, Admiral, Magnus did not get along with the scientific community," Walter replied, "hell, neither did I, but I do not believe he would ever support anything like supporting the Borg."

"Admiral," Neelix said, "I am still wondering what you are trying to accomplish? Where are we going?"

"Mr. Bishop," Janeway said to Walter, "could you please tell the others what you told me moments ago when we discussed the recent Borg attack on Cardassia and their attack on the Gorn birthing world."

"The Cardassians and the Gorn are both reptilian species," Bishop explained. "I believe the Borg have become fascinated with the reptilian brain, and more specifically, how instinct is wrapped around the physiology of memory imprinting. Interestingly enough," Walter said to Annika, "your father studied the reptilian brain extensively. It is possible that your father's knowledge is being corrupted by the Borg."

"Or," Neelix interrupted, "isn't it possible he is still alive? The last time you saw your father he was a drone."

"But I thought his the cube he was on was destroyed," Dr. Zimmerman said.

"Maybe he survived," Neelix added.

"Fredric told me that my father was still alive in his visions of the future, so if that is the case, then my father is behind all of this," Annika said. "My father is helping the Borg!" It was apparent that Annika was tormented by the fact that her father was possibly aiding the Borg.

"Annika; we don't know that," Janeway said to Annika. "Many years ago, Jean-Luc Picard was assimilated by the Borg and his knowledge was used to wipe out the Star Fleet armada at Wolf-359. But no one would ever accuse Picard of treason," Janeway said with a smile, "and as for your question, Neelix, as to where we are going; we are going inside of Romulan territory to cash in a marker."

"Doesn't that sound like fun?" Tom Paris said from the pilot's seat, "Admiral, we have entered Romulan as space as of five minutes ago."

"Are you out of your mind?" Doc Zimmerman asked Janeway. "We could be captured."

Janeway smiled, "as Mr. Tuvok would say, if he were here, there are always possibilities."

Continued….


	281. The Thunder of Justice

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (ALL NEW COVER ART AT MY PROFILE)**

**The Thunder of Justice**

_In his dream, he was looking into the eyes of a beautiful woman; her name was Natira. What she didn't know was that her world existed inside a giant asteroid, and it was on a collision course with a planet. But one thing he knew above all else was that he loved her, he loved Natira. All of this was happening while he had just found out that his life was soon to end; he was dying. And then suddenly…there was a scream!_

Colt (Leonard McCoy) MaCahan opened his eyes as the scream penetrated his thoughts. But he didn't want to let go of the dream he had just been having. The image of the woman, Natira, was still locked inside the deep reaches of his mind. Were they the memories of a man named Leonard McCoy? Were the two strangers he had met on Starbase 185 (Kirk and Spock) telling him the truth? But then there came another scream, and Colt recognized the voice; it was Corvana's!

Colt struggled to his feet and slid his bed to the side. Corvana, when she had found Colt badly injured in the nearby woods, had hid his guns beneath the bed, so that her mom would not take them. He removed three blocks of woods, and then pulled out one of his shotguns; an A. H. Fox Sterlingworth 12 Gage, with ramping shoulder butt. It had been built in the early 21st century, but still worked like a charm. He cracked open the weapon, and made sure it was loaded, and then he reached for the crutches by the side of his bed. But as he looked back down at the area where the guns were hid, he noticed something; one of them was gone.

Moments ago, Inside Corvana's home was a scene straight out of hell. Taran had come home late, and was very drunk. He had a mad lust in his eyes. So, with a bottle of hard liquor grasped in his left hand, he made his way toward his daughter's room. Corvana slept in her bed, unaware of what was to come. She was awakened by the pounding on her door; she closed her eyes, her heart thumping very fast, and pretended to sleep. She turned her head away from the door, just as it swung open.

"Corvana," she heard her father say, "I know you're not sleeping. You're 12 years old now; sweetie. By law, it states that you are a woman!"

Corvana closed her eyes, and tears of fear began to stream down from them, for she knew what her father had in mind. And then she heard a sound that she knew very well; the slithering sound her father's belt made as he slid it through the loops on his trousers, removing it.

"I know you girl," Taran said, as he removed his belt, "I know you must have done something bad today that your mama hasn't told me about, yet. So, here's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna your take clothes off and then I'm gonna whip you good, and then I'm gonna to make you feel better by making you a woman. All women need to know the belt and the pleasure it can bring afterward."

Corvana closed her eyes even tighter as she heard the wood of the floor creak as her father neared her bed.

"ROLL OVER!" He demanded.

Corvana did as he demanded, and looked up at her father, and saw the rage and lust burning in his eyes. And then, suddenly, Corvana's mother, Cella, stepped into the room. She walked over to the dresser that had a small mirror where Corvana would sit to brush her hair. Taran turned to face his wife.

"What are you doing woman?" Taran demanded. "You came to watch me learn to her how to satisfy the needs of a man," he added with lust in his voice, "didn't you?"

And then Cella brought her hand up from her side, and she was holding a gun.

"I won't let you do this to our daughter," Cella said, as her hand trembled.

Taran stepped closer, but Cella pointed the gun straight at him.

"That is the law of our land, woman," Taran said. "When a girl reaches the age of 12, it is the father's obligation to take her virginity, just as your father took yours."

Cella shook her head.

"Maybe that is our way," Cella looked, "but I won't let it happen to her!"

In her moment of hesitation, Taran swung the heavy belt, and it lashed across Cella's face, causing her to scream, and then she dropped the gun. Cella fell to the ground as Taran kicked the gun away. He stared down at his wife, as she trembled on the floor next to the dresser.

"Stay there on the floor if you know what is good for you," Taran said, as the stink of his alcohol scented breath spat down on her. "When I'm done with her, I'm gonna whip you until the sun comes up."

And then Taran turned to face Corvana, who was staring up at him with absolute terror in her eyes.

"Take off your clothes, Corvana, or I'll start whipping your mom right now," he raised the belt up, threatening to strike Cella with it.

And then, at that moment, Colt MaCahan stepped into the room. Taran looked over at Colt.

"Who the hell are you?" Taran demanded.

Colt put all his weight on the left side crutch, and then he raised his right arm, where he couched the menacing looking shotgun.

"Mister," Colt said, with a low guttural, "I'm the man who is going to blow you away."

And then Colt fired the shotgun; the blast threw Taran across the room, and smashed him into the wall; killing him instantly. Before anyone could say anything, the house began to rumble and quake. Colt ran over to the window of Corvana's room as Cella ran over to her daughter to make sure she was alright.

Colt looked out the window and saw a small spacecraft landing in the area between the house and the barn. Colt recognized the ship immediately; it belonged to G'oneth; the Gorn who had killed Colt's Ferengi friends; Ombox and Tokbie.

Continued…


	282. Opening Credits

Opening credits!...

I have written some music and created an opening credits video for STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT. I grew up in an era when all they showed were the names of the characters in the opening credits, so I have done that here. I also wrote the music and at the very end does a little TOS "star trek music" cameo at the end…

The link can be found at my profile. Just copy and paste it into your browser. I will try to include it in this message, but it will probably be edited out when I send this message out…so check my profile.

/CX52RppIpyg


	283. What Life Can Throw At You

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (OPENING CREDITS can be accessed at my profile...just follow the link)**

**What Life can Throw At You**

**Earth...San Francisco**

The massive hotel complex, which was located in downtown San Francisco, was crowded with visitors. Some of them were officials, but most of the guests were tourists or visitors.

In the crowded reception area, Jim Kirk was pushing a hover-stroller which had his two small children in them; Mathew, who was three years old, and his baby sister Dahme who was a half year old. But Kirk wasn't the only one pushing a two-seater hover-stroller; S'vath was right by Kirk's side doing the same thing.

S'vath had two small children as well. One of them was a girl named Lenora, who was three years old, and was named in honor of Leonard McCoy. And the sitting next to Lenora was S'vath's one year old son; Sarek, named in honor of S'vath's grandfather. S'vath looked over at Kirk, and both men shared a helpless glance.

"It's hard to believe what life can throw our way," S'vath said to Kirk. "Just recently I almost died on Tantalus, and you found another version of Doctor McCoy (Kirk met Colt MaCahan several issues ago) and now here we are; pushing strollers while my wife is checking us in at the reception desk."

"I'm actually enjoying this," Kirk said. "Besides, it could be worse," Kirk said, as he looked up at one of the news monitors which were displaying relief efforts being attempted on the smashed world of Cardassia. Both men stopped pushing their strollers so as to look at the terrible images.

The Borg attack on Cardassia had left millions dead, and could have devastated the entire planet had the Borg not suddenly broken off the attack and left. A Star Fleet armada had arrived at Cardassia, but from what Jim Kirk had seen, he wasn't confident anything could stop the overwhelming power of the Borg. At that moment, Amanda, S'vath's wife, walked over to them.

"Our rooms are on the 35th floor," she explained.

"What about…" Kirk began to say, but Amanda cut him off.

"Don't worry Jim," Amanda said to Kirk, "I booked you and S'vath a shuttle flight to the Native-lands reception point in New Mexico. It leaves tomorrow at 8am."

"Are you sure you'll be able to handle your kids and mine?" Kirk asked. "I know it's a lot to ask."

"I'll be fine," Amanda, "besides; my older sister is going to help me out. You might like her Jim; she's blond like me and very," Amanda arched her eyebrows, "out going."

"Your sister has been married four times," S'vath said.

"But," Amanda added with a coy sound in her voice, "As I said; she's blond."

S'vath shook his head, not understanding the meaning of his wife's words. But no matter, with the rooms now theirs, Kirk and S'vath pushed the strollers toward the Transporter pad which would beam them to their 35th floor. As they made their way toward the Transporter, Kirk watched as Amanda held S'vath's hand, and the two kissed. It was very odd watching a Vulcan display affection in public, but Kirk liked that about S'vath, and it also showed that Spock was right; IDIC could be found even in the way Vulcans choose to live their lives.

* * *

Later that night, Jim Kirk was in his hotel room. His two children were soundly sleeping in their cribs. He was sitting at the living room table looking at computer monitor that had an image of Satangkai displayed on it. Suddenly there was a chime at Kirk's door.

"Come in," Kirk said, already having a prettying good idea as to who it was going to be; S'vath.

Kirk turned to face the door, to greet S'vath, but was surprised when someone else came in. The stranger was a dark skinned Vulcan.

"James T Kirk," the Vulcan said, "my name is Tuvok."

Kirk nodded his head. He remembered Spock telling him about the Vulcan named Tuvok. Apparently the Vulcan had known Satangkai for many years. Kirk stood up and went over to where Tuvok entered the room at.

"It is nice to meet you, please come in and sit down," Kirk told Tuvok. "Spock has spoken well of you. In fact, from what I understand, you had your own dealings with Sybok in recent years."**

(**_circa issue #132)_

The two went over to the two couches and sat down on them.

"Yes, unfortunately that is the case," Tuvok said. "Sybok possessed the most powerful mind I had ever encountered with a fellow Vulcan. Suffice to say, I was overwhelmed. Ambassador Spock has told me of many of the adventures the both of shared in the past. I must say that I am honored to finally meet you."

"Thank you," Kirk said. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Actually, I believe I can be of assistance to you." Tuvok replied. "Spock informed me that you were coming here to Earth to meet your son; Satangkai."

"Yes, I have," Kirk said back to Tuvok. "I know he is very old, but I just need to see him once; just to explain why I was never there for him."

"Believe me; he knows," Tuvok said. "By now you must be aware of the fact that Leonard McCoy and Christine Chapel kept his existence to you a secret."

"Oh, believe me," Kirk replied, as he thought for a moment. "But trust me when I tell you," Kirk said to Tuvok with seriousness in his voice, "I don't blame them for doing what they did. But his mother, Miramawnee, died giving birth to him; and I never came back, I want him to know that I would have, had I know he survived. Did he know I was his father the whole time?"

"Yes," Tuvok said after a moment. "He once said to me that the truth was revealed to him at a young age."

"Why didn't he ever try to contact me?" Kirk asked.

"I believe those are answers only he can tell you," Tuvok said. "I hope you won't mind if I accompany you and S'vath to the Native-lands tomorrow."

"Sure," Kirk said as he nodded his head. "It might help having you there."

"I will be joined by a Star Fleet cadet named Tav, if you do not mind." Tuvok said.

"Sure; that is no problem at all," Kirk said; happy that Tuvok would becoming along.

"Then I will take my leave," Tuvok said as he walked to the door. But then he turned back to face Kirk before leaving.

"I suggest," Tuvok said, "that you look up the Star Fleet file that belongs to Tav. If you should change your mind, I will understand." He raised his hand and gave Kirk the customary Vulcan salute. "Live long and prosper." And with that, Tuvok left the hotel room.

Having no idea who Tav was, Jim Kirk went back to his seat on the couch and called up the Starfleet record on the young female Vulcan…

* * *

**THE FOLLOWING IS SHOWN VIA FLASHBACK….EPISODES #76 and #81**

_(At the time of this flashback, the Doomsday Machine was still where the Enterprise had deactivated it over a century earlier. A small two-person probe was assigned to study it…)_

From where he sat, Lt. Michael Donovan could literally see infinity. Without the filtering effects of an atmosphere, and being stationed on a two-person observation probe in the vastness of space, the amount of stars that could be seen was exactly that; endless. At least three or four times during the typical work day, Lt. Donovan was sure to be lost in just the beautiful array before him, just outside the probe's windows. Well, that was true on the aft side of the probe. The view on the forward part of the probe was something all together different; it was a view of hell!

The two man probe that Lt. Michael Donovan was assigned to was considered one of the most useless duty posts in all of Starfleet; a hundred or so years ago, that was not the case at all. The probe was now the last of an entire network of probes, nearly a hundred at full count, that had been arrayed in a spherical deployment around a very large object; the Planet Killer.

What was the Planet Killer? No one really knew. But after it had destroyed several solar systems, and had finally been deactivated by the actions of the crew of the Starship Enterprise, under the command of Captain Kirk, Starfleet saw fit to deploy a net of probes around the device to study it. The intense radiation levels precluded any internal study of the device. The radiations levels came from the Planet Killer's unique internal mechanisms, as well as the detonation of the USS Constellation inside of the Planet Killer's massive maul. Even at the tail end of the 24th, technology did not exist that allowed explorative teams to journey inside of the behemoth monstrosity. Unmanned probes, surface terrain and levitating varieties, had been sent in, but the intense radiation brought failure each time.

And so, as time drifted by, and the decades passed, Starfleet lost interest in the Planet Killer to where now only one observation probe remained. The Planet Killer had become nothing more than an asterisk in the yellowing pages of history. Occasionally a Star-Cruise liner would stop by, and allow the tourists to see it for themselves, but the awe of the Planet Killer had faded to where instead of a hundred probes, only one remained. Lt. Donovan hoped that one day something special might happen, an unexpected twist. The previous team had the great fortune of tracking a shuttle-craft that turned out to have had the legendary Captain Kirk aboard as a passenger. (readers will recall Kirk's brief visit to the Planet Killer during the Project Diamond plot.)

The two person probe had a very typical designation. On the outside, on the hull of the probe, were the proud (sarcastic) letters; OBERVATION PROBE VII-E7-RGEL-33F-7100. The probe had been manufactured in the mid 23rd century by the Vulcans. But after countless crews had occupied the probe, the drab Vulcan interiors had been re-painted or altered many times. The billet was for fourteen months, which meant for fourteen looooooooooong months, the two person crew had to entertain themselves, or study, or both, and hope that their partner was someone they could easily get along with. Lt. Donovan and his partner were in the seventh month, halfway point, of their deployment.

And so, as stated before, from where he sat, Lt. Michael Donovan could literally see infinity. Without the filtering effects of an atmosphere, and being stationed on a two-person observation probe in the vastness of space, the amount of stars that could be seen was exactly that; endless.

He had also become quite an artist. He would often pull out an old style sketching pad, and draw images of space, or even images of the Planet Killer. He had also brought his collection of antique science fiction paperback books; gifts handed down through the generations by his father, his grandfather, his great-grandfather, and so on. In fact, it was his great-great-great-great grandfather, who was also named Michael Donovan, and who had been a school teacher, who had started the tradition of handing down the books.

Lt. Donovan had brought nearly a hundred of the old science fiction books, but there were times he just liked to stare out into space and draw the stunning and abstract images his mind would create, using the template of the universe as a starting point.

"Lt. Donovan," a voice said from behind him.

Though, to be sure, it wasn't just a voice. It was the voice of the other person who occupied the probe; Lt. T'av (pronounced Tall V), a Vulcan female. When Lt. Donovan learned he was going to be stationed with a Vulcan, for no less than fourteen months, he cringed. Vulcans were not known for their social abilities, and Lt. T'av had done very little to change that perception. But there was one pleasing aspect about her, or at least, pleasing to Lt. Donovan; Lt. T'av was very attractive.

"Commander T'av," Donavan said back to here, "I have already begun to filter through the priority messages from Sector-17A. I should be sending them off to Starfleet," Donovan paused for affect, "five minutes or so."

"Very well," Lt. T'av said. She had seniority over Donovan, making her the commanding officer of their two man crew. "You have once again proven your proficiency. I shall note this in your personal file for this month's crew evaluation."

Once a month, as per protocol, there would be a crew evaluation conference. Being that he was the only crew member subject to such a review, it wouldn't seem as if it would mean much; but it had. Because, for the past two months or so, Lt. Donovan was sure that Lt. T'av was flirting with him. Sure, it might have been a figment of his imagination. But on three occasions he had come into the common dining area and found her eating her food clad only in a Starfleet issued white robe. From all he had read about Vulcans, which he had done preparing for the post; such display of clothing selection was rare. Then again, it was just the two of them, and there was hardly anything else to wear; buy still!

The probe really wasn't that large. Each officer had their own quarters, but they were pretty small. The common areas were a little larger. Both quarters opened up into a common shower, a common bio-waste removal alcove and a medium sized dining area.

"Commander," Lt. Donovan said, as he watched her analyze the readings on the various instruments, "have you finished the book yet? I want to know what you thought of it."

Donovan had convinced her to read one of this many science books, in this case, Stranger in a Strange Land.

"I thought the story was somewhat derivative," Lt. T'av said, not taking her eyes off the instrument panels, "however, I did find the protagonist, Valentine Michael Smith, to be a quite compelling character."

"Would you like to read another one?" Lt. Donovan asked.

It was then that she took her eyes of the panels and looked back at him. Lt. Mike Donovan looked forward to the moments when she looked directly at him. For although she was a Vulcan, stoic and all, she had very attractive eyes.

"I would be in favor of that decision," she told him.

Lt. Donovan smiled back at her, which of course she never returned with her own smile. Lt. Donovan was confident that one day she would smile back at him; it was a cat and mouse game that he was sure to win! And, for another seven months, Lt. Donovan, he was hopeful it would provide the much needed interaction that would help him through the solitary confinement with a Vulcan.

But…he was wrong. Because unknown to Lt. Michael Donovan; everything was about to change. The Planet Killer had other ideas, or, to be more precise; the beings inside the Planet Killer had a different future arranged for the two of them; and it wasn't a pleasant one at all.

(later)

Lt. Donovan liked for Fridays for an all together different reason; his growing crush on his commander; Lt. Commander T'av. Fridays was when she didn't wear her standard drab Starfleet uniform, which she looked very attractive in as well. Instead she would wear her traditional robe into the common area they both shared. On a few of those occasions she would be reading one of his books he lent her, which made him feel good. It made him feel good because, to him, it meant she was finding pleasure in something he had done for her, which was innocent enough. He was no different than a typical human male wanting the satisfaction of pleasing a beautiful woman.

Usually she would enter the common area in her robe after having just sonic-showered, her legs, which showed from the calves down, would still be glistening with some sort of Vulcan oil which she had applied no doubt after her shower. The scent from the oil was very intoxicating, and always had an erotic effect on Lt. Donovan.

The common area they shared consisted of two couches, and a glass table between them, as well as a small kitchenette off to the right.

The night had started off the same as most Fridays had before. Lt. Donovan had put on some slacks and a casual shirt, and made sure he was sitting in the common area on one of the couches before she emerged. Usually he would prepare a nice conversation starter, most of them being shot down over the months. But, occasionally, if he talked about something really scientific, she would reward him with a couple or so responses before sitting on her own couch, a cup of tea in hand, to read a book or retiring back into her room. But, on this Friday night, something special was going to happen. When the door to T'av's room slid open, Lt. Michael Donovan would usually wait to look at her when she made it into the common kitchen, so as not to appear too eager to see her. It was their weekly cat and mouse game. But for whatever reason, as her doors slid open, Lt. Donovan decided to look over at the door instead of waiting for the nuance of nonchalance. His eyes were greeted with a sight that could have only been described as one of his dreams coming true. T'av was not wearing her traditional robe, nor was she wearing her Starfleet uniform; she was nude...and she was staring directly at him.

_(what neither of them knew was that aliens, the same race as the Talosians, were deep inside the bowels of the Doomsday Machine; and they were controlling Tav's mind)_

With her body glistening with moisture, with absolute sexual desire in her eyes, Tav made her way toward him. Donovan tried to gulp down nervous saliva, but his mouth was as dry as the Mojave Desert on Earth. His mind scrambled for the right words to say.

"Umm," Donovan managed to say, as he looked about the room, sweating with nervous tension, "how's it going?"

"The universe," T'av replied as she walked over and stood directly in front of Lt. Donovan, who sat on the couch and looked up at her, "what do you know of it?" (CURIOUSITY)

Donovan breathed in deeply through his nose, and as he did, the erotic scent of the naked woman, which was a combination of skin oil and the aroused state she was in, invaded every fiber of his being. But he was a professional! It was obvious that Lt. Commander T'av was not herself, and it would have been inappropriate to treat here any differently than as his commanding officer.

"What do I know of the universe?" Donovan repeated back to her. "Do you mean that literally or figuratively?" Being a man, and an aroused man, Lt. Donovan could not help look at her, starting from her feet, making his way up at the more sensitive areas.

"The universe," she repeated, with seduction in her eyes, "tell me the base knowledge you have of it."

And with that, she reached out her left hand and placed it on the top of his head. She was able to pin-point every aspect of Donovan's knowledge of the universe. And, for the beings that control T'av from inside the Planet Killer, Donovan's knowledge was infantile; he knew nothing of importance. She removed her hand.

"Did you just do a Vulcan Mind-meld on me?" Donovan asked, wondering if she was able to detect that he was sexually aroused by her and had a helpless crush on her as well. "I think it was great and all that, but next time; just ask me."

"Do you desire me…do you love me?" (a sick definition of LOVE and being DESIRED)

Donovan just smiled up at her.

"I do not know what you're asking," he told her, as he stood up, and as their eyes were locked in a glance.

T'av put her arms around him and drew him closer, their lips just inches apart. She lowered one of her arms below his waist and began to caress him.

"You are sexually aroused," she told him, "I can feel it through your clothing; you must be in desire of me."

As he felt her hands caress him, caress his arousal, he just stared into her eyes. And as she unbuckled the belt of his slacks and let them fall to the ground, she maneuvered him just a bit, and soon he was lying across the glass table, and she was on top of him. Earlier, while reading, he had peeled an orange with a knife, and had eaten it. He had left the plate of peels on the table, and now his head was right next to it, the scent of orange peels just inches away, as she pressed him down on the table. And as she took him inside of her, all Donovan could was smile, look into her sultry eyes, and live the moment. Without a doubt it was the most erotic thing in his life he had ever done, and he didn't want it to end, even as her actions became more intense. And it was obvious, as he stared into her eyes, that she was enjoying just a much as he was, if not more. And as her gyrations became more intense, it was all Donovan could do to keep pace, as she ripped open his shirt, exposing his naked chest.

Inside T'av's mind, the droning and the low tone humming continued. She could feel the sexual sensations crisscross throughout her body as she made hard and passionate love to Lt. Commander Donovan. The pleasure that came from it was more intense than anything she had felt before, but she realized instantly that she wasn't the only one, inside of her mind, who was experiencing it. It was then that she realized that her mind, her very essence, had been invaded, and there was nothing she could do.

As the two made love, their moans and screams became louder and louder until the sweet serenity of climax overcame their sweat drenched bodies and silence came abruptly. T'av, inside her mind, had never had such an intense sexual encounter.

But there was a third being inside of the Planet Killer that had not yet been satisfied with the emotions it fed off of; fear, anger, and terror. As T'av stared down at Donovan, who had closed his eyes in reverie, her eyes noticed the plate of food next to his head, and the knife he had used to peel the discarded fruit. She then slid her hand over to the plate and grasped the knife. Unknown to Donovan she took the knife from the plate and was now holding it directly below waistline.

"Open your eyes," she told Donovan, with lust in her eyes.

Donovan did as she asked, and opened his eyes and gazed up at her. And then, as he stared into her eyes, there came an unexpected piercing pain. He looked down between their bodies and watched as T'av did the unthinkable and gutted him, holding him down with her superior Vulcan strength. The life ebbed out of his eyes as he stared up at her eyes, which were filled with total desire and lust. Death came to Lt. Michael Donovan; it came to him as blood slowly spilled out of his body, over the surface of the glass table, and onto the carpeted floor below.

T'av wanted to close her eyes; she did not want to see anymore, but she couldn't. Her actions were not her own. And as she stared down at the gutted body of the now dead Lt. Michael Donovan, T'av could feel another desire growing deep within her body. She realized early on that the desires that she had been experiencing; were not of her own. They were coming from the others who now controlled who and what she was. The desire was that of hunger; the hunger for food.

They knew that in order to exist, to continual to live, they had to find subsidence to feed upon.

Tav's actions were not her own. And when she began to feed upon the exposed innards of Michael Donovan, whose dead eyes stared up at her, all T'av could do was wish for her own death; and if the beings that controlled her eased on that control, she would take her life as soon as she possibly could…

_(Our flashback ends here, and so we will return to the present time of Shadow and Light. But if you are curious as to what happened next at that point of our story, please continued on with issue #81 as it follows the events of a reactivated Doomsday Machine and the gruesome acts Tav takes in further issues…)_

Jim Kirk finished reading the personal file of Tav. She was indeed a most interesting Vulcan; but all of her terrible actions had happened in the past. And if Tuvok and Spock were both sure that she had changed, it was good enough for Kirk…

continued...


	284. The Eyes Have It

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT (new OPENING CREDITS video with brand new images of Kirk's Native American son, Satangkai and Annika Hansen's long thought dead father; Magnus Hansen...follow the YOUTUBE address provided at my profile...)**

**The Eyes Have It...**

**Romulan Space...**

The Delta-Flyer III was speeding through space, when Admiral Janeway made her way up to the flight cabin, which was just a raised area above the passenger cabin.

"How long will it be until we are at the coordinates," she asked Captain Tom Paris, who was piloting the vessel, which had been built to specs he had drawn up three years earlier.

"Very soon," Paris replied.

And just as Paris finished talking, a Romulan scout-class vessel de-cloaked and took up a position directly in front of the Delta-Flyer III. Captain Paris looked back at Admiral Janeway, who had been heading back to the passenger area.

"You were right," Paris said to Janeway, "the Romulans didn't take too long to find us at all."

Janeway looked back at Paris, and saw the Romulan vessel as it approached the Delta-flyer III.

"Great," Janeway said with a smile.

"How could that be," the Doc said, "I thought this vessel had unique properties that would make swift detection… not as swift."

"Because I brought something for them to lock on to," Janeway said, as she removed the rank insignia from her collar. She took it apart and then handed a small device to Varrim.

"This homing device is of Romulan origin; where did you get it?" Varrim asked.

"Many years before my time on Voyager," Janeway explained, "I served with Tom's father, Captain Owen Paris, on the star ship USS _Al-Batani_," she looked back at Tom Paris and smiled. "To make a long story short, we once came to the aid of a Romulan vessel which had nearly been destroyed by a Breen raider. The captain of the Romulan ship thanked Captain Paris, and gave him that homing device, with the promise that if Captain Paris ever needed his help, just to activate the device and come to these coordinates."

"So let me get this straight, Kathryn," Walter said. "You are hoping to collect on the debt now."

"Yes," Janeway said with caution in her voice.

"And what if he doesn't honor the promise he made to Tom's father?" Neelex asked, with worry in his voice.

Admiral Janeway had no answer for that question, which didn't help Neelix feel any better.

"What about that," Annika urged Janeway, "Neelix has a point."

"I think we'll know soon enough," Paris said from the front of the ship, "I am detecting a Transporter beam emanating from the Romulan ship."

And sure enough, before a second had passed, a Transporter beam streaked into view, and then a Romulan solidified before their eyes. The Romulan's hair was gray on the side, and he was very distinguished looking. He looked directly at Janeway.

"You are Admiral Kathryn Janeway," the Romulan said. "I am Admiral V'ahral, and I received a coded message from Admiral Paris and was told that you would collect on the debt that I owe him."

Janeway smiled at V'ahral.

"I hope you are not put off by this desperate act," Janeway said, "however, I really do need your help."

V'ahral looked at the other passengers, and gazed at Varrim.

"You are Romulan," V'ahral said to Varrim. "Why are you aboard this vessel? You're very being here could get you executed."

"In a related way," Janeway said, before Varrim could respond, "she is why we are her. V'ahral; I know that Admiral Paris sent you a brief synopsis as to why we have come this far, risking our very lives just being here deep inside Romulan space."

V'ahral took his cold gaze off of Varrim and aimed it back Janeway.

"Yes he did," V'ahral said after a moment, "and I have brought all the information I could come up with on the subject."

He handed Janeway a data rod.

"I took the liberty of going over the information," V'ahral added. "It states that her father, Telek, left an assigned science mission, some 30 years ago, with no reason given. When he returned, a week later, he was disciplined. It was only due to his intellect that he wasn't executed. Instead, he was reduced to steps in rank."

"He did not just leave that science mission," Varrim said, with a slight tone of anger in her voice, "he was forced to leave or the man who had abducted my mother and I, as well as my two siblings, would have killed us."

Janeway got a strange look on her face, realizing a small bit of information that even she didn't know the answer to.

"Wait a moment, Varrim," Janeway said. "Did your father ever tell his senior officers, or anyone, about this abduction of his wife and children?"

"I would assume so," Varrim continued to say, "I told you this when I arrived at the Naissance."

"But you don't know for sure if he did or didn't," The Doc said, as he followed Janeway's train of thought.

"I don't see how Telek informing his senior officers woudl matter," Walter Bishop said from where he was sitting, "Her father knew something of these events we are living through now, some fifteen years after his own death; so, as per your first signal with him all those years ago, perhaps he didn't want to contaminate the timeline."

"There has to be more," Janeway said to V'ahral.

V'ahral cast a suspicious look at the others, then he shook his head

"What I am to tell you is not part of the official record," V'ahral continued to say, "and if this knowledge ever becomes known, I will disavow myself from ever having told you."

"I understand," Janeway said, in a soft voice.

"However," V'ahral said to Janeway, "I must tell you, Admiral Janeway, in private."

"If you excuse us," Janeway said to the others as she escorted V'ahral out of the passenger cabin; and into a small briefing room to the side of the main passenger cabin.

Walter Bishop looked over at Annika as Janeway and V'ahral were in the other room conversing.

"If you wouldn't mind, Annika," Walter said to her, "you said that you had used my Interphasic-overlapping neuron-device while you were a captive on Mr. Thorn's ship."

"That is right," Annika said. "He too had used the device before I had met him, and saw possible versions of the future."

"And, if I am correct, didn't you say that he had used Lysergic acid diethylamide as an administrating agent," Walter went on to say, "when you used the device."

"That is correct," Annika said, looking annoyed at the line of questioning.

"I am not asking these questions to anger you, my dear," Walter said, "The device was stolen from my lab five years ago, and I just wanted know if it was being used correctly."

"Obviously it isn't," Annika said, "because none of what I saw came true."

"That may be true about your vision," Walter continued to say, "however; Mr. Thorn's visions about the planet in the Gorn system being attacked by the Borg, as well as Cardassia being attacked, did happen."

"What is the point?" Annika fired back.

"It just donned on me, Walter said, "that Lysergic acid diethylamide was never meant to be the administrating agent; diacetylmorphine was the administrating agent that my partner Belly and I envisoned using. Those two agents do not act on the mind in the same way, believe me I know, and only now have I realized that their affect on the Interphasic-overlapping neuron-device would not have been the same either."

"You are right about the differences between the two," the Doc said, "but if I understand you correctly, Dr. Bishop, are you saying that two different kinds of visions would be generated? Oh and by the way, I think this device you are talking about is just a bunch of nonsense."

"It does work," Walter said in a cool tone. "I know, because I tested on animals, myself, and then human children."

"That's horrible to hear," Neelix said, "how could you use something like that on the mind of a child?"

"That isn't important now," Walter said, "but I think your friend, Mr. Fredric Thorn, isn't telling you the entire truth. I believe he used heroin when he used the device, where as he injected you with LSD when you used it."

"What would be the reason for him to do that that?" Varrim, who had remained silent through the conversation, asked suddenly.

* * *

Unknown to Admiral Janeway, or her friends, V'ahral's ship was not the only one in the vicinity. Another ship remained cloaked, and unseen. A man was standing near a screen, and looked at the image displayed on it of the Delta Flyer III. The man's name was Magnus Hansen.

Continued…


	285. The Rising Tide

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (updated OPENING CREDITS available...checkout my profile for the link)**

**The Rising Tide**

**Outside the Space-Time continuum…aboard the USS ENTERPRISE, which is trapped inside a subspace bubble…**

Garak was stretched out on one of the med-beds inside of sickbay. He looked up at Spock, who was standing over him holding a Tricorder, and in a very typical Vulcan fashion, Spock wasn't saying much at all as he read the readings on the device, as well as the readings on the bio-scanner's panel. At that moment Nurse Christine Chapel came back into Sickbay, which was fine with Garak; at least she had a good beside manner.

"Excuse me, Nurse Chapel," Garak said to Nurse Chapel as she came over to him, "would you mind so much getting me a glass of water? This test is going on a little longer than I thought it would."

"Not at tall," Chapel said with a smile.

At that moment someone else entered Sickbay, and although he was much younger than the man Garak knew in passing on the planet Timus, Garak could tell it was Hikaru Sulu.

"Mr. Spock," Sulu said as he came over to the med-bed, "our scans are definitely showing a minor fluctuation in the warp engines."

"By the way," Garak said to Sulu, "your name is Sulu; isn't it?"

Sulu smiled at Garak.

"Yes it is," Sulu replied.

"I've actually met your older self on a couple of occasions," Garak told Sulu.

"Mr. Spock," Sulu said, cutting Garak off, "is his talking about our lives, and how they went on after the incident with the Tholians, wise? Couldn't it alter the timeline if we knew these events?"

Spock arched an eyebrow.

"Negative Mr. Sulu," Spock replied. "If and when we ever leave this subspace bubble, those events would still have happened. I have not put much thought into what will happen to us if we do ever leave this place; however, I would hope that the Federation will come up with a logical answer."

"So, you say you know me in the future," Sulu said to Garak. "If I am not mistaken, you come from a point of time over a hundred and thirty years from now. How could I still be alive?"

Garak thought for a moment.

"Unfortunately," Garak said, "I am not quite sure how you are still alive in my time, but I believe it has something to do with a war between God like entities some fifty-thousand years ago, or so, that's what Jim Kirk told me once. Somehow it made you younger."

"That sounds a little too amazing for my pay grade," Sulu said with a sight chuckle.

Chapel came over and handed Garak a glass of water, which he drank.

Spock turned off his Tricorder.

"Finally," Garak said to the Vulcan, as the med-bed slowly lowered allowing Garak to stand.

"Mr. Garak," Spock said, "I have come to the conclusion that the Sporocystian energy has bonded itself with your body at a sub-atomic level. I must admit that my own knowledge of this kind of energy is somewhat lacking, however, it is there and it is growing in intensity."

"Is that good or bad news for Mr. Garak?" Chapel asked Spock.

"It may actually be not only dire news for him, but for us as well," Spock replied.

"What does that mean?" Garak asked.

"As I said, the Sporocystian energy levels inside your body are rising at a steady rate," Spock replied. "It would appear as if the energy is interacting with the construct of this sub-space bubble we exist in."

"Do think it is also interacting with the Dylithium crystals and affecting the warp engines?" Sulu asked.

"Affirmative," Spock said. "Please find Mr. Scott and let him know I'd like to see him so we could go over these figures."

Sulu headed of Sickbay to find Scotty. ***

*** (Scotty is actually dead; issue #276)

"How long do I have, or better put, how long do we all have?" Garak asked.

"Since time does not exist in this sub-space bubble, it is hard to say. However; it will happen."

The door to Sickbay swooshed open and Chekov and Sulu came.

"Mr. Spock," Sulu said to Spock as he and Chekov came over to where Spock was standing, "I met up with Ensign Chekov in the corridor and as it turns out, he was looking for Mr. Scott as well; but he can't find him. We both went down to Mr. Scott's quarters, and he isn't there either."

Spock arched an eyebrow and walked over to communications panel on the wall near the door and pressed the button.

"This is Mr. Spock," Spock said, his voice echoing throughout the ship, "Mr. Scott, would you please respond.

After a moment had passed, Spock repeated the message, and again, there was no response. Spock looked over at Sulu.

"Mr. Sulu," Spock said, "would you please take a security team and search the Enterprise. It is possible Mr. Scott has been incapacitated and cannot respond. Mr. Chekov, you will assist."

Sulu and Chekov headed out of Sickbay. Nurse Chapel did not seem optimistic.

"Mr. Spock," Chapel said, "is it possible that Mr. Scott came into contact with one of those particles of energy, like Dr. McCoy did and is no longer on the ship?"

"That is a distinct possibility," Spock replied, "however, until the search is complete, we cannot be sure."

Spock turned his gaze back on Garak.

"Mr. Garak, I have never scanned Sporocystian until now," Spock began to say. "However, is it safe to assume that in your time that Sporocystian has studied more thoroughly?"

"I wouldn't go so far as say it is understood thoroughly," Garak said, "but yes, we know what it is."

"Why do you ask?" Chapel asked Spock.

"I am starting to come to the conclusion that whoever it was who sent you here," Spock said to Garak, "knew that the Sporocystian energy in your body would react the way it is."

"Umm, excuse me," Garak said, with a wry smile on his face, "then what you're really saying is that they sent me here to die."

"Or, it is more likely," Spock responded, "that they sent you here to destroy us all. However, that would presuppose that the Federation, and or Star Fleet, condones the murder of innocent lives."

"Fortunately, or really unfortunately," Garak said, "I think I know more about the Star Fleet in my time than you do. I know for a fact that Star Fleet has rogue operations; one of them is called Section-31. I would not put it past them to have done something like this."

Spock thought for a moment.

"It is logical to assume," Spock finally said, "that this random particle, if that is indeed what has led to Mr. Scotts disappearance, is not under the direct control of Star Fleet. We need to find it, and trust that if it brought you here, and can take you back."

"What if we can't find it?" Chapel asked.

"Then my dear," Garak said with a fiendish smile, "I hope that I will have the luxury of looking at your sweet face when the end comes."

Continued…


	286. Material Girl

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (Don't forget to view my YOUTUBE video credits for this story. You can find the link at my profile. Just copy and paste and then...whamm...video credits!)**

* * *

**Material Girl**

Moments ago, Inside Corvana's home, there was a scene straight out of hell. Taran had come home late, and was very drunk. He had a mad lust in his eyes. So, with a bottle of hard liquor grasped in his left hand, he made his way toward his daughter's room. Corvana slept in her bed, unaware of what was to come. She was awakened by the pounding on her door; she closed her eyes, her heart thumping very fast, and pretended to sleep. She turned her head away from the door, just as it swung open.

And then Taran turned to face his young daughter, Corvana, who was now staring up at him with absolute terror in her eyes.

"Take off your clothes; or I'll start whipping your mom right now," he raised the belt up, threatening to strike Cella, who was in a fetal position on the ground, with the belt

Right there and then, at that moment, Colt MaCahan stepped into the room. Taran looked over at Colt.

"Who the hell are you?" Taran demanded.

Colt put all his weight on the left side crutch, and then he raised his right arm, where he couched the menacing looking shotgun.

"Mister," Colt said, with a low guttural, "I'm the man who is going to blow you away."

And then Colt fired the shotgun; the blast threw Taran across the room, and smashed him into the wall. Before anyone could say anything, the house began to rumble and quake. Colt ran over to the window of Corvana's room as Cella ran over to her daughter to make sure she was alright.

Colt looked out the window and saw a small spacecraft landing in the area between the house and the barn. Colt recognized the ship immediately; it belonged to G'oneth; the Gorn who had killed Colt's Ferengi friends; Ombox and Tokbie.

"What is that rumbling out there?" Cella asked, as she stood up and came over to the window where Colt as.

But, unknown to Cella and Colt, Taran wasn't quite dead. With what little life was left in him, Taran reached out for the discarded handgun that his wife had threatened him with moments ago (issue #260). With feeble strength, he picked up the gun, his eyes blurring over with certain death, and then he fired it. The bullet struck Cella in the midsection. Colt fired his own weapon, the shotgun, and blew Taran's head clear off. Corvana ran over to her fallen mother, as Colt squatted down and held the dying woman's head in his lap.

"Mama," Corvana cried, as she buried her head in her dying mother's shoulder.

Cella looked up at Colt; and with her dying breath she said…"You look after my daughter as if she were your very own..."and then she closed her eyes and died.

At that moment the front to the home was smashed open and G'oneth, with the strange large left eye, came bounding in.

"MaCahan," G'oneth said, with the usual slithering/whispering sound of a Gorn, "sssssstop ssssshooting; truccccce."

Colt gently put Cella's head down, and then stood up and grabbed his shotgun and went into the main room, where he found the unarmed Gorn waiting for him.

"So we meet at last," Colt MaCahan said to G'oneth, "I should kill you where you stand! You killed my friends, Tokbie and Ombox," Colt spat out, with anger in his voice.

"Yesssssss," G'oneth replied," They owe me and never pay…soooooo I killed them. They alssssso kill to collect debtsssssss in passssst.; It isssssss what it isssss."

Colt lowered his gun because G'oneth was right. In Colt's conversations with Tokbie, when he was alive, the Ferengi had admitted that he and his older brother had killed to collect on outstanding debts; that was the way of a smugger/pirate's life.

"Why have you tracked me down then?" Colt asked, after a moment.

"I neeeeed heeeelp," G'oneth said. "My offsssssping, one you ssssssave from Borg."

"What about it?" Colt asked.

As the two were speaking, Corvana came to the doorway and observed the strange conversation between Colt and the massive Gorn.

"Hisssss mother, myyyyyyy mate wassssss taken by the Borg," G'oneth said. "I wisssssh you to come with meeeeeee to get her baacccccckk…."

"I have no idea what a Borg even is," Colt said, "so I am not sure what I can do to help, besides why would I even care? It's your kid not mine."

"You ssssssave offsssssspring, you are hisssssss Ack'tha….hisssss sessssscond fatheeerrrrrr," G'oneth said. "And I trussssst yoouuuuu…"

"You have to help him," Corvana suddenly said. "If you saved the Gorn's offspring, then you it's," she searched for the right word, "Godfather."

"And how do you know?" Colt asked Corvana.

"Everyone knows that; haven't you ever gone to school and read about the Gorn?" Corvana asked. "But if we're going to do this, we need to get your other guns," Corvana said as she headed toward the door. But Colt grabbed her by arm and stopped her.

"Now just wait a second," Colt barked at Corvana. "I haven't decided yet if I'm going to help Go'neth, and if I do, you're not coming along!"

"My parents are dead," Corvana said, nearly crying as her anger came out, "I have no one here, which means I would have to fend for myself. And the way someone young like I can earn a living on this pathetic world would be to sell my body for sex."

"You're too young for that," Colt fired back.

"Not on this world," Corvana fired right back. "If you think about," Corvana added with a smile, "my parents are dead, so that puts my life in your hands. So in a strange way; you're my adopted father."

"You are not my daughter," Colt came back with.

"Shhhheeeeee come with ussssss," G'oneth finally said. "Not make her seeeeexxxxx slaaaave," G'oneth promised.

Colt began shaking his head as he realized what he was getting into. Helping the Gorn track down his mate, who was kidnapped by the beings know as the Borg (whom Colt knows nothing about) and brining the little runt of a girl along for the ride.

"What about my spacebike," Colt asked G'oneth.

"Willll fit in sssssmalll cargo bay on myyyyyy shiiiiipppppp," G'oneth said.

Colt looked at Corvana, who then began to smile at him as she could already sense the answer.

"Come on," Colt said.

Colt went over and stood next to G'oneth, and the both watched the young girl whirl about the house, packing her belongings which amounted to three cases. He stacked the by the front door where Colt and G'oneth were standing.

"Only rooooooom for twooooooo cassssees," G'oneth said.

"I can't go without my MAKEUP!," Corvana said, as she pointed at the bottom to cases.

"What's in the other one?" Colt MaCahan asked.

"My makeup, silly," Corvana said with chuckle.

"Oh brother," Colt said, as she shook his head.

"Whhhhhattt issssssss makeuppppp," G'oneth asked Colt.

"Trust me," Colt said, "there's absolutely no way you are going to separate her from her make up at that age. We'll have to make room on your ship."

G'oneth noddedin agreement, though he didn't understand why something called makeup was so important to a young human female. (Author's note; YOU AND ME BOTH G'ONETH)!

And with that, the Colt and G'oneth picked up the cases, and then headed to the barn where they retrieved Colt's weapons. Then, moments later, they uncovered Colt's spacebike and went to G'oneth's ship. After packing things up, the ship roared into space on a most interesting quest; to find G'oneth's Gorn mate, who was in the vile cluthes of the Borg; and the father of Annika Hansen; Magnus.

Continued…


	287. Trust Factor

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Trust Factor**

**(the OPENING CREDIT link can by found at my profile...)**

(previously…)

_Kirk was told about as son he never knew he had. For as it turned out, the child he and Miramanee's love had created had actually survived; it had been secretly saved by McCoy. The child was now well over a hundred years old, and Kirk had decided to find and meet his native American son; Satangkai, chief of all Native-American tribes._

**The Hotel complex located in San Francisco…**

James Kirk and S'vath came out of a Turbo-lift and made their way over toward the massive food court that was located inside the giant visitor center of the hotel complex. Hundreds of people were scattered about the tables, eating a wide variety food. The hotel's food court did not allow replicated foods, which meant the food was fresh and actually had rich smells and taste.

"Are you sure you don't want to come to New Mexico with me, Tuvok and his assistant; T'av?" Kirk asked S'vath as they made their way over to the Starbucks (product placement of course).

"I can't," S'vath replied as he picked up a cup of coffee and a small muffin. "I promised Amanda that I'd take her and the kids to the Redwood forests. And since we're taking your kids too, that's pretty much a small army, and so I'll help her out watching them."

"You know," Kirk said, "I could easily take Dahme and Mathew with me to New Mexico," Kirk offered, as he too picked up a coffee and a muffin.

"Hey," S'vath said with a smile, "don't worry about it. Tuvok said that your son, Satangkai, lived in a very rural setting. Let me take them with me and Amanda; I'm sure they'll have more fun looking at giant trees."

"I thought the Redwood Park was comprised of hologram tree," Kirk said.

"Most of it is, however," S'vath said, as they sat down at a table, "ten percent of the trees are actually the real thing."

"Wow," Kirk said, "sounds impressive. If you have a chance, try to make down to El Capitan, I think your wife and kids will like the waterfalls."

"Oh, believe me," S'vath said, "We will. Leonard McCoy told me that story about your falling off that mountain and my father barely rescuing you. Bones still got made when he recounted it."

Kirk looked up at the news monitors which were still dominated by coverage of the Borg attack on the Cardassian home world.

"This Borg threat," Kirk said. "It seems very serious."

"It is," S'vath said, as he too looked at the monitors. "In fact, from what I heard, Picard has been assigned with the task of dealing with the Borg once and for all."

"What does that mean," Kirk asked. "What can Picard do about it?"

"He was once assimilated into the Borg Collective," S'vath said.

"Yes, that's right," Kirk interjected. "I remember your father telling me something about that up on Timus."

"I guess Star Fleet is hoping he can find an answer to deal with the Borg once and for all," S'vath explained.

At that moment, Tuvok and T'av materialized on the two person Transporter pad which was located next to the Barnes and Noble holo-novel store. Tuvok looked about, and upon seeing Kirk and S'vath, they headed over to the two of them.

"Excuse us for being late," Tuvok said, "the Turbo-lift on our floor was down for maintenance, which required us use the Transporter."

"No problem," Kirk said. "The shuttle to the Native American Greeting zone doesn't leave for another hour. Why don't you two get something to eat before we go?"

"I'll have some Vulcan tea," T'av said to Tuvok.

"As will I," Tuvok said as he stood up to go get the two beverages. "You stay here, I shall get the tea."

"I'll help you," S'vath said, as he stood up and joined Tuvok. "I forgot to get some napkins earlier."

The two, Tuvok and S'vath, made their way back toward the Starbucks.

"It is an honor to meet you, James T Kirk," T'av said to Kirk. "My mentor, Tuvok, has told me much about your Star Fleet career. He is a close friend of Ambassador Spock."

"Thank you," Kirk said, as he ate his muffin. "I have read about your Star Fleet career, and that ordeal with the Talosians and the planet killer. I hope been able to put that behind you."

"It has not been easy," T'av said. "What I did to Ensign Michael Donovan is still in my mind as if it just happened yesterday."

"The report is very clear in that no one blames you for what happened," Kirk told her softly. "The beings inside of the planet killer took over your mind, and used you to do those terrible things."

"While that is true," T'av went on to say, "I still have the memories."

Kirk sipped on his coffee.

"What about a Vulcan mind-meld?" Kirk asked. "Once, way back in the 23rd century, Spock used a mind-meld to make me forget a very painful memory."

"The Vulcan masters have tried," T'av said. "however; even they cannot seem to wrestle the memory from my mind."

As Kirk and T'av continued their conversation, S'vath and Tuvok walked toward the Starbuck stand. And though they were going to fetch tea, S'vath clearly had something else on his mind.

"We need to talk," S'vath said to Tuvok, with slight tone of bitterness in his voice. He spoke softly, but there was tension between the two of them.

"What is it that you need to say?" Tuvok asked.

"I haven't forgotten about that shit between you and Sybok and my mother," S'vath said. "If Sybok had been successful, who knows what would have happened to my son. And I know that T'av was mixed up in it as well."

(Author's note; Many issues ago, Sybok kidnapped S'vath's son infant son Sarek, and was on his way back to Sha-ka-ree. The Sihg appeared aboard the shuttle and killed Sybok, and mysteriously returned the child back to its mother; Amanda. At one point, Sybok had used his superior Vulcan mind and had controlled the actions of Tuvok and T'av.)

"I assure you," Tuvok said, "Sybok's hold over T'av and me; is gone," Tuvok assured S'vath.

S'vath thought for moment, and then he nodded.

"Alright," S'vath said after a moment had passed. "Just do me a favor, Tukok; watch out for Jim. My father made it my responsibility to look after him, so now I am making it yours while you are in the Tribal lands of New Mexico."

Tuvok nodded his head.

"Do not worry yourself," Tuvok replied, "I will make sure that Jim Kirk' visit with his son is a pleasant one."

S'vath watched with weary eyes as Tuvok went over to the Starbuck's kiosk and got two cups of tea. Although Tuvok had said all the right words, S'vath could not shake the sense of doubt he head. And then he turned to look back at Jim Kirk sitting next to T'av and conversing with her. The Vulcan female seemed fine. But was it just a facade? Two years earlier she had killed her fellow crewmate and had devoured him, and later came under the control of Sybok and had seduced Tuvok. Had enough time elapsed since those two events; was she completely of sound mind?

* * *

**Meanwhile, in New Mexico,**the location of the reinstated tribal lands of Native-Americans, someone was well aware of Kirk's plan to meet up with his son; Chief young native American man's name was Limanu. He stood on a cliff that overlooked the land below, and he thought long and hard of what would happen in the coming days.

Finally, after nearly three generations, he would avenge his family's dishonor and kill the white-man once known as _Kirok!_


	288. Yesterday PLUS Tomorrow EQUALS Today

**STAR TREK: Shadow and Light (ALL NEW OPENING CREDITS! Look for Url at my profile!)**

**Yesterday + Tomorrow = Today**

_**Previously…**_

__

The Delta Flyer III met up with a Romulan- scout ship, and made contact with its lone passenger…who then beamed over to the Delta Flyer III…

"You are Admiral Kathryn Janeway," the Romulan said, as soon as he had solidified on in the Delta Flyer III's passenger cabin. "I am Admiral V'ahral; I received a coded message from Admiral Paris and was told that you would collect on the debt that I owed him." V'ahral looked at the other passengers, and gazed at Varrim.

"You are Romulan," V'ahral said to Varrim. "Why are you aboard this vessel? Your very being here could get you executed."

"In a related way," Janeway said, before Varrim could respond, "she is why we are all here. V'ahral; I know that Admiral Paris sent you a brief synopsis as to why we have come this far, risking our very lives just being here deep inside Romulan space."

V'ahral took his cold gaze off of Varrim and aimed it back Janeway.

"Yes he did," V'ahral said after a moment, "and I have brought all the information I could come up with on the subject."

He handed Janeway a data rod.

"I took the liberty of going over the information," V'ahral added. "It states that Telek left an assigned science mission some 30 years ago, with no reason given. When he returned, a week later, he was disciplined. It was only due to his intellect that he wasn't executed. Instead, he was reduced to steps in rank."

Varrim looked up at V'ahral, with a slight look of anger in her eyes.

"My father did not just leave that science mission," Varrim said, with a slight tone of anger in her voice, "he was forced to leave; or the man who had abducted my mother and I, as well as my two siblings, would have killed us."

"There has to be more this," Janeway said to V'ahral.

"What I am to tell you is not part of the official record," V'ahral continued to say, "and if this knowledge ever becomes known, I will disavow myself from ever having told you."

"I understand," Janeway said, in a soft voice.

"However," V'ahral said to Janeway, "for reasons you will understand, I must tell you what I know in private."

"If you would excuse us," Janeway said to the others as she escorted V'ahral out of the passenger cabin; and into a small briefing room to the side of the main passenger cabin.

"Alright," Janeway said with a smile, "what is it you have to say?"

our story continues…

"Far from what your Federation might believe," V'ahral began to say, "We too understand the importance of not contaminating the timeline; even if it were to give us an advantage in the here and now."

"I'll take your word for it," Janeway said, her voice shadowed by sarcasm.

But her tone of voice did not escape V'ahral.

"I see you do not trust us in these matters, then again; we do not trust you," V'ahral added with a smile. "Your Federation has on more than one occasion tampered with the timeline to save yourselves."

"While I find this history lesson quite fascinating," Janeway said, "can we stay on the subject? Are you going to reveal the information, or," Janeway paused, "are there three cloaked Romulan vessels out there ready to pounce on my ship at your command?"

"Excuse me Admiral," V'ahral said, after a moment, so as to difuse the tension between them. "I did not mean to interject animosity between us; I apologize."

Janeway detected honesty in V'ahral's words.

"I didn't either," Janeway replied, in a more pleasant tone.

"As for the matter of Telek," V'ahral began to explain, "what I am about to tell you has been kept secret from certain aspects of my government by a line of science officers that stretch back to over three decades ago when you made contact with Telek. Before I go on; please tell me what you know of that signal."

"As I am sure you know," Janeway began to say, "On Stardate 48315.6, Voyager was thrown into the Delta-Quadrant. Several weeks later we came across what appeared to be a worm-hole, however, it was a subspace facture. At first we could only send a transmission, which was received by Telek, Varrim's father, in the Alpha-Quadrant. However, the subspace signal was also tunneling through time, a fact we later found out after beaming Telek, through the frature, to Voyager. Upon realizing the twenty-year time variance, Telek agreed to return to his ship, and notify Star Fleet of our presence in the Delta-Quadrant, but only after the twenty years had passed, so as not to contaminate the timeline. We later found out that Telek never notified Star Fleet. He had died just three years before Voyager's displacement into the Delta-Quadrant."

"Now," V'ahral picking up where Janeway left off, "I will tell you what I know about that signal. That subspace fracture wasn't some random event, Admiral; it was being sent to that moment in time for a specific reason, and your finding it was a foregone conclusion."

"I don't understand," Janeway said; a tone of confusion in her voice.

"Someone in this time," V'ahral explained, "Meaning the present time you and I exist in right now, knew that you were going to come across that signal because they originated it now. At the time when Voyager came upon that subspace fracture, your technology could not detect the fact that not only was the signal tunneling into the past from that point you were in, but it had tunneled to where you were from the future."

Janeway thought for a moment.

"And that future point is now?" Janeway interjected. Her mind was already speeding to her next question, but V'ahral was going to beat her there.

"Yes; that time is now." V'ahral said, with a knowing smile. "And I already know your next question Admiral Janeway and trust me; when I tell you who sent that signal… you will not believe me."

Janeway looked at V'ahral intently, holding her breath to hear the name. And when she did…she gasped!

Moments later, Janeway and V'ahral came back into the passenger cabin and rejoined the others. Annika Hansen, Varrim, Neelix, the Doc, Walter Bishop and Captain Tom Paris, who had pivoted in his chair from the pilot's cabin so as to see what was happening, could all see the near shock expression on Janeway's face.

"Well; what did he tell you?" The Doc asked, near excitement in his voice.

Janeway recounted the past events about the signal between Voyager and Telek. The Doc, Paris and Neelix recalled the tale quite well since they had been there when it happened.

"So let me get this straight, Admiral," Paris said, from where he sat in the pilot's seat, "you're telling us that the subspace fracture we encountered on Voyager was actually some sort of signal from the future, and we were just piggy-backing on it when we made contact with Varrim's father; Telek."

"That's right," Janeway said. "And that signal was sent from this time with implicit directions not to reveal the contents of that message until we caught up with this moment in time."

"This is why I hate time-travel stories," Neelix said, shaking his head. "they're too confusing."

"Kathryn," Walter Bishop said, with a whimsical smile, "you must not leave us with a cliffhanger. Who sent the signal and why?"

"Dr. Bishop; I don't know why this person sent the signal, yet," Janeway said to Dr. Bishop, "but in the meantime; thanks to Admiral V'ahral, I now know who sent it." And then Janeway shifted her gaze to Annika. "It was sent by…" she paused… "Chakotay."

Annika whispered the name of her believed to be dead husband.

At that moment, Tom Paris stood up from where he was sitting.

"Admiral," Tom said with directness, as he gazed as V'ahral, "This Romulan is making a play on us; Chakotay died on the planet Dan'gin saving Jim Kirk's son. Kirk told me this himself."

Janeway nodded her head in agreement.

"I know," Janeway continued after a moment, "I spoke with Jim too, and I also read Agent Ryan Tolbert's report; Chakoday is dead."

"Then how can this dead person, Chakotay, be sending a signal into the past now?" Varrim asked.

Suddenly an alert signal sounded. Paris dove back into his seat and then he looked back at V'ahral and Janeway.

"A Borg vessel," Paris announced in a hurry, "its firing!"

Suddenly; several streaks of energy slammed into the Romulan vessel, destroying it.

"Get us out of here Tom; NOW!" Janeway barked….

Continued…


	289. Pathway to Now

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Prodigal Son**

**The Tribal lands of Native Americans…**

It was mid-afternoon as four brown horses trotted at a medium rate, as they had for nearly five hours. One of the horses was further up the dirt path than the others, and a young Native-American man, his name Makya, sat proudly upon the four legged animal; minus a saddle. Just a simple leather line was what he needed for steering the massive animal.

About a tenth of a mile behind Makya rode the three other riders. Jim Kirk, Tuvok and T'av had said very little since leaving the visitor center in Doix'hata New Mexico earlier in the morning. The sun was high over head, and although it was warm, it was not as hot as usually as it could have been, given the time of year it was. So as to keep hydrated, each horse had a pouch of water clamped onto its saddle.

The land before them was bare, and stretched for what seemed to be an eternity. An occasional hawk could be seen flying over head, as well as the fleet-footed jack rabbits could be seen scurrying through the rocks and bushes that lined the trail.

"It is amazing," Kirk said as he looked at the far distance, where he could make out several foothills.

"What would that be?" Tuvok asked.

"Amazing that these people have been allowed to have their native lands back, after centuries of being denied," Kirk said. "Is it true that most of them ended up going to distant worlds, only to have been forced from them as well?"

"Unfortunately that is true," Tuvok said, as he maneuvered his horse alongside Kirk's. "However, it was a necessary decision to ensure that war did not break about between the Cardassians and the Federation."

"Sounds like the same logic used when Native Americans were moved to reservations," Kirk observed, "to avoid a war. But all it did was secured a long demise for a proud people."

"Admiral Kirk?" T'av said as she came up alongside Kirk as well.

"Jim," Kirk said to T'av with a smile. "From what I've been told, my honorary rank of Commander has been revoked due to my refusal to really do anything I'm told to do in this time."

"I must point out," Tuvok interjected, "that while your rank has been revoked; the respect you have earned has not. I can tell you for certain that Admiral Janeway has made it quite clear, that in her mind, you carry the rank of Admiral, despite what Star Fleet protocol says on the matter; and you are to be treated as such."

"Fine woman," Kirk said. "Though, trust me, I just want to be an ordinary person. So, to that end," Kirk said to T'av, "call me Jim. Now," Kirk added, "what was your question?"

"This Native American Chief we are meeting, Satangkai," T'av said, "You and Tuvok say that he is your son? Pardon my boldness, however; I am curious as to how that can be."

For several minutes, Kirk recounted the story of how the Enterprise had come across a world that was in the path of an oncoming asteroid. How he had been mistaken for a God by a tribe of Native Americans that had been moved to that world by the mysterious race known as the Preservers.

The Preservers had also left a deflector array on the world, so as to protect the tribal colony. Knowledge of to use of the array had been passed down through the generations of Native Americans that had lived on the world, but it had been forgotten, and with an approaching Asteroid not far away, the tribe assumed that the stranger named Kirk, whom they referred to as Kirok, would save them. Although Kirk and Spock would eventually reactive the deflector array, Kirk's Native-American wife, Miramawnee, was killed after having been stoned to death by her people. Kirk left the world believing that the unborn child inside of Miramawnee had died with her; but that was not the case.

"…and now I am left with a burning question," Kirk said to T'av. "Why did my good friend, Leonard McCoy, not reveal the fact that he had saved the child. His nurse, Christine Chapel, who had helped him save the child, recorded a dying confession which eventually made its way to S'vath, who then told me just a few weeks ago."

"Would not his saving of the child violate the Prime Directive?" T'av asked Kirk.

Kirk thought for a moment.

"I don't think so," Kirk said, "but it doesn't matter. I have read much of my son's life, and I am grateful to McCoy for have saved him. Satangkai has united his people, and the rest of the tribes."

"That is true," Tuvok interjected. "Chief Satangkai and his tribe returned to Earth just ten years ago after he had negotiated the return of these lands. The other tribal nations bestowed the title of Chief upon him, and he is proud of what he has accomplished."

"You know him well, don't you," Kirk asked Tuvok.

"Chief Satangkai and I became acquaintances several years ago," Tuvok explained. "He assisted me in helping bury disturbing memories that had caused Annika Hansen serious distress."

"Chakotay," Kirk said, after a moment, "he was the man who saved my son's life and was the husband of this woman; Annika Hansen."

"That is correct," Tuvok said. "Chakotay had been sentenced to seven years at the Tantalus Penal colony for his actions as a Maquis. When his daughter with Annika Hansen became gravely ill, and Star Fleet would not condone the medical practices of Chief Satangkai's medicine chief, Chakotay broke out of prison and abducted his child from a Star Fleet medical facility in New Zealand, in an attempt to bring his child here; to New Mexico. Unfortunately, a security defense ship that was in pursuit of Chakotay fired its weapons; causing Chakotay's ship to crash and the child died. Chakotay turned his back on Star Fleet, and his wife, and became a criminal rogue element."

"What happened next?" T'av asked, totally enthralled by the story.

"Annika suffered a nervous breakdown, and that is when Satangkai and I combined our abilities and buried the memories of her past deep inside of her mind."

"Chakotay caused the death of his own child," T'av said, after a moment. "That must have really been a shock to Annika."

"T'av; the disease the child was suffering from," Tuvok told her, "was incurable. In fact, the child was facing certain death, and Chakotay acted as any father would."

"You condone his actions?" T'av countered with.

"I have asked myself that question. If one of my own children faced the same fate, would I have violated the law to see to their safety; I believe I would have. What about you Admiral?"

"Oh, I'm with you," Kirk said. "Then again; not following the rule of the law seems to be a dominate trait in my life. Throw in the life of my child; to hell with any law that stands in my way."

"I must add that after the events of what I just spoke about, the laws forbidding Native American, and all shaman medical practices, from being followed by those who were not Native American citizens were struck down."

At that moment, Makya, the young Native-American man who had been their guide, whistled loudly. Kirk and the other two sped up their pace and joined Makya at the top of a ridge he was waiting for them at. When they reached the top, the view beneath them was spectacular. Native American structures of all kinds could be seen alongside a winding River; which had various tendrils of streams that stretched out like spider webs. But more importantly, several hundred Native Americans were lined up horizontally in front of Kirk and the others. Standing in the center of the line was a proud and wise looking older man, with a head ornament made of feathers which reached down to the ground. Makya got down from his horse and motioned for Kirk and the others to do the same. Makya went over to T'av and helped her down.

After dismounting his horse, Kirk walked toward the man wearing the impressive feathered war bonnet. Tuvok and T'av stood to the side of Kirk.

"You are Kirk," the aged Native American said, "I am Satangkai."

Kirk smiled, and then a tear came down from his eyes.

"You are saddened to see me?" Satangkai asked. "Have we not improved our way of life to a favorable judgment father?"

Kirk took a deep breath.

"It is not that at all," Kirk said, in a low tone. "I am just so overcome with pride at finally meeting you; son. I am sorry that we never…"

"No sorrow," Satangkai interjected. "Our paths have crossed; we have come together as father and son and must not question what the eagle has seen before us. What is important is that I am Satangkai, son of Kirok!"

The two men came together, and then they hugged. The rest of the gathered throng began to yell and cheer. But one Native American did not yell or cheer at all. Unlike all the others of the tribe, he had not gone to the gathering. He had instead he chosen to remain in the near distance, near his private abode. But he could see Kirk, smiling at Satangkai, in the distance.

"Enjoy your moment in the sun, Kirok," Limanu said, under his breath. "However, I will have my family's revenge upon you and your son; Satangkai."

And In the far distance, Limanu saw the approaching darkness of a thunderstorm and he smiled…fate was smiling down on him already!

continued...


	290. Man In The Black  Hat

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (new YOUTUBE opening credits...link provided at my profile)**

**Man In The Black Hat...**

**Previously…**

**Planet Vulcan…**

_Ambassador Spock and his new wife, Elizabeth Pike, were finally reunited after he had left Vulcan to investigate the matter of the hieroglyphics that had been round on Romulas. With that issue settled, for now, Spock was content to spend time with Elizabeth at the home. On the second morning of his return, Spock opened his eyes and found his wife sitting next to him on their bed. She was smiling down at her husband, with a smile that was more broad than usual._

"You look beautiful," Spock said, as he brought his hand up and caressed her left cheek.

"I love staring down at you when you are sleeping, Elizabeth said. "You look so content. But on this morning, I hope you will be happy."

"Elizabeth," Spock said, as he sat up in bed, "you should know, by now, that as a Vulcan, happiness is just another state of mind. One need not be, as you would say, giddy with excitement."

"Unless that person was to find out," Elizabeth began to say, "they were soon to be a father."

Spock was indeed wrong; for he smiled at the surprise.

_**Four hours later…Planet Vulcan…the medical complex located in the Shikahr providence. **_

Ambassador Spock and his wife Elizabeth, who was pregnant with their baby, exited the examination center, and they had both heard great news. The baby she was carrying inside of her was healthy; and it was girl. They were about to leave the complex when someone they knew very well came up to them; Ambassador Picard.

"Ambassador Picard," Spock said, as he rendered the Vulcan hand salute, "it is good to see you."

"I was worried, since I've been gone for so long," Picard said with a smile, "that I was going to be relieved from my duty as Earth's Ambassador to Vulcan," Picard added with a slight chuckle. "I heard the news about the baby," Picard added, "congratulations."

"We had hoped to keep the pregnancy secret," Spock said to Picard, "however, I have found out recently that the human need to spread," he paused to find the right word, "gossip may not be indigenous to Earthlings alone."

"Well, you let know if you need anything," Picard said to Elizabeth.

"Thank you, I will," Elizabeth said with a smile. "The gardens up here on Vulcan have never got the knack of growing pickles."

As the three friends made their way down the walkway, someone else entered the medical complex and made their way to one of the access computers that were spread throughout the complex. After bypassing many security measures, the person was able to tap into the data files, and soon the medical conditions of Elizabeth Pike and the baby inside of her were displayed.

_Our story continues…_

* * *

The San Francisco Hotel Complex…

Four little children were sleeping soundly in one of two rooms inside the hotel suite. S'vath and Amanda looked down upon the children and smiled. Two of the children were theirs; Sarek, who was three years old, and Lenora who was two, each with points on their small ears. The other two children were Jim Kirk's children; Mathew, who was two and a half years old, and Dahme, who was just over four months old, and they both had small ridges on their nose. Their mother, Myran, who had been murdered a month earlier, had been a Bajoran.

"I guess seeing the Red Wood Forest tired them out," S'vath said to his wife.

"Them; what about us," Amanda asked with a smile. "Pushing a hover-stroller with one child in it is hard enough; but two?" She shook her head as she spoke.

"Hey, don't get mad. Jim did offer to take his kids with him to New Mexico," S'vath reminded his wife.

"I know," Amanda said, as she came over and stood next to her husband. "And I told you I would go along with it, if when we got back here, you and I could get," she placed her hand on the crotch of his slacks, "frisky. So pay up mister."

S'vath, who was one quarter human, loved this aspect of human relations. Part of his original attraction to Amanda was her overt sexuality, which matched his own. The two of them began to kiss as she began to unzip his slacks. But suddenly there was a chime at the door.

"Ignore it," Amanda said with a whisper.

The chime came again.

"I better see who it is, before the chimes wake the children," S'vath suggested.

"Good idea," Amanda said, with disappointment in her voice.

S'vath went over to the door and pressed a button. The door slid open to reveal two unexpected guests; his father Spock and his wife Elizabeth.

"Father," S'vath said. "I thought you were on Vulcan."

"Illogical statement," Spock told his son, "being that we are here. May we come in?"

"Sure," S'vath said, as he stepped aside and let the two guests in.

"I will make some tea," Amanda announced.

"Yes," Spock agreed, "that would be nice."

S'vath, Spock and Elizabeth went over to the living room and sat down. S'vath looked at Elizabeth and smiled.

"I wish my father would not keep his private life so secret," S'vath told her, "you should have had a large wedding; could you imagine who would have showed up…everyone!"

"Which is why we decided on a simple ceremony," Spock told his son.

"Actually," Elizabeth added, "I wanted a small wedding as well. So much has happened recently, that I just wanted the two of us to be alone."

"Father," S'vath said as Amanda brought in a tray of tea, and then sat down next to him, "do you have any news on uncle Bones (McCoy)? Do you think that man we met on Starbase 185 is really Leonard McCoy?"

Spock sipped his tea.

"Undoubtedly," Spock replied, "my mind-meld with him proved that point. As of now, I have no logical explanation for the barrier in McCoy's mind and why he believes he is Colt MaCahan. In fact, it is one of the reasons we have come to Earth. I was told that Tuvok would be here with you and Jim and this Hotel."

"Good luck finding him now," Amanda said with a smile. "Both he and Jim, and a Vulcan woman named T'av, headed for the Native American lands to meet Kirk's son; Satangkai."

Spock looked directly at S'vath.

"You told Jim about his child with Miramawnee?" Spock asked. "Why did you feel it necessary to tell him?"

"Father," S'vath began to explain, "I consider Jim to be a close friend, perhaps the closest friend I have. He had a right to know, so I told him. And after the incident at the Tantalus Penal colony, we went back to Timus and dealt with Myran's effects. And with that done, he wanted to come here and meet his son; Chief Satangkai."

"And apparently," Amanda added, "Tuvok knows Satangkai well enough that he was able to get an audience with him. Did you know that Jim's son is 137 years old?"

"I'm a 121," Elizabeth said with a slight laugh.

"But you don't look like a day over 30," S'vath added with a pleasant tone in his voice.

"Father," Amanda said to Spock, "why do you think McCoy and my grandmother hid the truth about Jim's son in the first place?"

Spock thought for a moment.

"I do not know," Spock finally said. "Dr. McCoy was a very compassionate man. From the moment I first met him, I knew that his illogical emotions would cloud his judgment, and while I was right some of time; I have to admit that many times they served him well. As for why he saved the child; I have no answer."

"I do," Elizabeth said to her husband. "I think he saved that child because it was an innocent life. And he knew that Jim's career was important to him, and so he made a choice and I admire him for it."

"You said that coming here to find Tuvok was one of the reasons you came to Earth," Amanda said, "what was the other?"

Spock looked to his wife, who then smiled at him.

"You tell him," Elizabeth said to Spock.

Spock turned and faces his son.

"You are going to have a brother; Elizabeth is with child," Spock said…and then he too smiled.

"Wow," S'vath said. "You still got it old man," he added with a frisky voice."

"S'vath," Spock said with a slight tone of irritation in his voice, "them women!"

S'vath, Amanda and Elizabeth all chuckled….

* * *

**On another world; far away world…**

Commander Randolph Donnelly stepped outside of the tent-structure that he had brought with him. He had brought it just in case his waiting for Garak to return from the subspace bubble where the duplicate Enterprise was took longer than expected; and it already head. Donnelly lit up a cigarette. Smoking had faded from vogue centuries earlier, but Donnelly didn't care. He smoked because he liked the sensation that nicotine sent through his body.

As he took in the first puff, he gazed over at the make-shift grave he had built for Montgomery Scott. Donnelly had killed the famed engineer the moment he had appeared from the bubble, just fifteen feet from where the grave was. Donnelly's orders were clear, and he would follow them to the letter. But if everything went according to plan, the energy in Garak's body would erupt, and kill everyone aboard the USS Enterprise outside of time. Or, if that didn't work, and the Enterprise crew began to appear from out of nowhere on the planet; Donnelly would kill them as he had Scott.

At that moment, a Transporter beam streamed into view and then Federation Special Agent Stephan Cassadine appeared.

"Agent Cassadine," Donnelly said with a smile. "I was wondering when you would find your way back to me."

Agent Cassadine handed Commander Donnelly a data file.

"You weren't that hard to find," Agent Cassadine said. "It took a little time, but I got the information you requested."

Donnelly looked at the data, which was detailed information about Ambassador Spock's wife; Elizabeth, as well as their unborn child.

"Excellent," Donnelly said, as he took a drag from his cigarette.

"What are you going to do with the information?" Cassadine asked.

Donnelly looked at Agent Cassadine.

"I'd rather not say," Donnelly said, after a moment. "I not only paid for you to get his information, I also paid for your silence."

"Understood," Cassadine said.

"I have another off the record mission for you, if you're interested," Donnelly said.

"If it pays as good as the last one; then yes," Cassadine said with a wide grin.

"Your fellow agent, Ryan Tolbert," Donnelly said, "I want him brought to me; can you do this?"

"Sure," Cassadine said with a laugh, "he's a friend of mine. In fact, I taught him everything he knows."

"Good," Donnelly said, "then go get him and make sure he doesn't know that you are bringing him to me."

"Are you going to kill him?" Cassadine asked, with a cautious tone in his voice.

"No; not at all." Commander Randolph Donnelly said, as he threw his cigarette to the ground, and squashed it with his boot. "But I am going to have him kill James T Kirk... and then I'm going to have him Spock and the unborn evil inside of his wife's womb!"

Continued…


	291. Instrument of our Destruction

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Instrument of our Destruction**

**Previously…**

_Garak was stretched out on one of the med-beds inside of sickbay. He looked up at Spock, who was standing over him holding a Tricorder, and in a very typical Vulcan fashion, Spock wasn't saying much at all as he read the readings on the device, as well as the readings on the bio-scanner's panel._

_Spock turned off his Tricorder._

_"Finally," Garak said to the Vulcan, as the med-bed slowly pivoted; allowing Garak to stand._

_"Mr. Garak," Spock said, "I have come to the conclusion that the Sporocystian energy has bonded itself with every cell of your body at a sub-atomic level. I must admit that my own knowledge of this kind of energy is somewhat lacking, however, it is there and it is growing with rapid intensity. The energy is also interacting with the construct of this sub-space bubble we exist in."_

_"Do think it is also interacting with the Dilithium crystals and affecting the warp engines?" Sulu asked._

_"Affirmative," Spock said._

_**OUR STORY CONTINUES… **_

"How long do I have, or better put, how long do we all have?" Garak asked.

"Since time does not exist in this sub-space bubble, it is hard to say. However; it will happen very soon."

The door to Sickbay swooshed open and Chekov came in.

"Sir, we have looked everywhere; but we cannot find Mr. Scott," Chekov reported.

"Perhaps he left the ship in the same manner Doctor McCoy did," Sulu concluded.

Spock nodded his head in agreement.

"Mr. Garak, I have never scanned Sporocystian until now," Spock began to say. "However, is it safe to assume that in your time that Sporocystian has been studied more thoroughly?"

"I wouldn't go so far as say that it has been studied thoroughly," Garak said, "but yes, we know what it is."

"I am starting to come to the conclusion that whoever it was who sent you here, this Commander Donnelly you mentioned before," Spock said to Garak, "knew that the Sporocystian energy in your body would react the way it is."

"Umm, excuse me," Garak said, with a wry smile on his face, "then what you're really saying is that they sent me here to die."

"Or, it is more likely," Spock responded, "that they sent you here to destroy us all. However, that would presuppose that the Federation, and or Star Fleet, condones the murder of innocent lives, which does not seem logical."

"In my time," Garak said with caution in his voice, "there is an agency of the Federation that works outside the law. They call themselves Section-31, and if you are right...and I was sent here to destroy you and your entire crew; I am very sorry."

"Then we're all going to die?" Chekov asked. "I hate to say it," he added, as he looked at the others, "I would welcome death if it were the only way to escape this place that passes outside of time."

Suddenly a look of pain came over Garak's face. Spock scanned Garak as Sulu and Chekov steadied the Cardassian.

"As I feared," Spock said, as he too helped steady Garak, "it is already happening."

Spock went over to the intercom and pressed the button.

"This is First Officer Spock," the Vulcan said into the device, his voice echoing through the ship as he spoke, "It is very likely that in the next few moments, this ship and all aboard her will cease to exist. It is something we have all known could happen; and now we have reached that point. Since many of us come from various cultures, I ask you now, to do what you individually believe must be done to prepare yourselves for the unknown which is to come."

Garak shook his head.

"Just like that; you're giving up?" Garak asked.

"If what you have said is accurate," Spock told Garak, "then we have existed outside of time for over 130 Earth standard years. As Mr. Chekov said moments ago; all of us here, if given the choice, would chose finality over uncertainty."

"How long do we have?" Chapel asked Spock.

"I would estimate no more than ten minutes," Spock replied. "Mr. Garak, I believe that when the event happens, you will return to your place in time."

A look of worry came over Garak's face.

"They'll kill me the moment I return," Garak said, with a blank look on his face. "I will become what affectionately what we call a loose end."

Spock looked to Sulu.

"Mr. Sulu," Spock said, as he walked over to Sulu, "please hurry down to engineering and retrieve one of the Dilithium Crystals."

Without a word, Sulu did as instructed, and rushed out of Sickbay.

"What are you planning Mr. Spock?" Chekov asked.

"Perhaps we cannot escape our fate," Spock said, "yet I believe, based upon the scans of the unique energy in Mr. Garak's body, I can use the crystal to alter his subatomic state so that he will arrive back in his time slightly out of phase."

"What does that mean?" Garak asked.

"I believe you are right," Spock told the Cardassian, "they will indeed endeavor to silence you. However, if I can delay your arrival, or alter your re-entry into the time-continuum, you might yet survive and warn others."

"Who will I warn; and what do I warn them of?" Garak asked back. "No one is going to believe me."

"Someone has gone through great lengths to destroy this ship, and all aboard her," Spock explained. "There are two possibilities as to why. We would be anomalies, and for all we know, we may indeed pose a threat to the fabric of time just as Commander Donnelly told you. What is stopping Donnelly from coming to the same conclusion about the Jim Kirk who exists in your time, as well as Dr. McCoy and Commander Scott? They both made it off this ship, and we have no idea of their fates."

"Even if I make it back," Garak asked after a moment, "as I said a moment ago; who do I go to for help? No one is going to believe me."

"I will," Spock said."You must find my counterpart in your time."

"And tell him what?" Garak asked.

"Leave that to me," Spock said. "Would you mind if I initiated a mind-meld with you?"

Garak smiled; he knew what Spock was up to.

Spock reached out and placed hands on the sides of Garak's head, and initiated a Vulcan-Mind meld. Garak began to lose all sense of reality. And as he heard Spock's voice, Garak lost all track of time and reality began to fade. As he felt his mind slipping away, he watched a Spock stood back.

Garak could not speak, but he saw Sulu return with the crystal. Garak became drowsy as the seconds passed. He watched as Spock did something to the Dilithium crystal, and then Spock placed it in Garak's hand.

"Mr. Garak; do not let go of the crystal until you believe you are safe," Spock explained.

Garak nodded, and then he smiled as Spock, Chapel, Sulu and Chekov came closer and stood around him. They had showed themselves to be the very legends that Jim Kirk had once told him about. Spock rendered the Vulcan hand salute.

"Live long and prosper," Spock said. And then…everything went blank…Garak was gone…

Commander Randolph Donnelly was about to open a communication's signal with Starfleet, when suddenly there was a flash of light; and then Q appeared.

"You're back," Commander Donnelly said to Q. "I guess that can only mean one thing…"

Q smiled at Commander Donnelly.

"It does indeed," Q said, as instantly a glass of Champaign appeared in the grasp of his hand, as well as another glass in Donnelly's hand. "The Enterprise has been destroyed…"

Unknown to Q or Commander Randolph Donnelly, Garak was there; but he was unseen and undetected by Q.

"What about the Cardassian," Donnelly asked, "did he make it?"

Q thought for moment, and then he shook his dead.

"No," Q finally said, "so you won't have to deal with him either."

Garak smiled; Q was wrong.

"What about Commander Scott?" Donnelly asked, as he pointed over to the makeshift grave.

"Leave him here," Q said. "I doubt anyone will happen upon this place. Eventually his bones will decay, and there will be no memory. Now tell me, what are you doing about Kirk?"

"I will deal with him, as well as Spock," Donnelly said. "I only ask one thing in exchange; the unborn child of Spock and Elizabeth Pike."

"That's acceptable," Q said, as he prepared to leave. Before he could snap his finger, Donnelly asked one last question.

"What about McCoy? What do we do about him?" Donnelly asked.

"He dodged death recently," Q said, with annoyance in voice. "However, he's about to do a foolish thing and get tangle up with the Borg; they'll take care of him for us."

And then there was a flash of light and Q was gone

Moments later, with the ordeal finally over, Q vanished and Commander Donnelly beamed up to his own scout-class ship. Once again the world below was bare, with no sign of life anywhere. Donnelly pressed a button and then his ship streaked away.

On the surface of the planet, blurring into existence; was Garak. The Enterprise, and its crew, had been destroyed, and Spock's last ditch effort, using the Dilithium Crystal, had worked.

Garak looked over at the grave of Montgomery Scott. Garak had to get the truth out, and so he knew he had to do one thing; find the Spock that existed in this time before Commander Donnelly could kill them both! But first; Garak had to find a way off the planet. He looked around, and then he just started walking toward foothills in the distance.

And then, after taking three steps, he saw them; three glowing spheres of light descending from the sky. The Sihg had returned…and Garak did now know if it was a good or bad turn of events.

Continued…

next time; The Adventures of Colt MaCahan!


	292. It's A life

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**It's a Life: PART ONE**

**The Planet Dan'gin; a world that has no official government and is populated by criminals and underworld scum off all kind…**

Colt MaCahan angled his spacebike out of the clouds, and toward the surface of the planet Dan'gin. Sitting behind him was Corvana; the young girl who he reluctantly took on as a partner after the death of her parents. Was being a small time crook and con-artist the ideal life for a young girl; of course not. However, in the two weeks since Colt and Corvana had joined up with G'oneth, she had more than pulled her weight on a couple scams already. But was she ready to ply her trade on Dan'gin, where the criminal element was much wiser and far more dangerous?

"So let me get this straight," Corvana said, as her arms were still wrapped tight around Colt's waist, as she rode behind him on the bike, as it descended down through the night sky. "We have to find this alien, Nava, and try to steal some kind of device?"

"Yep." It was the only word that the cigar chomping Colt Macahan replied with.

"And this alien," Corvana continued, "comes from another part of the galaxy and this device of his could help us track down that super-big Borg cube that attacked the Gorn birthing world and kidnapped G'oneth's mate."

"That about sums it up," Colt Macahan said with a quick nod of his head. "All we have to do is talk with the alien, and find out where his ship is; G'oneth will do the rest."

"Why don't we just do the honest thing and buy the damn thing from him?" Corvana asked, after a moment.

"Hey, watch your mouth," Colt barked back with, "We ain't buying it because we don't have enough latinum," Colt replied, "but if you don't shut up so I can concentrate on landing my bike, I'll you to him for free!"

"Oh be quiet," Corvana said, "you wouldn't do a thing like that."

Colt looked back at her.

"Try me," Colt said with a sneer on this face.

Colt brought the bike down and parked on the dirt path next to the casino/bar where G'oneth said the alien, from a race called the Vaadwaur, waited inside. Colt and Corvana both got off the bike, and then he reached down and picked up a large case. He put it on the seat of the bike, and opened it up. Inside the case, spread out, were five bars of Gold Pressed latinum. Beneath each bar was what appeared to be more bricks of latinum. But in actuality the bricks below the latinum ones were just worthless rectangular pieces of thick glass cut to look like Latinum. It was the oldest trick in the book, but it still worked as good as ever; most of the time.

Just then, a drunken Orion man came out of the bar and stumbled his way over to where Colt and Corvana were. The man smelt of alcohol and feces.

"How much," the man burped and slurred, "for a night with that sweet looking thing."

Colt turned to face the drunken man, and saw the lust in the man's eyes as he stared down at Corvana.

"Stranger; leave her alone," Colt said, as a stone cold look came over his face, "she's not a prostitute."

"You mean; she's not a prostitute…yet," the Orion replied, with a smile that reeked of alcohol and funk. The man reached out and put his fingers on Corvana's cheek.

In one swift move, Colt threw a punch that landed on the Orion's jaw, throwing him to the ground, and then Colt reached back behind his black leather jacket adorned shoulder and grabbed his shotgun and put the tip of the long double barreled weapon on the Orion's forehead.

"Don't do it Colt," Corvana pleaded, "he only touched me; I'm okay."

"Yeah mister, listen to her," the Orion said, as tears of fear streamed down his face, "I only touched this one."

The look on Colt's face was absolute; he didn't care for reasons, he only cared about actions. He pulled the trigger and the blast of the shotgun blew a large chunk of the Orion's head off; killing him instantly. Corvana looked away from the gory scene.

"You didn't have to do that," she said, as she looked in the opposite direction, her voice quaking in shock.

Colt Macahan placed his hand on her arm and pulled her with him toward the bar.

"It is what it is," Colt said. "Trust me," he added, as he looked up at the windows of the casino/hotel they were walking next to ,and he saw a few of the drapes moving; they had had an audience. "There were people looking through those windows, and saw what he had done to you. Now they will know not to f*ck with me; or face the same fate as that jackass."

Corvana nodded and then realized that she was in a world of violence. She looked up at Colt, as she walked beside him.

"Is life... always this cold and brutal?" she asked him.

Colt looked down at her, and then he looked forward again.

"For those like you and me; always…" Colt replied softly, but with force in his voice.

They made their way into the swanky loud bar. There were no age limits posted because there were no age limits.

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

A small vessel entered orbit of Dan'gin. It appeared to be a rundown transport vessel, which was a common sight on worlds like Dan'gin. Piloting the craft was its lone passenger; special Ryan Tolbert. He pushed a button on the control consol, and began to speak into a recording device.

"Agent Ryan Tolbert," he spoke in a low monotone voice, "service number CK8. I have arrived at Dan'gin, in my pursuit of the Gorn fugitive named G'oneth. Word has it he has entered into a partnership with another morally challenged individual like himself. According to data records, this is the same Gorn who was on Starbase 185 and reclaimed the egg of one of his mate's hatchlings. That egg was originally left at Starbase 185 by Leonard McCoy a.k.a. Colt MaCahan."

Ryan Tolbert let the button go, and ended the recording. He looked out at the murky world belw, which had no official government. Since it was in an unclaimed area of space, lawlessness was unchecked and all sorts of criminal activity happened on Dan'gin; from illegal arms dealing, slave trading, murder, even perverse medical practices. He had been to the world not too long ago, when along with Jim Kirk and S'vath, they had come to Dan'gin to rescue Kirk's kidnapped son. It was a last moment act of heroics by Chakotay that had saved the child, but had cost the former Star fleet officer his life.

For the next hour, Agent Tolbert applied his disguise; that of a Klingon. And then, with that done, he beamed down to the planet with the hope of finding the criminal known as G'oneth, and bringing the Gorn to justice.

Continued….


	293. Welcome to the Game

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Welcome to the Game**

**NEW VIDEO OPENING CREDITS...FOLLOW LINK AT MY PROFILE**

* * *

**Previously**

**Aboard the Delta Flyer III…**

_Admiral Janeway and Romulan Admiral V'ahral returned to the main cabin to converse with the others. (Walter Bishop, the Doc, Varrim, Annika Hansen, Neelix and Tom Paris)_

_Janeway recounted the past events about the signal between Voyager and Telek (Voyager episode ""). The Doc, Paris and Neelix recalled the tale quite well since they had been there when it happened._

_"So let me get this straight, Admiral," Paris said, from where he sat in the pilot's seat, "you're telling us that the subspace fracture we encountered on Voyager, which allowed us to communicate with Telek (Varrim's father) twenty years in the past, was actually some sort of signal from the future; and we were just piggy-backing on it?"_

_"That's right," Janeway said. "But here's the kicker; that signal was sent from this time with implicit directions not to reveal the contents of that message until we caught up with this moment in time."_

_"Kathryn," Walter Bishop said, with a whimsical smile, "you must not leave us with a cliffhanger. Who sent the signal and why?"_

_"Dr. Bishop; I don't know why this person sent the signal, yet," Janeway said to Dr. Bishop, "but in the meantime; thanks to Admiral V'ahral, I now know who sent it." And then Janeway shifted her gaze to Annika. "It was sent by…" she paused; "Chakotay."_

_"Admiral," Tom said with directness, as he gazed as V'ahral, "This Romulan is making a play on us; Chakotay died on the planet Dan'gin saving Jim Kirk's son. Kirk told me this himself."_

_Suddenly an alert signal sounded. Paris dove back into his seat and then he looked back at V'ahral and Janeway._

_"A Borg vessel," Paris announced in a hurry, "its firing!"_

_Suddenly; several streaks of energy slammed into V'ahral's the Romulan vessel, destroying it._

_"Get us out of here Tom; NOW!" Janeway barked…._

Continued…

The Delta Flyer III streaked into warp speed, but the Borg vessel was right on their tail. It was all Captain Paris could do, keeping ahead of the advanced Borg vessel. The Delta Flyer III darted back and forth, preparing to dodge any blast that the Borg ship fired; but no blasts came.

"It's one of their smaller vessels," Paris reported. "I believe it's their version of a shuttle."

"How many were aboard your vessel?" Janeway asked a visibly shaken Admiral V'ahral.

"Just a small crew of fifteen," V'ahral replied, "including my daughter who was on her first deployment."

"I'm sorry for your loss," Janeway said with a soft voice. Then she looked up at the conn. "Tom, how are we doing?"

"We're holding our own, in terms of speed, but the Borg ship is matching our speed; yet strangely enough they are not firing on us," Paris stated.

"Admiral," Neelix said, with a slight tone of worry in his voice, "if they're not attacking us then I think they want something of value to them on this ship."

"I agree," Janeway replied.

"Perhaps we should negotiate," Walter Bishop offered. "Peace is always the better option."

"One doesn't simply negotiate with the Borg," Annika told Bishop.

"Admiral," Paris called out, "I am detecting a Transporter beam; we're being boarded."

"By who?" The Doc asked. "Perhaps we should arm ourselves!"

"Its too late," Varrim countered.

Suddenly two figures streamed into view; one was a Borg drone, and the other was a man Annika recognized immediately.

"Father," Annika said as she stood up at the sight of her father. "You're alive,"

"What is the meaning of this attack?" Janeway demanded of Magnus Hansen.

Magnus Hansen flashed a warm smile at Admiral Janeway.

"I see no need for animosity," Magnus said to Janeway. "I would simply like my daughter to come with me."

"You destroyed that Romulan vessel," Janeway said back to Magnus with contempt in her voice. "Fifteen people were killed; I find that hardly a simple action for someone who just wants a family reunion."

Magnus nodded his head.

"Admiral; I am sorry for the loss of their lives," Magnus said, in a soft voice. Then he looked over at V'ahral. "I don't know what the Romulan has told you, but his being here isn't to be trusted."

"Father, are you helping the Borg? Were you there when they attacked the Gorn birthing world and then Cardassia?" Annika asked.

"I will explain later my dear," Magnus said to his daughter. "But I want you to come with me over to the Borg transport vessel. It would be easier to explain over there."

Suddenly, and without warning, both the Borg Transport vessel and the Delta Flyer III came out of warp.

"What's going on up there Tom," Janeway asked, "why have we come out of warp?"

"Beats me," Captain Tom Paris replied. "Something in this area of space has destabilized our warp field and is also affecting the Borg ship. In fact, I am detecting a large object approaching..."

They all looked up at the viewing screen as a large ship approached. A blast streaked out from the large vessel, striking the Borg ship; destroying it instantly.

The Borg drone on the Delta Flyer III became confused, and then fell to the ground.

"Father," Annika said to Magnus, "what is happening; I thought you were dead."

Before Magnus could answer, Janeway cut him off.

"What a moment," Admiral Janeway said, "I recognize that ship's design; it's Voth."

"How can you be sure?" Neelix asked. He squint his eyes for a better view.

"We're receiving a signal; they're hailing us," Paris said back to Janeway.

"On screen," Janeway said.

And then the viewing screen switched from a view of the nearby stars to that of a person on the Voth ship; a human. He was a man that Janeway, Paris, Neelix, the Doc, and most especially, Annika Hanson recognized instantly; Chakotay.

"Hello Kate," Chakotay, who was sporting a goatee, said to his former Captain. "It may sound odd hearing this come from me, of all people; but The Calvary has arrived."

* * *

**Earth...**

A small home on the east side of Pleasanton California; a small suburb near San Francisco…

Three men stood two blocks down from the innocent looking home, spying on it. They were Commodore Thomas Riker, Captain Wesley Crusher (USS Titan) and Earth Security Bureau officer Steve Keller.

"Commodore Riker," Keller said, "are you sure about this? Do you really think Commander Mike Stone, my friend and mentor, is a changeling?"

"It's very possible," Riker replied, as he looked back at Keller, "According to Ambassador Picard, Your boss, Stone, arrived in the Nimath system just moments before the Borg attack. He also suggested that Azami, the Imeyah-changeling, seem to infer that her rescue was imminent."

"So what does that prove?" Keller asked. "She was destroyed when the planet exploded, and Mike probably died as well."

Crusher explained further

"It goes further than that," Crusher said to Keller. "The Klingons were in charge of security of the Penal Colony and that entire star system," recently promoted Captain Crusher explained, "They reported boarding the Commander's shuttle to conduct a DNA scan, which Stone refused to commit to. Why do you suppose he would have done that?"

"I don't know," Keller replied. "But making the leap that he was a shape-shifter is abit abrupt don't you think?"

"Hopefully we'll find out soon," Riker said, as he pointed to the sky.

A small probe came into view and hovered above the house.

"Once the probe saturates the area with Theta radiation, we go in," Riker continued to explain. "It will inhibit any shape-shifting ability; if Commander Mike Stone is indeed a Changeling."

"And that supposes he survived the explosion of Nimath," Keller continued, "and returned here."

"Yes, we're playing hunch; if that's what you mean," Riker admitted.

Riker's communicator chirped four times.

"That's the go signal," Riker said, "let's go…"

The three men made their way toward the innocent looking home, and moments later they entered. It was very quiet inside the house, and there was a stale smell in the air. Inspector Keller ran his fingers across the main dining room table; there was dust.

"I get the impression that no one had been here for quite some time," Keller said to Riker.

Crusher was scanning the home with a Tricorder.

"Anything Wes?" Riker asked.

Crusher studied the readings on his Tricorder. And then he found something.

"Follow me," Wesley Crusher said.

The three men entered the bedroom, which had a single bed.

"Mike's wife died five years ago," Keller stated as they looked about the sparsely decorated room.

"Over here," Crusher said as he stood over an area of the floor. "There's some sort of empty area below the floor right here."

Riker squatted down, and saw a tiny lever and pushed it. An area of the floor opened up, and a strange odor filled the room. But more importantly, there was a collection of skeletal remains in the uncovered area.

"Let me guess," Riker said, "Stone's."

"Affirmative," Crusher said, "and according to the scans, they've been here for nearly three years."

"Three years," Keller repeated, in near shock. "You're telling me that Mike was killed three years ago, and one of those shape-shifters has been pretending to be him ever since?"

"Don't beat yourself up over it," Riker said, as he placed a hand on Keller's shoulder. "The Imeyah shape-shifters are more advanced than the Founders."

"Commodore," Captain Wesley Crusher said to Riker. "What do we do now? This whole thing is a mystery."

"Wes; we have three mysteries actually," Riker replied. "Where is the shape-shifter who posed as Commander Stone? Or when Nimath exploded, destroying the Super-cube in the process, did it kill Azami and this second shape-shifter? And what about the Borg vessel that attacked Cardassia? It too was a Super-cube, so were they acting in unison with the one destroyed in the Nimath system?"

"So what now?" Keller asked Riker.

"I have a feeling I know already," Captain Crusher replied. "We're going to the Nimath system for answers."

Riker smiled.

"Wow, you know me too well," Riker said with a laugh. "We'll head there after we fill in Jean-Luc. He's on Vulcan right now for classified reasons, but he'll return soon."

"I know this would mean going outside my jurisdiction," Inspector Keller said, "But I'd to come along. Mike was a close friend of mine, and I'd like to see this through."

"Of course," Riker said.

The three men left the house, with more questions than answers.

Continued…


	294. Hach Winik

__**Star Trek: Shadow and Light ****(don't forget to view VIDEO opening credits for this story...you can find the link at my profile. I even composed the music!)**

**Hach Winik**

* * *

_**Previously…**_

_Jim Kirk had come to the Native American lands in the deserts of North America; he had come there for a very special reason. Traveling by horseback, along with Tuvok and his young Vulcan protégé T'av, Kirk and his friends eventually made it to the location of the a large tribe where they found hundreds of Native Americans living near a power river. Living as their ancestors had for thousands of years. The chief of the tribe was Kirk's son; Satangkai._

_Chief Satangkai was the 137 year old son of Kirk and Miramawnee. For reasons still unexplained to Kirk, Dr. McCoy and Nurse Chapel had saved the child Miramawnee had been pregnant with at the time of her death (the events of TOS's episode "The Paradise Syndrome"). Kirk had only learned of Satangkai's existence recently, and had decided to seek out his long lost son and meet him._

**_Our story continues…_**

* * *

Upon seeing his son for the first time, Kirk and Satangkai hugged each other as father and son for the first time, causing great joy and cheers from all who witnessed the landmark reunion.

"Come, my father," Satangkai said with pride in his voice, "let us have a feast in your honor."

"Satangkai," Kirk said to his son, "it is you I will celebrate. You're the leader of a great people; I am just an ordinary man."

Satangkai, his head adorned by a magnificent feather bonnet, old and wise, smiled at his father.

"We may have indeed been separated by time," Satangkai said with his proud voice. "Yet…through the fog of that distance…I have followed the storied past of White Eagle. The tales of Captain James T Kirk are known to our peoplel. You come home to us as a hero to all."

There was a loud cheer.

"Now come," Satangkai repeated, "we shall share in a feast for both of our honors."

The cheering began again as Kirk, Tuvok and T'av, were escorted into the tribe. They walked along side Satangkai and his wife Awinita. The crowed around them grew, with well wishers who wanted to see the two men, legends in their own right, side by side. They had come to get a closer look at Kirk. Little children looked up at Kirk, who the tribe referred to as White Eagle, and Kirk smiled down at them. Kirk looked to Tuvok.

"Is this sudden adulation for my benefit?" Kirk softly asked the Vulcan.

"If you mean to ask if this is a new found opinion of you, then you are mistaken," Tuvok told Kirk. "I have been here on several occasions and I can tell you that the legend of White Eagle is real."

"And no one on the outside has ever pieced together the fact that White Eagle is me?" Kirk asked.

"As it was with the past," Tuvok explained, "there is very little interest in the lives of these people. While they do have their lands back, it is with sorrow that I must conclude that bigotry may still be at play in some of the minds of your planet's population."

Awinita, who was Satangkai's wife, and forty years his junior (84 years old), had listened to what Tuvok had said, and then she smiled at Jim Kirk.

"Your son, Satangkai," Awinita told Kirk, "knows that White Eagle is wise. I hope that with a voice as loud as yours, our people will gain respect again."

"You better believe it," Kirk replied to Awinita. "I want to know of any issues that may remain between the people of this land and the government."

"I think you will find that the Federation government is as," Tuvok searched for the right word, "strong willed as ever. It will not be easy to change its ways."

"We'll see about that," Kirk said with a smile. "I've got a few markers to cash in."

"That is true," T'av said. She had remained quiet for most of the walk through the small village. "Jim Kirk's name is legendary. I would imagine that if he were to run for President in the next campaign; he would win."

A lightbult went of inside of Kirk's mind. But he buried the thought for now.

"You see father," Awinita said to Kirk, "I beleive you can find your own path to help our cause."

Kirk smiled at his daughter in-law. Then he looked about the tribe, and felt pride in what his son had accomplished. Kirk saw the Tepees and other simple constructs, and knew immediately that there were probably many people in the outside world that frowned upon this kind of existence; but not Kirk. He had long become a follower of the concept of _IDIC_, thanks to Spock. He only wished that the rest of humanity did too. Kirk watched as the people of the tribe looked upon Satangkai with respect. No one tried to help the 137 year old man walk. But it was clear that Satangkai drew upon the pride of his people, and it made him walk on. Kirk's heard was full of joy.

But one Native American man was not joyous, as he watched the reunion from a distance.

Unlike all the others of the tribe, he had not gone to the gathering. He had instead chosen to remain in the near distance, near his private abode. But he could see Kirk, smiling at Satangkai, in the distance.

"Enjoy your moment in the sun, Kirok," Limanu said, under his breath. "However, I will have my family's revenge upon you or your son; Satangkai."

And In the far distance, Limanu saw the approaching darkness of a thunderstorm and he smiled…fate was smiling down on him! The dark sky was coming...

* * *

**Sometime later…hours had passed...**

Jim Kirk was spinning through time. Images of the past whirled about his mind as if pushed on by a tornado of thoughts and rhymes. He saw Spock dying inside the engine room of the Enterprise. And then he saw Edith Keeler's death approaching, and then he hugged Leonard McCoy, not wanting to see her die. There was past; there was tomorrow and then…he opened his eyes. His head was still spinning, but his surroundings had changed much.

Hours earlier, after the great feast, Kirk, Tuvok and T'av were shown to a special Tepee which had been designated for them. Satangkai and Awinita had joined them at first, with several eager children, wanting to hear from Kirk as he spoke about his journeys through space. Tuvok and T'av sat nearby and listened as well. Tuvok could sense T'avs emotions being caught up in the exciting way Kirk told his stories.

Satangkai wanted to hear about the story he had read once. How his father, Kirk, and his crew saved the humpback whales.

But as midnight drew closer, Satangkai began to tire. He wanted to hear more, but Awinita would not have it. So they left, as well as the children, and then Kirk, Tuvok and T'av went to their beds to sleep the night away. Kirk looked up at the window, and at the collection of stars in the sky. He had gone to sleep proud and content and for one of the rare times in his life; he was a peace.

But now, as Kirk's head continued to spin, he looked about. His wrists were bound together and his surroundings had indeed changed, for he was no longer in the bed inside the tepee; he was in a cave and he was on the hard dirt ground. Kirk had lived enough to know the difference between sickness and being drugged; and he could tell immediately that he was not sick. Though is eyes were blurry at first, his eyesight slowly returned and then he could see he was not alone. Satangkai was across from him, on the ground as well, and he was motionless.

Kirk squirmed over, fighting the dizziness in his mind, and looked at his motionless son. Kirk lifted his son's wrist and felt for Satangkai's pulse. It was there, but it was faint.

"He will not survive the hour," a voice said from another part of the cave.

A small fire pit was burning, of branches and twigs, and it provided the low orange glow that lit the cave. A Native American in tribal clothing sat across upon the ground across from Kirk and Satangkai.

"Who are you," Kirk said with a tone of anger in his voice, "what have you done!"

"My name is Limanu," Limanu responded in a soft tone, as he stared back at Kirk with tempered anger in his eyes. "As for what I have done, it pales in comparison to what you have done to my family's honor."

"What are you talking about," Kirk asked. "I have no idea who you are."

Limanu smiled, and nodded his head.

"That's the point," Limanu said, with a slight chuckle. "People know of the great legacy that Satangkai has created for our people. They also know of the wonderful legend of the mighty White Eagle; James T Kirk. They do not know the shame of my family. My great grandfather was bound for greatness until you took it from him. His name was Salish."

Kirk knew the name instantly. When Kirk had come to the distant world that was threatened by an oncoming asteroid, and had lost his memories, Kirk had become a member of the tribe. Due to circumstances, Kirk became the medicine man of the tribe; replacing Salish. (The Paradise Syndrome)

"Limanu," Kirk said with a soft voice. "Those actions were not my own, as I'm sure you know. I had…suffered…from memory loss. I am sorry for what happened to Salish, but believe me, I have no real memory of it; just wisps of images."

"Yes, I know all about your memory loss," Limanu said, his voice becoming dark, and his gaze upon Kirk filled with even more anger. "So I am not here to get revenge upon you, James T Kirk, I am here to get revenge upon the man who stole my family's honor."

He motioned to a pot that was hanging just inches above the fire. There was a strange smoke and odor that came from simmering concoction of herbs and a certain cactus excrement known as peyote.

"What is that?" Kirk asked.

Limanu reached into the pot with a branch, and slowly stirred its contents. He looked at Kirk.

"I am pretty sure that the mighty James T Kirk believes that only aliens on distant worlds can touch the mind," Limanu began to explain. "The Vulcans, the Betezoids, are probably seen by you as miracle workers in such things. However, my people have passed down recipes of their own that can cause a man to open the hidden passages of his mind."

"You're not making any sense," Kirk came back with.

Suddenly Limanu's demeanor changed; and he pointed directly at Kirk; anger spewing from his mouth.

"DON'T TELL ME ANYTHING!" Limanu's voice echoed through the cave. "You are right about one thing," Limanu added, as he calmed down. "I cannot hold James T Kirk responsible for what happened to my great-grandfather. However; the peyote, and the other herbs and ingredients, a combination created by my father, will open your mind. Acting on my words, your thoughts will find that tangible hidden memory, buried by your Vulcan friend Spock, and bring it back to the forefront of who and what you are."

"I don't understand," Kirk said, as he heard Limanu's words.

"In simpler words," Limanu came back with, "Kirok will live again. He is the one that I will have my revenge upon."

"And you think I'm just willingly going to go along with this crazy scheme of yours?" Kirk asked back, as he looked at the pot containing the peyote.

"Willingly, no," Limanu replied. "However, Satangkai's life is in the balance as well."

Limanu held up a jar which contained a spider inside of it.

"This is a Brown-recluse arachnid," Limanu explained. "Its poison is most dangerous, especially if the victim is old and frail. I have given Satangkai a dose of the spider's poison, but I have the antidote hidden in this cave. If Kirok can defeat me in an honor fight, then I will give him the antidote so that he can save Satangkai. If I win the fight, I too will save Satangkai. But if you decide not to do this, then he will die. So the choice is yours, Kirk's. But do not take much longer; as I said, Satangkai will not live beyond an hour."

Kirk looked down at Satangkai, and could tell that Limanu was right. Satangkai's breathing was getting weaker by the moment.

"Alright," Kirk finally said. "I'll do this; but I have your word that if you win, you will save my son."

Limanu nodded his head, and then he stood up and walked over to Kirk and sliced off the rope. Kirk had thought about attacking Limanu, but he was still too dizzy. And attacking Limanu in a prolonged fight would also delay getting the antidote. After cutting the rope that bound Kirk's wrists, Limanu went back to his place next to the fire. He sat down and then tossed something over to Kirk. Kirk picked it up and recognized it instantly; it was the head ornament that he had worn on that distant world where he had found Miramawnee's people. Kirk tied it around his head.

"Perfect," Limanu said, upon seeing the head ornament wrapped around Kirk's head. "Now the road to vengeance is pave; it is time for us to walk upon it."

Next, Limanu reached into a pouch next to where he sat and brought out a hand carved wooden spoon. He took the spoon and scraped the inside of the pot. The peyote looked like a paste, with a slight greenish/brown color to it. He handed the spoon to Kirk.

"What now," Kirk asked. "What is this?"

"It is called peyote. It comes down to us from the Huichol people. You must consume the paste with your fingers," Limanu explained, "from there; the spirits will be your guide. And do not try to fool me Kirk, for I will now whether or not I am with Kurok. Should you lie; then your son, my chief, will die."

Kirk dabbed at the paste with his fingers, and then he ingested it. At first there was no affect, but then Kirk's mind began to dive into an unseen river. His mind was losing its grasp on reality. He could hear Limanu's voice asking the winter God to bring back the spirit of Kurok. At first Kirk fought back the pulling from beyond. And then he saw Spock's face staring down upon him. Spock was speaking…

"I am…."

And then he opened his eyes. He was sitting on the ground inside of a darkened cave; next to him was a small fire. He had no idea how he had gotten there, but then he saw that a man sat across from him.

"Who are you," _**he**_ asked the other man asked.

"My name is Limanu," Limanu replied, with a deep smile. "And what is your name?"

"I….am….," _**he** _fought his mind to remember his name, and then it came out… "KUROK!"

Continued…


	295. Waha'Ej

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Waha'Ej; fight of vengeance**

* * *

**Earth…the lands of the Native Americans…**

**Limanu had abducted Kirk and Satangkai, and had taken them to a sacred cave…**

_Kirk dabbed at the peyote paste with his fingers, and then he ingested it. At first there was no affect, but then Kirk's mind began to dive into an unseen river. His mind was losing its grasp on reality. He could hear Limanu's voice asking the winter God to bring back the spirit of Kurok. At first Kirk fought back the pulling from beyond. And then he saw Spock's face staring down upon him. Spock was speaking…_

**"I am…"**

And then he opened his eyes. He was sitting on the ground inside of a darkened cave; next to him was a small fire. He had no idea how he had gotten there, but then he saw that a man sat across from him.

"Who are you," _**he**_asked the other man asked.

"My name is Limanu," Limanu said back to him, with a broad smile. "And what is your name?"

"I….am….," _**he**_ fought his mind to remember his name, and then it came out… "**KUROK!**"

Limanu smiled again...

"Yes," Limanu said with darkness in his voice, "you are..."

_OUR STORY CONTINUES_

* * *

Kirok looked about, and saw the old man on the ground by one of the cave walls; he hurried over to him and felt for the old man's pulse. Kurok studied the ceremonial markings on the old man's face and read their meaning clearly.

"He is the Chief of our people?" a bewildered Kirok asked Limanu, who remained seated on the ground by the fire. "And yet I do not know him."

"Nor should you," Limanu replied. "Many moons have passed since you have been with us, Kirok, and yes he is our chief now. Yet it would be wise to not set your mind upon those words, instead, listen to these."

Limanu stood up and tossed an object, which was wrapped in animal skin, over to Kirok. Kirok picked it up and unraveled the animal skin to reveal a knife.

"I don't understand," Kirok said, as he held the knife. "What is the meaning of this; and where is my wife Miramawnee?"

And then, for a brief second, flashes of memories flew across Kirok's mind. He saw himself standing near some sort of obelisk, both he and Miramawnee. But the others in the tribe where throwing stones at them. But then, as quickly as the memories had come, they were gone.

"Just know this, Kirok," Limanu said. "He is the chief of our people, and he will die because I have poisoned him. If you wish him to live, then you must defeat me in the Waha'Ej; the fight of vengeance."

"What are you avenging?" Kirok asked, as he stood up, holding the knife. He could see that Limanu was holding a knife of his own.

"As I told you, many moons have passed since you were with us. My great-grand father was Salish," Limanu explained. "You stole his position in the tribe, and then you stole his woman; Miramawnee. He was forced to take the hand of another woman; my mother. He never really loved her, and reminded her of that fact all her life."

"Where is my wife?" Kirok asked again.

"I will not answer you now," Limanu said. "Unless we do this, and do this now, Satangkai will die and I know we don't want that."

As the two men prepared to fight, they were unaware that their actions were being watched intently by a man they thought was near death, but who in all actuality, was quite safe; Chief Satangkai.

"If I am fighting for to save our chief's life," Kirok finally said, "then how am I to save him."

"Does not the son of a God know? Perhaps you can breathe wind into him," Limanu said with a sneer. And then he pointed over to a cave wall in the distance. "In the center of that wall," Limanu began to say, "If you should win, you will find a hollowed out area behind one of the stones and then you will find the antidote to the spider poison. I give you my word that if I should win, and kill you, I will give him the antidote as well. This is between you and I, Kirok, and I will have my family's Waha'Ej; it will be satisfied without harm to our chief; now…fight!"

Limanu rushed Kirok, brandishing his knife!

* * *

**Back at the tribe…**

Tuvok and T'av had been awakened by Satangkai's wife Awinita, as well as Hemech; the tribe's designated warrior guard. Satangkai had gone missing, and it was apparent that James T Kirk was gone as well. A young buck rushed into the tepee. He was a native-American male who was in his early teens. He spoke in the words of the Arapaho, and his tone was excited. The Universal Translators that Tuvok and T'av wore did not translate the words, but Tuvok understood anyway. The young buck hurried out of the tepee as fast as he had entered.

"He tells me," Hemech said to Tuvok and T'av, "that there is no sign of either our Chief or White Eagle anywhere in the trine. And it would also appear," Hemech said as he looked over at Awinita, "that Limanu is gone as well."

"It must be Limanu," Awinita said. "He is bitter but not without honor. He will not kill Satangkai."

"Who is this person; Limanu," Tuvok asked.

"He descends from Salish," Awinita explained, her voice old but wise. "He was the shaman of our tribe whom Kirok had replaced when he came to our people on that distant world."

"Are you saying he wants revenge after all these years?" T'av asked Awinita.

"It was once our way," Awinita explained. "However; those ways are no more."

"It would appear," Tuvok countered, "They are alive and well in Limanu's heart. Now, as per your permission moments ago, I have sent for help. This matter indeed involves the tribe; however, James T Kirk is an important person to the Federation and Starfleet. They will want a safe resolution to this situation."

"We understand," Hemech said. "However, whoever comes, they will abide by our rules while on our land."

At that moment, two transporter beams shimmered into view and then solidified; S'vath and Ambassador Spock appeared. Spock raised his hand and gave the Vulcan salute to Awinita and Hemech, upon seeing them in their traditional clothing.

"I am Spock," Spock said, his voice old as wise, "I have come to find my friend; James T Kirk. This is my son S'vath."

Awinita bowed her head as did Hemech.

Hemech explained the situation to Spock as S'vath walked over to Tuvok. There was a slight glare of anger in S'vath's eyes.

"You were supposed to keep Jim safe," S'vath said, with anger in his tone of voice.

"I assure you, it was my very intention," Tuvok replied.

"And yet, here we are," S'vath added.

T'av had overheard and pointed her gaze at S'vath.

"Do not blame Tuvok," she said to S'vath. "What happened here, it seems, has been unfolding for over a hundred and twenty years. And if I am not mistaken," T'av added, "you were well aware of who Satangkai was in relation to Jim Kirk. This could have been dealt with a long time ago, had you been more forthright in your knowledge."

S'vath met her eyes with his.

"Perhaps I have assumed too much," S'vath said.

"Yes; you have," T'av added; her face without expression but her eyes filled with a slight tinge of anger.

Spock came over to them.

"They will continue their search," Spock explained. "However, they have authorized Starfleet to use an orbital probe to see if it can find Jim Kirk's distinctive life signs in this region of Earth. I have no doubt that they will. I have also overheard the conversation between the three of you," Spock said to Tuvok, T'av and S'vath. "There is nothing to gain her by applying blame. If I know Jim Kirk, he will come out of this situation in better shape, figuratively, than he did going into it."

"In plane simple talk," S'vath said to his father, "Jim might be dead, but his death will be in a good light?"

Spock nodded.

"I believe that is what I just said," Spock said.

Hemech came over to where Spock and the others were standing.

"I have sent for Kajika," Hemech told them. "He is our best hunter and has been with a hunting party in an area near to our sacred caves. If Limanu has taken Satangkai and White Eagle there, Kajika will find them."

* * *

Across the vast distance of space, on the very planet Kirk had lived his life as Kirok for several months, the obelisk became operational, which it hadn't done since Kirk and Spock had activated it to alter the course of the asteroid which threatened the planet over a century earlier. Starfleet had studied the obelisk but had honored the tribe's request and had never entered it again. But now suddenly; a beam of energy streaked out of the obelisk at a speed far faster than imaginable…headed for Earth

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Kirok and Limanu had fought hard. Both had been able to slash the other with their knives, but the knives had since been broken and tossed aside. But as Satangkai continued to watch unnoticed, it was clear to him that Kirok, who was at least twice the age as Limanu, was laboring and breathing harder.

And as for Limanu, he too looked at the laboring Kirok, and he knew that the end was near for Kirk/Kirok. But during the fight, Limanu had gained respect for the man he had hated for all his life.

And then it happened; Kirok turned an ankle and went down hard on the ground. Limanu reached for a boulder, and then ran over and straddled Kirok at his midsection, holding the rock over Kirok's head.

"You have fought well, Kirok," Limanu said, "and with pride. Although I wished to avenge my father's honor, I will take no pride with ending your life. I hated you, but I have come to see that you do indeed honor our people."

"You have fought with honor," Kirok said, as he looked up at Limanu. "Just follow your earlier words after you kill me and give our chief the antidote."

Limanu nodded his head, and then raised the boulder even higher, preparing to pummel Kirok's head with it.

"Noooooo…" came from a voice.

Both Limanu and Kirok pivoted their heads and saw Satangkai standing.

"How can this be?" Limanu asked.

"Limanu," Satangkai said, as he came over to where the two men who had been fighting only moments earlier, "you have honored the intent of the Waha'Ej. I ask that you spare my father's life."

Limanu slowly stepped away from Kirok, allowing Kirok to stand up as well.

"You're my son?" Kirok asked in confusion.

* * *

In space…the stream of energy which had come from the obelisk continued on its course; directly aimed at Earth…

* * *

"Yes," Satangkai said with a soft voice, "I am your son," then Satangkai looked at Limanu.

"How is it the spider venom does not kill you?" Limanu asked.

"For the same reason my eyes have seen many years," Satangkai explained. He looked at Kirok, "The obelisk changed you; my father. It made you unique during your time on our distant home. That uniqueness was passed on to me. It is now time to pass the future of our people onto a new leader." Satangkai looked at Limanu. "And that new leader is you Limanu."

"I am confused; why me?" Limanu asked. "I nearly killed you, and your father."

"As I told you, I would not have died from the spider's death venom." Satangkai explained. "The Waha'Ej was valid in my eyes. However, the customs of our people grant pardon to all, when leadership changes. Thus, Kirok and your father, though he is in spirit, are both pardoned. I know you will be a great chief for our people."

Satangkai removed a necklace from his neck and handed it to Limanu, and then Satangkai went down to his knees. Kirok, knowing the custom as well, went down on his knees as well. Limanu looked down upon them and nodded his head. Suddenly the stream of energy that had streaked through space, came down upon Earth and into the cave, finding its target; Satangkai. Both Kirok and Limanu watched as a bright light surrounded Satangkai, as he stood up. Satangkai looked upon Kirok and Limanu and then Satangkai smiled. He came over to them and touched Kirok's shoulder. Kirok's eyes closed, and then he lost his balance. Limanu eased Kirok to the ground and watched as energy came from Kirok's body which was then absorbed by the energy surrounding Satangkai.

"When Kirk awakens," Satangkai told Limanu, "you will tell him these words I am about to give to your mind; and then you make a vow to see them through."

Satangkai touched the side of Limanu's head, and then thoughts were transferred. Upon receiving the new knowledge, Limanu nodded his head.

"I will do as you ask," Limanu told Satangkai. "I will honor this commitment to Kirk with my very life."

And then Satangkai faded away and was gone; replace by a bald-eagle which flew out of the cave and into the night sky. Kirk opened his eyes, and Limanu helped him to his feet just as three Transporter signals solidified into view. Awinita, Spock and Hemech appeared. Hemech prepared to attack Limanu, but Awinita cut him off.

"No," Awinita said as she looked at Limanu, "Look at the necklace; Limanu is our chief now. Satangkai told me of a dream. He said that Kirok would come and that a wolf cries from the past would live again; bringing closure and a new chief; Satangkai said that chief would be Limanu."

There was no need for rebuttal as Hemech bowed to the words of Awinita. The tribe's legacy and the Waha'Ej had been built upon honor and tradition and Limanu wore the necklace that came with the title of chief.

Kirk, who felt dizzy, stared at Spock. Limanu went on and explained what had happened, and how he had kidnapped both Kirk and Satangkai for the revenge ritual. As Limanu spoke with Awinita, Kirk turned to Spock.

"I might have known you'd show up," Kirk said with a smile to his old friend.

"I was only seeing to the safety of a valuable former Star Fleet officer," Spock explained.

"Jim," S'vath said to Kirk, "did my father tell you yet; he's going to be a papa again."

"Wow," Kirk said, raising his eyebrows several times, as he looked at his former first officer. "I guess living to nearly two hundred years has its perks after all."

"Please Jim," Spock countered, "my humility."

Kirk and S'vath chuckled.

* * *

**An hour later…back at the tribe…inside the Tepee which had been set up for the visitors…**

Kirk, Spock, T'av, S'vath and Tuvok prepared to leave. Limanu, Awinita and Hemech were with them.

"Your son, my husband, was very proud of you Jim Kirk," Awinita told Kirk. "I wish you two could have shared more time together."

"Thank you," Kirk said back to her. "I am very proud of what he has done, and don't think I didn't hear your words yesterday."

"You will run for President, and bring respect to our land?" Awinita asked with excitement.

Meanwhile, S'vath looked over at Tuvok and T'av.

"I'm sorry for my words back at the cave," S'vath said. "Jim Kirk is like a father to me, and I guess I lashed out. It's part of that human blood of mine no doubt."

"Your apology is accepted," Tuvok said. "And I cannot blame you. There is something about Jim Kirk that just makes those who might not even know him well want to keep him safe."

Limanu came over to Kirk, who was still speaking with Spock.

"I must speak with you, in private," Limanu finally said to Kirk.

"Certainly," Kirk said.

The two men, who had been bitter enemies only a couple hours ago were now good friends, walked together and left the Tepee. They walked down the village path, giving Kirk another chance to see the tribe his son had so proudly served.

"Before Satangkai left, he wanted me to make a vow to you," Limanu told Kirk. "And I have staked my life to uphold it."

"What was it?" Kirk asked, having no idea what it could have been.

"You have two children," Limanu said, "and according to Satangkai they have recently witnessed the loss of their mother to an act of violence."

"How did he know that?" Kirk asked.

"I do not know; yet he even knew their names," Limanu said, "Mathew and Dahme."

"That's right, that's their names," Kirk said with a whimsical smile.

"Satangkai wanted them to be raised here," Limanu, "among our people. He felt that because he is their older sibling, it was his responsibility and duty to watch out for them as if they were his children. As the new Chief of our nation, I want very much to honor Satangkai's last wish. I will make sure those children grow up well, and with pride. And if anyone dares to threaten them, they will have to answer to me."

Kirk smiled at Limanu. He didn't have the memories of Kirok, and he knew that Limanu had intended to kill him at one point. But Jim Kirk was a good judge of character; and he knew that Limanu would honor his vow to both Jim Kirk and the memory of Satangkai.

"I would be honored," Kirk said, after a moment, and then the two men hugged.

"Just bring them here, and they will be surrounded by a large and proud family."

"I will," Kirk said.

* * *

They returned to the Tepee and soon Kirk stood with his friends outside the Tepee, ready to beam away.

"You will visit us Jim Kirk," Limanu said, "I am your chief; and I demand it."

"We will have another great feast," Awinita said.

Kirk smiled, and just then a bald-eagle flew over head, and it screeched.

Limanu looked up and saw the great bird, and he knew instantly that he had just looked upon the life essence of Satangkai; and Limanu felt proud. The bird screeched again, and flew away into the high sky and at that instant; Kirk, Spock, S'vath, T'av and Tuvok shimmered away.

* * *

On Monday February 27th; Colt MaCahan and G'oneth come face to face with Federation special agent Ryan Tolbert!


	296. The Art of Giving

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light (All new OPENING CREDITS; follow link at my profile...)**

**The Art of Giving**

**The lawless world of Dan'gin**

**Previously…**

Colt MaCahan, Corvana and G'oneth had arrived at the planet known as Dan'gin; a world of morally corrupt souls where there was no law, making the world a magnet for all sorts of criminal activity. The reason Colt and the others had come to Dan'gin was very simple. An alien from the Delta-Quadrant had advertised the sale of a device that could detect ultra sensitive Borg transmissions. And since G'oneth's Gorn mate had been abducted by the Borg, it was hoped that the device could lead them to the Borg cube and a rescue attempt could be launched.

Colt and Corvana, headed to a swanky saloon where seller of the device would be waiting. While nearing the saloon, a drunken man came out and tried to proposition Corvana for sex…

"How much," the man burped and slurred, "for a night with that sweet looking thing."

In one swift move, Colt threw a punch that landed on the Orion's jaw, throwing him to the ground, and then Colt reached back behind his black leather jacket adorned shoulder and grabbed his shotgun and put the tip of the long double barreled weapon on the Orion's forehead. The look on Colt's face was absolute; he didn't care for reasons, he only cared about actions. He pulled the trigger and the blast of the shotgun blew a large chunk of the Orion's head off; killing him instantly. Corvana looked away from the gory scene.

"Is life... always this cold and brutal?" she asked him.

Colt looked down at her, and then he looked forward again.

"For those like you and me; always…" Colt replied softly, but with force in his voice.

They made their way into the swanky loud bar. There were no age limits posted because there were no age limits on worlds like Dan'gin.

* * *

**Meanwhile...**

Another small vessel entered orbit of Dan'gin. Piloting the craft was its lone passenger; special Ryan Tolbert. He had come to Dan'gin to find and arrest a wanted criminal; G'oneth, a Gorn smuggler who had racked up many murder charges over the years. According to data records, G'oneth had been on Starbase 185 and reclaimed the egg of one of his mate's hatchlings. That egg was originally left at Starbase 185 by Leonard McCoy a.k.a. Colt MaCahan."

For the next hour, Agent Tolbert applied his disguise; that of a Klingon. And then, with that done, he beamed down to the planet with the hope of finding the criminal known as G'oneth, and bringing the Gorn to justice.

* * *

**Our story continues…**

The sights and sounds inside of the loud saloon were probably not meant to be seen by children, at least, children who lived on normal worlds. But because Dan'gin had no central government, it also had no sense of the innocence of youth, Colt MaCahan held Corvana's hand tight, and did his best to shield her from seeing the more seedy aspects of the saloon as he kept her head buried in the side of his leather jacket. The inside of the saloon was also cast in some kind of fuzzy haze, thanks to many of the patrons smoking cigarettes, cigars, pipes, bongs, and all sorts of alien drug paraphernalia as well.

Hanging from the ceiling were several cages that contained many different combinations of female, male, and gender neutral exotic dancers who were also engaged in sexual acts with each other that were definitely not meant for children to see, but that didn't stop Colt MaCahan from sneaking in a couple glances.

But soon Colt and Corvana made it through the area of the saloon that catered toward entertainment and into the next area that was somewhat quieter, but just as crowded with all sorts of con artist trying to make a quick dime on their goods they were peddling which they had no doubt stolen or conned others out of. A few of them cast sexual glances toward Corvana, who just stared ahead, as Colt headed toward a table toward the back of the dingy room. An alien was sitting at the table. His race came from the Delta-Quadrant; the Vaadwaur.

"You are Colt MaCahan?" the alien asked.

"I am," Colt replied in a cool manner. "And you are Nava?"

Nava nodded his head, and then shifted his gaze upon Corvana.

"And who is this child?" Nava asked.

""My daughter," Colt replied, "and if you even look at her sideways I'll cut your head off."

Nava looked back at Colt, and the stone cold look on his face.

"Yes," Nava said after a moment, "I believe you would. You need not worry though. So you have come to purchase the product. I have to ask," he continued to say, "What would a man and his daughter need with a device that only serves one function; decoding Borg signals?"

At that moment, a bar maiden came over. She was from a humanoid race, but had dark purple skin. As Colt and Nava spoke with the maiden, Corvana held a scanner below the table and aimed it at Nava.

Meanwhile, outside the saloon's back sidewalk, a transporter signal shimmered into view and solidified. A human male appeared. He was a Federation agent and his name was Stephan Cassadine. He had been sent by Commander Randolph Donnelly to apprehend fellow agent Ryan Tolbert, who he knew was on Dan'gin himself to arrest a Gorn smuggler named G'oneth.

Cassadine looked about, and then saw a bum, a human, sleeping in a small row of bushes. Such down on their luck individuals were found all over the galaxy on worlds like Dan'gin. The bum saw Cassadine looking down on them.

"Can you space some credits?" the bum asked as a funky odor came from his voice and body. It was the typical stench that came from the down trodden.

"Actually," Cassadine smiled, "I'm quite loaded with credits," he flashed the bum a small leather portfolio that was lined with all sorts of credit slips.

The bum smiled as if he had found the treasure of Nirvana.

"Thank you so much," the bum said as he reached for the wallet.

But, instead, Cassadine took out a disrupter, aimed it at the bum, and fired. The blast set the bum's face on fire. The bum began to scream in agonizing pain as Cassadine stepped back and watched with pure joy on his face. Cassadine took out one of his credit slips, which he had bought with untraceable funds, and which could have bought the bum several life times of alcohol and/or drugs, and threw it near the bum as he slowly burned to death. Stephan Cassadine left the man in his dying misery, and headed for the swanky bar which, according to one of Cassadine's contacts, the G'oneth was supposedly heading for. It was Cassadine's hope that agent Ryan Tolbert would make his move on the Gorn there, and then Cassadine would make his move on Tolbert. Both men, Tolbert and Cassadine, were special agents of the Federation and had once been friends; but that wasn't the case anymore.

A small craft in orbit of Dan'gin

G'oneth was analyzing the signals that Corvana's scans were sending him. And, sure enough, by using atmospheric readings and metallurgic tripwires, the Gorn smuggler was able to locate an area of the town from which Nava's accommodations, most likely some sort of overnight lodging, was located. And sure enough, the computer spit out a most probable destination. It was now G'oneth's responsibility to look for the transmitter there while Colt MaCahan and Corvana occupied the Vaadwaur peddler.

Stephan Cassadine entered the swanky saloon. Several other patrons cast their eyes on him, and looked away because he oozed evil and no one wanted any part of him. However, at one of the many bars lined with patrons from planets all over the local area of the galaxy, a Klingon who was on his fourth mug of blood wine looked over at Cassadine with surprising interest. However, the Klingon wasn't really a Klingon at all; it was actually Ryan Tolbert in disguise. And Tolbert had the strangest sense that agent Stephan Cassadine's arrival was more than just a coincidence.

**Continued…**


	297. Echo Chamber

**STAR TREK: Shadow and Light**

**Echo Chamber**

**previously...**

_The Borg Transport vessel and the Delta Flyer III came out of warp._

_"What's going on up there Tom," Janeway asked, "why have we come out of warp?" She looked over to Magnus Hansen who had just beamed over from the Borg transport vessel. "Do you have any idea what is happening?"_

_"No," Magnus said, "I'm only here to get my daughter; that's all."_

_"Well Tom?" Janeway asked again._

_"Beats me," Captain Tom Paris replied. "Something in this area of space has destabilized our warp field and is also affecting the Borg ship. In fact, I am detecting a large object approaching..."_

_They all looked up at the viewing screen as a large ship approached. A blast streaked out from the large vessel, striking the Borg ship; destroying it instantly._

_And then the viewing screen switched from a view of the nearby stars to that of a person on the Voth ship; a human. He was a man that Janeway, Paris, Neelix, the Doc, and most especially, Annika Hanson, recognized instantly; Chakotay._

_"Hello Kate," Chakotay said his former Captain. "It may sound odd hearing this come from me, of all people; but The Calvary has arrived."_

_OUR STORY CONTINUES..._

* * *

Admiral Kate Janeway stared at the face on the view screen, and she didn't bat an eye.

"I don't know what you think you're doing," Janeway said back to the man on the screen, "but you cannot possibly be Chakotay. He died just months ago."

Chakotay nodded his head.

"I understand why this is confusing to you," Chakotay replied, "however; the Chakotay who returned with you to the Delta-Quadrant all those years ago was a clone." Chakotay stepped to the side just a bit, and then someone else stepped into view; a Voth.

"Professor Gegen," Janeway said upon recognizing the Voth.

"Yes, it is I," Gegen said, "however, my new title is First Advisor. And I am sorry to inform you but Chakotay is telling you the truth. I was so enamored with Chakotay's elegant nature in his defense of my then controversial position (the _Distand Origin_ theory) that I made a rash decision and used our cloning technology and created a perfect duplicate."

Janeway looked to Paris, and nodded her head; the communication with the Voth ship was suspended.

"Is that possible?" Janeway asked the Doc.

"Without access to Commander Chakotay, I cannot answer that question as of yet," the Doc said. "However, anything is possible."

"Admiral," Magnus Hansen said, "whatever the Voth might tell you, I am quite sure he cannot be trusted."

"I reluctantly agree," Romulan Admiral V'arhal stated. "I suggest we attack."

"My experience with the Voth tells me otherwise," Janeway said, "their technology was superior to that of Voyager's. Attacking them would be," she grinned before she said the next word, "futile."

"Who are the Voth?" Varrim asked.

"I believe I already know," Dr. Walter Bishop said to Janeway, by deducing what had already been said, "Just making an educated guess, and their general appearence, I believe they are a reptilian race of beings from the Delta-Quadrant."

Janeway nodded her head.

"You are quite adept," Janeway said to Bishop. "But more interesting is the fact that they evolved on Earth and left hundreds of millions of years ago and ended up in the Delta-Quadrant."

"Now that is quite interesting, Admiral," Bishop said hurriedly, "I have data that suggest an intelligent race did indeed exist on Earth hundreds of millions of years ago (viewers of Fringe should recall…). They could be that race."

"Not could be," Janeway added, "they probably are. Put them back on," Janeway said to Paris.

"Aye," Paris said.

The screen came back on and Chakotay and Gegen reappeared as well.

"Alright," Janeway said, "let us suppose that I accept your statement as fact, and that you are Chakotay," Janeway said, "why have you not contacted me until now?"

"I'm afraid that is my fault as well," Gegen replied, before Chakotay could speak. "Obviously when the switch was made, I didn't allow Chakotay to contact you."

"..and then time went on," Chakotay said, cutting in. "At first I was held against my will. But after I became part of the Voth culture, their rigid views on the possibility of the Distant Origion theory began to fade. In time I came to see that I was an important aspect of that change and remained. When they finally gave me permission to contact Voyager, it was too late, you had already returned to the Alpha-Quadrant. I found out from other sources that my doppelganger had fallen in love with Annika, and they had married. I didn't think it would be fair to come back under those circumstances, so I remained with the Voth, and eventually married as well."

"That sounds rather cold," Neelix said from where he was sitting.

"I don't know," Paris interjected. "I can almost stand his reasoning."

Annika stood up and approached the screen.

"Annika," Janeway said, with a soft voice, "you do realize what he is saying. He is not the Chakotay that came back with us, which means he isn't the man who fell in love with you. Nor is he the man who tried in vain to save Yudelle."

"We had, I mean, you and your Chakotay had a child?" Chakotay asked, smiling as he did. "That is wonderful."

Suddenly pain raced through Annika's mind, causing her wince as she went down on one knee. Magnus and the Doc hurried to Annika to steady her.

"What happened," Chakotay asked, "was it something I said."

"Unfortunately," Janeway said, "your being here has dredged up long buried memories. Would it be possible for me to come over to your ship to continue this conversation?"

Gegen, understanding the situation, nodded his head.

"Please do," Gegen said. "I have transferred the coordinates to your ships computer."

"I have them," Paris said.

"I should come with you," the Doc said. "I can verify this Chakotay's story."

"I am willing to accept he is telling the truth. But I want you to stay here and tend to Annika," Janeway said to the Doc. "However, I'd like you to come," Janeway said to Dr. Walter Bishop, "and you too," she said to V'ahral. "Tom, keep an eye on Magnus."

"Actually Kate," Chakotay said from the screen, "you should Magnus with you. He is part of the reason we are here."

"Then I will stay here," Admiral V'ahral said to Janeway.

"Once we have dealt with this situation," Janeway said to Admiral V'ahral, "I promise you we will contact your people. But I would rather that contact to happen after we're done here; we are still in Romulan territory and I would feel safer contacting your government after we've left."

"That would logical," V'ahral said.

"What about my father," Varrim asked Janeway. "How does he fit in with all of this?"

"I am not sure," Janeway replied. "However, when and if I find out anything new, I will let you know."

Varrim nodded.

Moments later, Admiral Janeway beamed away.

The second she solidified on the Voth ship, she knew instantly that something had happened. The Voth ship was shaking violently, and the lights were dimming on and off and the smell of fire was pronounced. Chakotay ran over to her.

"What happened?" Janeway asked her former first officer.

"Just as we beamed you over, three Romulan Warbirds de-cloaked and attacked," Chakotay said.

"I fear it is even worse than that," Gegen said from across the way at a control panel. "It would appear as if they are not alone."

Janeway and Chakotay came over and looked at the screen. A large cube shaped vessel came into view; a super cube! The Borg had arrived!

* * *

Meanwhile….on a distant world…

Garak leaned up against a cave wall. The need for food and, more importantly, water, was dire. By his own calculations he had been on the desolate world for four days. Spock's ingenious plan by having Garak use charged Dylithium particles to delay his return to the space-time continuum had worked. However, there was no way off the planet and there was no sign of life. What little plant life there was on the desert world did not benefit from large amounts of water. Garak had managed to make his way to a group of nearby foothills, for shelter during the cold nights; but that was it. And as the hours passed and hunger and thirst grew, Garak knew that he didn't have much of a chance. Spock and the rest of the Enterprise crew were no doubt dead, and unless his fortune changed soon; Garak would soon be joining them in death.

Garak knew it was daytime due to streams of sunlight that were coming from the nearby cave entrance three feet away. He felt his pulse and shook his head.

"Shouldn't be long now," he said to himself. "I won't make it to sunset."

"Actually you will," came from a voice. "My name is Jonathan Archer."

Garak watched as a man stepped into the cave from the outside. Garak looked up at the man's face, and then a flood of memories began to race across his mind. He had met the stranger before.

"I know you," Garak said.

Garak thought back; the memory was hard to reach due to the fact it had been suppressed for quite some time.

"Yes, we have met on a couple of occasions in fact," Archer said. "But after each time, we have suppressed the memory."

"I remember now," Garak said, "I was on my way to the Klingon Empire because I had hard to believe information, (issues 150-165)" Garak said, he fought the cobwebs of the past. "K'mpec was still alive on the planet Timus! I was going to the Klingon Empire to find out if he had somehow survived the assassination (TNG-Reunion). And then, three spheres of light suddenly appeared on my ship."

"Yes, that is correct," Archer said, "it was the Sihg. We could not let that information become common knowledge, and so your memories, as well as the memories of Jim Kirk and his wife Myran, were altered as well."

"Why?" Garak asked. "Why couldn't it become common knowledge that K'mpec," Garak stop mid-sentence, "or what about you? I am no expert on Federation history, but I do know that Jonathan Archer died when…"

"Obviously," Archer said, cutting Garak off, "things are not as they appear to be. But I don't have time, hell; we both don't have time to go through all of that so just listen to me. Very soon you be getting off this planet, and when you do, you are going to have to act fast."

"Wait a moment; do you know how I got to this world?" Garak asked.

"Yes I do," Archer replied. "You were brought to this world by a man named Randolph Donnelly. As it turns out, Donnelly is working for the same person I thought I was working with to make things right; Q."

"Yes, I know Donnelly," Garak said. "He was the man who sent me to the Enterprise to destroy it. How do you of him?"

"I do not know Donnelly personally, but I do know he is working with Q," Archer explained. "Apparently the Continuum has lost much of its power and have brokered a deal between themselves and the highest levels of Federation Government."

"A Continuum alliance with the Federation," Garak asked with the sound of disbelief in his voice.

"I wouldn't go so far as to calling it an alliance," Archer said. "But, suffice to say, the Federation, Donnelly to be more exact, is working on behalf of the Continuum to eliminate any person or persons who may have properties that allow them to exist outside the knowledge of the Continuum."

"Like Kirk was," Garak deduced. "The Jim Kirk I first met had been created by a duplication that brought him over a hundred and twenty years into the future; and then he vanished."

"I know," Archer said with remorse in his voice, "I was part of that. Q had convinced us that Kirk's very existence could have torn the universe apart. So, too make a long story short, we conspired to get him on a ship which we eventually forced into a intergalactic phenomenon known as the Nexus."

"Why didn't Q just kill him?" Garak asked.

"Ever since the Civil-War inside the Continuum, matters of life and death and destiny have become clouded, even for a Q," Archer said. "So he couldn't just kill Kirk, but he could plan for Kirk's removal from the universe via the Nexux. It worked, the first Kirk you knew ceased to exist. However, there was a remnant of Kirk that lived inside the Nexus and somehow that Kirk absorbed the essence of the duplicate Earth, and came back into the space-time continuum."

"Then what about you and K'mpec," and then Garak had another memory flash, "and Harrison Riker?"

"Again, I must repeat, we don't have time for this," Archer said. "Your way off this world has just arrived and he is headed here," Archer snapped his fingers. "The knowledge you will need to accomplish what must be accomplished has just been planted in your mind. You will instinctively know who to get into contact with and what to do. I know this seems like a strange way to do this, but it must be done outside the knowledge of Q. He cannot know that I am doing this; not now at least. Good luck Cardassian…you will need it."

And then there was a flash and Jonathan Archer was gone as were Garak's memories of the conversation.

Garak stood up. For reasons he could not explain, his strength had returned. He still remembered having been on the Enterprise, it being destroyed, and his struggle to find the cave he was inside of for shelter. But just moments earlier he had been near death, suffering from starvation and thirst; but now he was fine. But how had this happened? Then, suddenly, he heard footsteps coming toward the cave entrance. Garak hid behind a large boulder, but he could still see the cave entrance. Someone stepped in from the outside.

"I know you're in here, I could hear you," the voice of the stranger said.

Garak recognized the voice immediately, but of all living beings it could have been in the universe to save him, how is it that he had been found by…

"Odo," Garak said as he stepped out from the boulder.

"Garak," Odo grimaced as he spoke the name. "What are you doing here!"

"It's funny you should ask," Garak said. "However, I am glad you are here because I have important information and I must get it to…" Garak paused, "Jim Kirk."

"Well now, that is very odd," Odo said; a tone of doubt in his voice as he spoke. "As it turns out, I too am in need to talk to Kirk."

"How did you end up here?" Garak asked.

"I could ask you the same," Odo replied.

"Odo," Garak said, with concern in his face. "I was brought here by agents of the Federation. To make a long story short, I was sent to a ship that existed outside of time and, unwittingly, I destroyed it. I didn't mean to; I just did. I have to let Kirk know what has happened here."

"Why must it be Kirk who must be told?" Odo asked.

"The ship I destroyed was the ship he once commanded; the Enterprise," Garak said.

"Garak' you are not making any sense," Odo said after a moment. "The Enterprise Kirk commanded was destroyed decades ago in the Mutara sector."

"Odo, listen to me," Garak said. "Isn't it quite odd that we have both ended up here on this world on quests to find Kirk?" Garak asked. "I think there are forces at work here that are maneuvering us in that direction; it is too complicated to be coincidence. Let's just go find him."

The shape-shifter looked at the Cardassian, who had been a pain in the neck for most of the years they had both been stationed aboard DS9.

"Alright," Odo said. "But the first sign of trouble; I'll throw you out the first airlock myself."

"Why do you need to find Kirk anyway?" Garak asked.

"I witnessed an interesting encounter between Q, Harrison Riker and a human named Khan Noonien Singh."

"Tell me more when we get off of this planet, I'm sick of this place."

Odo nodded in agreement and the two of them left the cave. Once they were outside the cave, Odo activated a device on his wrist, and the two of them were teleported off the planet. Once they were gone, a third person stepped out from the cave, having witnessed their conversation; a man named Khan Noonien Singh.

continued...next time!


	298. Landslide

**Star Trek: Shadow and Light**

**Landslide**

_Previously…_

_The second Admiral Janeway solidified aboard the Voth ship; she knew instantly that something had happened. The Voth ship was shaking violently, and the lights were dimming on and off and the smell of fire was pronounced. Chakotay ran over to her._

"What happened?" Janeway asked her former first officer.

"Just as we beamed you over, three Romulan Warbirds de-cloaked and attacked," Chakotay said.

"I fear it is even worse than that," Gegen said from across the way at a control panel. "It would appear as if they are not alone."

Janeway and Chakotay came over and looked at the screen. A large cube shaped vessel came into view; a super cube! The Borg had arrived!

_Our story continues…_

Moments later, First Advisor Gegen, as well as Chakotay and Admiral Janeway, arrived on the bridge of the powerful Voth vessel. The captain of the vessel was sitting in his command chair. Gegen turned to Janeway as they approached the commander.

"Admiral, this is the commander of the ship and his title is First One," Gegen told her.

"Does he have a name?" Janeway asked back.

"We do not use our designations during an attack, only our official titles." Gegen said.

Janeway nodded in acceptance.

"First One," Gegen said to the Voth commander, "I have brought the Admiral."

First one, who was nearly a half head taller than Gegen, nodded at Janeway.

"The Borg and their Romulan allies have launched their first wave of attack," First One said to Janeway.

"First One," Janeway interjected, "the ship I came over from; its defenses are not on par with the Borg or the Romulans. Can you please provide them safe harbor?"

The First One nodded upon hearing Janeway's words of concern.

"Your worry for your crew is admirable, but do not worry Admiral," First One said, "I took the liberty of bringing your vessel inside our own; it is safe."

"Although your ship is very powerful," Janeway said to First One, "can you with stand an attack by the Borg super-cube and the Romulan War Birds?"

First One smiled and then nodded his head towards another Voth who was manning a station. And then, without warning, the Voth ship began to vibrate and then the First One motioned to Janeway to look at the screen. A massive energy stream streaked out of the Voth ship. The Borg ship suddenly became motionless. The ship fired again, and this the time the Romulan Warbirds were struck simultaneously and instantly exploded. There were several Voth manning various posts about the command center, and instantly all of them began to cheer. Janeway looked over at Chakotay who was smiling as well.

"What is happening?" Janeway asked him.

"Kathryn," Chakotay said back to her, with excitement in her voice, "you have just witnessed the last Borg vessel being neutralized."

"You can't be serious," Janeway came back with.

"Yes, and even more amazing," Gegen interjected, "our science will enable the Borg drones aboard that vessel to be removed from the collective, and in time, return to their normal lives."

Janeway shook her head.

"I don't understand what is happening," Janeway said, with a befuddled look on her face. "How did all of this happen?"

"In time Kate," Chakotay said. "First things first; let's go see the others."

In moments Chakotay accompanied Janeway into a holding room where Captain Tom Paris, Neelix, Dr. Walter Bishop, Varrim, The Doc and Annika Hansen were waiting. Various food items and drinks were provided, and they all seemed to be of good spirits, obviously aware of what had happened. But there were two noticeable absentees; Admiral V'ahral and Magnus. And there was an interesting new comer as well; Fredric Thorn.

"Where are Admiral V'ahral and Magnus?" Janeway asked Tom Paris.

"Right after you beamed over to the Voth ship," Paris explained, "V'ahral was beamed off of the Delta-Flyer 2 by the Romulans. Apparently this whole situation was a lure to get Annika to her father, and V'ahral was part of it."

"What about your father?" Janeway asked Annika.

"Kate," Chakotay said, cutting in on the conversation, "Magnus was working with the Borg to assimilate the reptilian species of the galaxy. For whatever reason, the usual methods the Borg used to assimilate other life forms were increasingly running into resistance by others; the Cardassians, the Gorn as well as other reptilian races from across the galaxy."

"How can that be," Janeway countered, "We've seen assimilated Cardassians and Gorns in the past."

"Very true," Chakotay said, "however, for reasons not yet understood, in recent years the assimilated reptile's minds had shown remarkable resistance. And the Borg knew that the greatest threat to their gaining complete control of the Galaxy rested with the most powerful race of reptilians in the galaxy; the Voth. The Voth knew this as well, and once the Borg had started their ruthless attack on various reptilian species throughout the Galaxy, the Voth decided to take action, knowing that the attack upon the reptilian races was a Borg attempt to find a way to break down the resistance to the Borg assimilation process."

"And this Borg ship was the last one? How can you be so sure? What about the Delta-Quadrant?" Janeway asked.

"Trust me," Gegen said back to Janeway, "the last two Borg vessels have been destroyed, the first of the last two cube ships was destroyed in a star system not far from here."

"That had to have been the one that was trying to rescue the Imeyah shape-shifter from the penal colony in the Minath system," Paris deduced correctly.

"That is correct," Gegen added. "The last two surviving Imeyah shape-shifters were also killed as a direct result of that planet's destruction."

"Getting back to the one you just destroyed, and your assertion that the Borg have been eliminated throughout the galaxy; how did you manage to do this so swiftly, because from I know of the Borg; their ships numbered into the thousands in the Delta-Quadrant."

"All of them have been neutralized, just as this one was, and the Borg drones aboard those ships have been liberated," Gegen replied with a smile.

"What I think the Admiral is asking," Neelix said to Gegen, "is how?"

Chakotay was about to answer, when First Advisor Gegen cut him off.

"There are aspects of the Borg defeat which will not be privy to your knowledge," Gegen said, "Suffice to say, the Borg have been eliminated. We have Chakotay to thank for a major part of our plan however. He was able to send a message through time to the Romulan known a Telek."

"But unknown to Chakotay," Fredric Thorn said, as he came over to Janeway and the others, "my uncles equipment detected the signal, which was a good thing, since Telek R'mor's attempt to contact Star Fleet would have died with him in a shuttle accident."

"Was my father murdered, or was it an accident as we've always believed?" Varrim asked Fredrick.

"Your father's death was not an accident," Fredric said with a soft voice. "We are not sure how he died, but, that signal needed to be continued on. So using technology my uncle obtained from Dr. Bishop, I went back through time to moments after Telek's death, and sent the signal."

"What was so important about that signal?" Tom Paris asked. "Why did it have to be sent?"

"The signal that I sent back through time," Chakotay said, "contained a plan by the Borg to destroy the Voth. The Borg suggested an alliance with the Romulans that would go into effect right now; in the here and now we exist. The Romulans would provide the additional ships, and in return, the Borg assured the Romulans they would never be attacked by the Borg."

"Let me guess," Janeway said, with a little tone of anger in her voice, "that plan was hatched by you."

"Yes," Chakotay said after a moment. "There was never an alliance between the two, only a string of messages that led them to believe they were allies when no such contact had ever been made."

"That signal was meant to entrap the Romulans into an alliance with the Borg with what they thought were overwhelming odds. But, instead…" Janeway concluded, but Paris continued her thought.

"But instead, the Voth ship was far more advanced. But by still using the justification of being attacked, the Voth were justified in destroying its attackers."

"The Voth used the mutual desire to destroy the Federation that both the Romulans and Borg shared, and turned it against them." Janeway concluded, agreeing with Paris.

"You're ability to destroy that Borg ship so swiftly, as well as the Romulans," Paris interjected, "would make you a powerful force yourselves."

"Tom," Chakotay said, "the Voth are not like that."

Janeway looked over at Gegen.

"With all due respect to Chakotay," Admiral Janeway said to Gegen, "the last time we encountered your people there did seem to be a slight tone of arrogance in the way they saw the universe around them. Am I led to believe that the Voth view of the universe has changed?"

Before Gegen could respond, Chakotay spoke instead.

"Kate," Chakotay said to his former captain, with a tone of irritation in his voice, "they have eliminated the single most powerful threat to the Federation's security, as well as the security of all those in the galaxy that value freedom and self determination. I don't understand the suspicion."

"Young man," Dr. Walter Bishop said, before Janeway could reply, "I don't pretend to understand what has led you to think that Kate has been one-sided, but in this galaxy, it has always been proven to be a fact that it is easier to destroy than it is to create peace. Admiral Janeway's distrust of the current circumstances may seem harsh; but it is logical."

First Advisor Gegen nodded his head in agreement.

"He speaks with wisdom," Gegen said, looking over at Bishop and then looking back at Janeway. "However, Admiral Kathryn Janeway, I assure you that conquest is not our driving force. After we encountered the Voyager, and after Chakotay remained, we came to see that we, that all of us, are part of a galactic structure. The Borg and the Founders had the goal of forcing order on the galaxy, but they weren't the first. The Vaadwaur before them, and the Imeyah shape-shifters from hundreds of centuries ago, all had the same goal."

"And you're telling us that with this advanced technology, you won't have the same goal; galactic order?" The Doc asked. "As a medicine man tasked with helping those who are injured during war, I find your noble intentions hard to take seriously."

"In fact," Janeway said to Gegen, "let's see how far we have truly come in securing a brighter future; where is Magnus Hansen," Janeway asked Gegen and Chakotay.

"He's to be executed," Gegen said, after a moment.

Janeway shook her head.

"It can be said that a society can be judged by the way they treat those among them who are the most vile," Janeway said. "Will he be tried or has his guilt already been decided?"

Gegen didn't miss a beat.

"I'm sorry to not be forthright in this matter," Gegen said, "however; this ship is preparing to return to the Delta-Quadrant. We will tow the Borg cube to Federation space where you can see to the needs of the drones on the Borg ship as they reintegrate back to an existence outside of the Collective. And as for you, Chakotay; you're free to remain with your paper should you desire it."

Chakotay smiled at his good friend Gegen.

"I wish to stay with my people, old friend," Chakotay told him. "I will miss our philosophical discussions about life and death."

"And I shall miss you Chakotay. You brought to my people the ability to look beyond prejudice, and for that, we will always be in your debt.

Gegen started to walk away, but Janeway had one last thing to say.

"The Borg were an intelligent culture," Janeway said in a cold manner, "and you've eliminated that culture with the wink of an eye."

"Yes," Gegen said, with a slight tone or remorse. "I dare say that most of the worlds they destroyed, and cultures they assaulted, would not bat an eye at such a loss."

Several minutes later, Janeway and the others were back aboard the Delta-Flyer and watched as the mighty Voth ship streaked away, after having deposited the Cube and Delta-Flyer 2 in Federation.

"Can it be so," Neelix said, as he looked out at the stars. "Can the Borg truly be gone?"

"Yes," Chakotay said, "I believe so. I saw hundreds of Cube vessels destroyed before we came to the Alpha-Quadrant. They are gone at last."

"Why the glib sound in your voice?" Janeway asked. "Did the Voth have the right to eradicate an entire species or culture?" Janeway asked.

"They did what they thought was right," Chakotay said.

Moments later, Admiral Janeway sent a coded message to Star Fleet Command, and within six hours, five Federation Starships arrived on scene, including the USS Emerson. Janeway had been tasked with overseeing the needs of the over 25,000 Borg drones that were now without the Collective. Each of them would be tended to and, hopefully, they would soon return to their families and lives.

After settling into her office, she was joined by Chakotay, the Doc, Varrim, Tom Paris, Annika Hansen, Fredric Thorn and Neelix.

"Tom, I hope you won't mind giving our friends here a ride home back to where they all belong," Janeway said to the Captain of the Delta-Flyer 2.

Before Tom could reply, Dr. Bishop spoke.

"If you don't mind Kathryn," Bishop said, "I'd rather not return to the Tantalus Penal colony."

"And if you need a medical opinion that his man doesn't belong there," The Doc said, "I'll sign it right now."

"As it turns out," Walter Bishop said with as smile, "I have a home back on Earth in Iowa. I'd like to go back there if you wouldn't mind."

"You have proven yourself a valuable member to society, Dr. Bishop," Janeway said. "I will pull some strings so you can go home to Iowa." She shifted her gaze to Varrim. "What about you Varrim? I must imagine you have some kind of life to return to back on Romulas."

"Based upon what has happened, and how the Tal'Shiar was involved with all of this, I would like to obtain political asylum in the Federation," Varrim said.

"Yes, I thought you might request that, and I have already submitted the paperwork," Janeway said. "What about you Mr. Thorn? I would guess that Annika will not be pressing charges against you for kidnapping her from Earth."

The two of them, Annika and Fredric, were holding hands making it quite clear they were an item.

"The Voth were kind enough to be holding my ship as well," Fredric said, "and it's here as well."

"I'm going with him," Annika said.

"Very well," Janeway said, "but not before we have a look at the equipment on that ship. I don't want you flying around the Federation with technology that could get you, and me I might add, in trouble." She looked to Dr. Bishop. "Before I send you back to Earth, I want you to do an inventory on Mr. Thorn's tech. Anything that would pose a threat to the Federation, and or the timeline, I want taken back."

"I will indeed," Bishop said with a nod of his head.

She then looked to Neelix.

"Your ship is still back at the Naissance," Janeway said. "I intend to go back there in a few days, so if you promise not to get into any trouble while I see to the former Borg drones, you can stay here on the Emerson."

"Yes, I would like that," Neelix.

"Now, if you all don't mind," Janeway said, "I would like to speak to Chakotay alone."

Noticing the serious tone to her voice, the others all filed out of the office. And for a brief second, as Annika passed by Chakotay, Janeway saw something in Annika's eyes; she loved Chakotay even though this was not the same man she had fallen in love with. Janeway could only hope it would end there. Because as powerful as the Borg, Dominion and other galactic forces were, they were not as powerful as a love triangle in the hearts of men and women.

"So what do I do with you?" Janeway asked. "You do realize that all Maquis operatives were convicted of crimes against the Federation. And add to that, you've been AWOL for years and your actions with the Voth, while done under their influence, were still violations of the Prime Directive."

Chakotay smiled.

"This kind of reminds me of those few times when you and I went up against each other on Voyager," Chakotay said in a pleasant voice. "However, if I'm correct, my clone was convicted of that crime."

"He escaped from prison," Janeway added. "They might decide that you should have to live out the rest of that sentence in prison."

Chakotay switched subjects.

"Does Annika love me?" Chakotay asked. "I know you saw the look in her eyes. What happened between her and my clone? I've only heard bits and pieces, but I know it did not end well."

"It's a long story," Janeway said after a moment. "And since your status is up in the air, and you'll have to remain, we will have time to discuss it. But I want to avoid her for now. Her mind is still very fragile."

"Certainly," Chakotay said.

It was then that names of the drones, many of whom were Starfleet or Federation citizens, began to filter across the screen of Janeway's computer. The medical staffs were starting to catalog the drones and one of the drone's name on the list stood out because Janeway knew the woman's husband. The drone's name was Jennifer Sisko.

"Oh no…"Janeway said in a low whisper, realizing the troubled times ahead that waited for Benjamin Sisko, and his current wife Kasidy

Continued…

COMING SOON…

Jennifer Sisko has returned and she is very much in love with Benjamin Sisko

As news of the freed drones spread, G'oneth aims to reunite with his mate. But will his criminal past cost him the future.

Special Agent Ryan Tolbert gets a new mission; kill James T Kirk and Leonard McCoy!

Jim Kirk returns to Riverside Iowa to his uncle's old ranch house. He wants a simple existence, but the arrival of Garak and Odo will change his mind.

S'vath and Spock face a new common threat!

And the Voth haven't exactly left…in fact…they want to return; to Earth!


	299. Somewhere Down the Road

**STAR TREK: Shadow and Light**

**Somewhere Down The Road**

**Earth Security Bureau Headquarters;**

**San Francisco..**

Ambassador Spock and his wife, Elizabeth, entered the office of the new head of the Earth Security Bureau; Jean-Luc Picard. Picard was sitting at his desk and motioned for Spock and Elizabeth to come in and sit in the comfortable chairs that were on the other side of the desk.

"It is good to see you old friend," Picard said as Spock and Elizabeth sat down. "Last time I saw the two of you was on Vulcan. How is the expectant mother?" Picard asked. "Can I get you something?"

"What is it about you men," Elizabeth said with a slight chuckle. "Once a pregnant woman enters the room, there is a new found sense of chivalry."

"My wife," Spock said to her, "you have asked me that question more times than even I can count, and my answer is always the same."

"Yes, I know," Elizabeth said, "you're just doing the logical answer. Well, as it turns out," Elizabeth said, aiming her words at Picard, "I could go for some of that Earl Grey tea you are known for."

Picard smiled as he poured Elizabeth and Spock some tea, and then he brought it over to them and then he sat at his desk.

"I suppose you are here wondering why I have stepped down as Ambassador to Vulcan," Picard said to Spock.

"Yes," Spock replied.

"I just believe that I have spent far too much time dealing with Federation/Star Fleet details," Picard explained. "Far more than I would like to have; and I believe it has taken away from my responsibilities as the Ambassador to Vulcan. Ambassador Joanna Hauck has years of diplomacy under her wings, and she will do a fine job."

"What I think my husband is trying to say," Elizabeth said, "is that he will miss having your company on Vulcan."

"There is that," Spock agreed, "and there is also the notion of your heading the ESB. I would consider such a position a little too militaristic for you Jean-Luc."

"Perhaps; but after it was revealed that Commander Mike Stone had been murdered by the shape-shifter known as Azami," Picard began to say, "and had been replaced by another shape-shifter, moral at the ESB was very low. So when Starfleet Command approached me for the position, I accepted because I wanted to make a difference here. And I must add," Picard continued, "that I have asked that this position I am taking up be of a civilian nature."

Spock nodded his head.

"So I assume then that both of the Imeyah shape-shifters were killed?" Spock asked.

"Chief Inspector Steve Keller and I returned to the Minath system and confirmed it ourselves," Picard explained. "Amid the wreckage of the Borg cube there was residue that confirmed that two Imeyah shape-shifters were aboard the cube when it was destroyed by the planet's explosion. And with corroborating information that the Voth have provided Admiral Janeway with, I consider the case closed."

"What about the Voth," Elizabeth asked. "Who are they?"

Picard sipped from his tea, and then he shook his head.

"I am as much in the dark as to who the Voth are as you are," Picard replied. "When Voyager returned to the Alpha-Quadrant, Admiral Janeway and her crew were debriefed of course. But since their encounter with the Voth had only lasted a short period time, there was not much information to divulge."

"If I recall," Spock interjected, "the Voth are a highly evolved reptilian race that can trace their origin back to Earth."

"Ambassador, whoops I'm sorry, Jean-luc; what will happen to the drones that were on that Borg cube?" Elizabeth asked.

"It is hoped that they will return to the lives they were living when the Borg abducted them," Picard said. "Obviously life has gone on without them, and things may have changed. But the Federation is providing social workers to help with the transition. In fact, Deanna Troi will be spear heading that process. Now, enough about the Borg," Picard said, "is it true that Jim Kirk is here on Earth?"

Spock nodded.

"Affirmative," Spock said. "Apparently the Kirk family has land in an area known as Riverside Iowa, and it was bought by local interests. And now ever since the continuing existence of Kirk was made public, the town elders have wanted Jim to return, so they have given the ranch, and the land it sits on, to him to use as he wishes."

"Jim Kirk; the ranch owner," Picard said with a smile. "I will have to go there and see this for myself, when I have the time."

"We're heading there after we leave here," Elizabeth offered.

"Then send him my regards, and tell him that I'll be dropping after I settle down here. By the way," Picard said, as he recalled recent information concerning Kirk, "what about his two young children; Dahme and Mathew? Is it true that they are living with the Native Americans on their tribal lands?"

"Yes, that is indeed the case," Spock replied. "In fact, I believe Jim has chosen to return to Earth just to keep an eye on them."

"That is fantastic information to hear," Picard said. "I have to believe that when the knowledge of Jim's presence on Earth spreads, many people will want to see him, even meet him; being the legend that he is. What about the two of you? What are your plans?"

"Just as you have, I too have decided to resign my Ambassadorship," Spock said flatly. "I too have spent far too much time away from my duties. And after much urging from my wife, and son, I have decided to relocate to Earth as well."

"S'vath is relocating her as well?" Picard asked. And then a suspicious tone overcame his voice. "Why do I have the strangest feeling that you and your son are moving to here to Earth to keep an eye on Jim and make sure he is okay?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Spock came back with.

"Don't believe him, Jean-Luc," Elizabeth said, "that is the real reason. But in his defense, I have never spent much time on Earth since leaving Talos-IV. My father has family in California's southwest. I'm going to try and find them and get to know them."

"Well," Picard said with a smile, "if you need any assistance, you let me know. I have found that my name can cut through any length of red-tape."

"We shall keep that in mind," Spock said.

Moments later, Picard and his two guests said goodbye. Picard went over to his desk and began to go through the list of Federation citizens that were found to be aboard the super-Cube as drones. Several names he had recognized. But one name stood out from the one of the groupings of fifty names; Jennifer Sisko. That meant, to Picard, that many of the survivors came from vessels that had confronted Locutus at Wolf-359.

**The Naissance…**

Admiral Benjamin Sisko, who was in temporary command of the Naissance during Janeway's absence, made his way to his office after having received an urgent message that a subspace signal was coming in from Admiral Kate Janeway.

Ben Sisko entered his office, and was pleased to see a cup of rich smelling coffee waiting for him, thanks to the studious duties of his assistant; Ensign Rebecca Sisko. Rebecca wasn't in the office, so Ben just went to his desk and activated his communication consol. Fifteen minutes passed by, which had given Sisko time to sign mundane paper work, and then the signal came. Sisko smiled at seeing the usually pleasant sight of Kathryn Janeway's face; but this time she looked cautious.

"Good morning Kate," Sisko said, in a pleasant voice. "How is it going with the drone survivors? Oh, by the way, Julian has volunteered to leave his post here at the Naissance to help if you should need it." Sisko said.

"I may take him up on the offer," Janeway said, "but Ben, I need to talk to you about something more personal."

Sisko took on a more serious demeanor.

"Is there a problem Admiral," Sisko asked.

Janeway smiled, and shook her head, because she was befuddled with how to handle the situation.

"I guess that depends on how you take this information," Janeway replied. "I don't how I should go about this other than just getting to the point," Janeway said as then she took a deep breath.

Now, unknown to Ben Sisko, his wife Kasidy had come in from the other side the office, and before she could say anything, she had heard the voice of Janeway and her ominous tone.

"Go on, tell me," Ben urged Janeway.

"As you know," Janeway began to explain, "There are over twenty-five thousand liberated drones on the super-Cube that the Voth immobilized. These drones represent races from all across the galaxy, including Klingons, Romulans and humans. One of them is…" Janeway paused, but pushed on, "Jennifer; your wife."

Janeway's image faded from the screen and the image of a woman sitting in a medical office came on the screen. She was being asked questions. And then a young black man came over to the woman and held her hand. It was clear from the surgical bandages on their heads that both of them had recently had their Borg implants removed. Janeway's voice continued over the images of the woman and the young man with her.

"It's her Ben," Janeway said. "And DNA testing proves that the young man with her is," Janeway paused, and then state the obvious conclusion, "your son."

"Oh my God," came from behind Ben Sisko, and he turned to see Kasidy, her hand over her mouth.

Ben turned to face the screen again just in time for the image to freeze on a close up of Jennifer and her son; Ben Sisko's son.

_Next time…G'oneth, Colt (McCoy) MaCahan and Corvana must escape from a world without any laws. Will Agent Ryan Tolbert help them or stop them. Plus: Ryan Tolbert and Stephan Cassadine have a most interesting showdown…_

_And if that wasn't enough; the Q-Continuum faces its next phase; oblivion!_


	300. I Still Go On Loving You

In upcoming issues, Benjamin Sisko will find out that his first wife, Jennifer, is still alive and not only that; she was pregnant when she was taken by the Borg all those years ago. She had the child who was raised as a Borg and his name is Kaleb. They are coming back into Ben's life, so what will that mean to him and Kasidy? Is it possible Ben still loves Jennifer; yes.

I have written a song for Ben/Jennifer. You can find the link at my profile on FANFIC. It will take you to a YOUTUBE video I made for this song called; I STILL GO ON LOVING YOU. .com/watch?v=wsBmPUN3AoI


	301. You Can See Them Again

**STAR TREK: Shadow and Light**

**You Can See Them Again**

Previously…

_Colt (Leonard McCoy) MaCahan, Goneth and Corvana arrived on the lawless world of Dan'gin. An alien named Nava, who came from the Delta-Quadrant, was selling a device that would allow Goneth (a Gorn smuggler) to track down a Borg super-cube, in the hope that he could save his mate who had been assimilated by the nefarious cyborg race. Colt and Corvana had entered a swanky saloon and had made contact with Nava to make a bid for the device, when in actually, they had nothing. It was all just a ruse to find Nava's ship and to steal the device…but all that was about to change…_

_Our story continues…_

Nava, Colt and Corvana made their way out of the swanky saloon and down a darken sidewalk.

"I'm taking you on your word," Nava told Colt, "you better have the 200 bars of latinum or our relationship will not end on a good note."

"We have it," Colt said. "You just better not double cross us, because the only thing that will get you is a body without a head," Colt said, as he stroked the handle of this shotgun, which was kept in a back-harness down his back.

"Excuse me," Corvana said to Nava, "what race are you again?"

Nava looked down and the small blond haired girl.

"I come from the world Vaadwaur," Nava explained, "we once dominated most of the Delta-Quadrant and eventually our luck ran out, and we were nearly destroyed by those who grew tired of our dominating ways. Our successors in dominating that part of the galaxy turned out to be the Borg."

"Wow," Corvana said, "I guess that didn't turn out so well for the Delta-Quadrant."

"Exactly," Nava said, as they made their way down the dirt path, with only a yellow moon lighting the way. "Thankfully for us, our technology, though antiquated, can still by pass some of the Borg improvements."

"So what brings you to this side of the Galaxy," Corvana asked next.

As Colt listened to Nava and Corvana continue to talk, he was more worried about the fact that Goneth hadn't said anything in the past fifteen minutes. Colt was sure that the miniature communication device he had in his own right ear was still working; something else other than a technology breakdown had silenced the Gorn, who Colton could only hope was still in his ship in high orbit of the planet.

After a few more moments, Colton, Corvana and Nava neared a Transporter hub. Due to the strange effects of the planet's atmosphere, beaming to a ship in orbit required a high-energy Transporter. And due to the necessary energy to run such a device, small time operators offered the use of such gear, but at an extreme price. Colt had thought about using his bike to get them up to Nava's ship, but didn't have the room.

"I'm surprised you keep the device on your ship," Colt finally said to Nava. "It makes viewing the merchandise somewhat taxing."

Suddenly, and without warning, Nava stopped walking.

"What's wrong?" Corvana asked.

Without warning, Nava grabbed Corvana and pulled her to him, and in a split second, he held a weapon aimed at her head.

"What the f—k are you doing," Colt demanded as he drew his shotgun and aimed it at Nava.

"You two must be new to this," Nava said. "I have a Polaron scanner. The moment this one," he pulled Corvana's long blond hair, "turned on her scanner I knew you were trying to figure out from where on this word I kept the device. Well, as it turns out, it is on my ship."

At that instant, Goneth's voice spoke in Colt's ear.

"_We not need…his device," Goneth said. "Starfleet has…defeated…Borg."_

Colt shook his head and then he looked to Nava.

"Did you hear me," Nava demanded, "put down your weapon or this little one is going to die before your very eyes."

There was nothing else Colt could do but put his weapon down, and hope that it was enough to satisfy Nava.

"Let her go," Colt said softly. "She is of no value to you."

Nava looked down at Corvana, "No, I don't find her sexually appealing at all," then he looked back at Colt, "however, since I am having difficulty selling that device, I still need subsistence. You mentioned back in the bar that you had some sort of transportation down here; a spacebike is what you called it. You give me it, and I'll let her go."

Suddenly a sound came from behind Nava. He turned around to face it, only to see a streaking beam of light strike him in the head, throwing him to the ground. Colt looked at the shooter and saw who it was; a Klingon.

Unknown to Colt, the Klingon was actually agent Ryan Tolbert. He had been sent to Dan'gin to apprehend the infamous smugger known as Goneth. The Klingon ran over to them.

"Hurry," the Klingon said, "get to the hub!"

"Why did you help us," Colt asked.

"This one," the Klingon said, as he kicked Nava, who was still on the ground, "owes the house of Martok. He will pay his debt with his life! Now… go, or I will kill you."

Colt nodded his head, and then took Corvana by the hand and hurried to the Transporter hub. They paid the operator two strips of latinum and moments later they were teleported to Goneth's ship.

The Klingon (Ryan Tolbert in disguised) watched as Colt MaCahan and Corvana beamed away, and then suddenly heard a sound from behind him. Ryan whirled around to see his mentor; Stephan Cassadine.

"Howdy there," Stephan said with a broad smile. "Oh, I know it's you Ryan. In fact, if I recall, that portable holo-emitter is the one I gave you last year."

The "Klingon" pressed a button on his wrist and then the Klingon dissolved into a human. Only the elaborate head pieces were actually an application. Ryan removed the Klingon mask, and tossed it aside.

"What are you doing here," Ryan asked. "You know; if the scum on this world finds the both of us here, then we're both dead."

"Actually," Stephan said, "I am here to take you somewhere."

"Stephan," Ryan said, in soft tone, "you're a crooked agent. I knew it all along that you were taking bribes from the Orion Syndicate, among others, but I really don't care; I just don't want to work with you anymore."

Stephan laughed for a moment, but then a stone cold look overcame his face.

"Like I said," Stephan said, "I'm only here so that I can take you somewhere else so that you can meet a friend of mine who really wants to meet you; is there any harm in that?"

"Who is this friend?" Ryan asked.

"Oh, trust me," Stephan said, "when you meet him he will become your friend as well. In fact, if you play your cards right, you might see your wife and son again."

Suddenly Ryan Tolbert became dead serious.

"What the hell are you talking about," Ryan said, with doubt in his voice. "Alistair Martin killed my wife and kids."

"What if I were to tell you that they survived the explosion that engulfed your home," Stephan said, in a boisterous way.

"Then I would say it was a lie," Ryan said after a moment. "DNA fragments were found."

Suddenly Stephan raised a weapon up from his pocket and aimed it at Ryan.

"We shall see," Stephan said as he fired the weapon.

Ryan fell to the ground right next to Nava. Nava, who was still alive, but in agony, looked up at Stephan Cassadine. The last thing Nava saw was a Stephan picking up a large boulder, and smashing it down toward him…and then Nava found death.

Continued…


	302. Torn

**STAR TREK: SHADOW AND LIGHT**

**Torn…**

**THE NAISSANCE DYSONSPHERE**

The massive entrance to the Naissance Dyson-sphere was opened, and the USS ENTERPRISE passed through and was inside of the massive solar system large space station.

From the inside of the sphere, at the rooftop of the Federation complex located on the forth continent from the opening, the entrance to the sphere could not be seen, being that it was over two-thousand miles away. But Admiral Benjamin Sisko knew the Enterprise was approaching, and he knew that his life was about to enter uncharted waters. His first wife, who had been declared dead nearly two decades earlier, had turned up alive. She had been a Borg drone for all that and had recently been freed, along with 25,000 drones. For the past several days as her existence was confirmed, he and his current wife, Kasidy, had not said much. Though he tried to assure her that Jennifer's return would not change anything, he could tell by his wife's demeanor that she had her doubts. And, internally, Ben Sisko knew she was right. Jennifer had really been his first true love. Her loss set Ben in a tailspin. It was only when he found purpose as Bajor's Emissary did he truly find a new anchor in his life.

Standing next to Ben Sisko, to his left, was his Kasidy, and next to her was their daughter Rebecca. Next to Rebecca stood her good friend, who was also the "offspring" of the late Lt. Commander Data; her name was Lal.

Standing to Ben's right was his son Jake, and his son's wife Korena. Standing next to Korena, and in a beautiful blue dress with a bow tie in her hair, was Jake's and Korena's three year old daughter Briana. It was an interesting gathering for this family, and it was about to get even more interesting. Standing a few feet away from Sisko was Commander Julian Bashir. He was the station's chief medical scientist, and one of the architects of Naissance program. He, along with Admiral Janeway, had convinced the Federation to use the massive Dysonsphere to house endangered animals and plants from all over the galaxy. And while his duties were normally in overseeing that aspect of the Naissance, he had volunteered to care for the woman for whom Sisko and his family were waiting to arrive; Jennifer Sisko.

Standing next to Commander Bashir was Lt. Aubrey Hemming. She was a medical specialist who had recently arrived at the Naissance, and who in a short time, had become Bashir's friend and lover.

"So who is this woman again?" Aubrey asked Julian in a very soft tone.

"Jennifer was the Admiral's wife," Julian began to explain. "She was believed to be killed at the battle of Wolf-359, but as it turns out, she was actually assimilated by the Borg."

"That was twenty years ago, at least," Aubrey said. "Isn't that woman next to Admiral Sisko his current wife?"

"Yes," Julian said, nodding his head. "He has been married to Kasidy far longer than he was married to Jennifer before her disappearance."

"It doesn't matter," Aubrey said after a moment, in a defiant tone. "He should go back to Jennifer; his first wife. He owes that much to her."

"And what about Kasidy," Julian asked back. "That's their daughter standing next to Kasidy. He went on with his life, thinking Jennifer was dead, and had a child with her. You can't expect him to just simply drop all of that."

Aubrey shook her head.

"It doesn't matter," Aubrey stated in a matter of fact tone. "The love between Jennifer and Admiral Sisko has defied the test of time, and even death. And look at that little girl in the blue dress," Aubrey said, as a tear came down from her eye, "That's Jennifer's granddaughter."

And then, high above the complex, they could all see the USS Enterprise come into view. The mighty starship was ferrying three passengers, Jennifer and her son Kaleb among them, who were recently freed from their existence as Borg drones as well as crew replacements. But due to recent border incidents with the Ticounian Empire, the Enterprise would be departing immediately after the transfers were made.

At that moment, Admiral Sisko looked over to Bashir and motioned to come to him.

"Stay here," Bashir said to Aubrey. "The last thing I need is for you to turn this unfolding drama into an awkward scene."

Before Julian left, Aubrey had one last thing to say.

"Tell the Admiral he belongs with Jennifer," Aubrey said with a whisper and a smile and a wink.

Commander Bashir shook his head, and then made his way over to Admiral Sisko.

"Who is that woman?" Sisko asked first as Julian came closer.

"Her name is Lt. Aubrey Hemming," Kasidy answered for Bashir. "She's rather striking," Kasidy said in a coy manner, "and she and Julian have become," Kasidy lowered her voice, "an item."

Sisko smiled and nodded his head in approval.

"Well," Sisko said, "I'm sorry that things did not work out between you and Ezri," Sisko said to Julian. "But it is good to see that you have gone on with your life. Now," Sisko said, changing the subject, "what can we expect; will Jennifer even know who Jake and I are?"

"What about that," Jake said, as he came closer. "The last time she saw me I was just a little kid."

"According to counselor Troi's message," Julian explained, "Jennifer's memories are in a fluid state; meaning that we have no way of telling what will happen when she sees the two of you."

"Jakes right though," Ben Sisko said. "She couldn't possibly remember him right off the bat since she has been gone for so long."

"You'd be surprised at what the human mind can do," Julian said with a soft voice. "There are studies that have shown familiar recognition between family members who have been separated for longer periods of time than Jake and his mother; there is no way of telling what Jennifer will recollect upon seeing Jake," Julian paused, looked at Kasidy, then looked back at Ben, "and you."

"We're about to find out," Ben Sisko said to his good friend Julian Bashir as Transporter beams began to solidify.

Ben and Jake Sisko stood closer together as they watched one by one as the Transporter beams solidified. Due to the hurried nature of the Enterprise's visit, there was no real schedule to follow. After the transfers were done, the Enterprise would depart. Three more beams solidified. Admiral Janeway was easily recognized, but then Ben's eyes met those of the woman who stood next to her.

Rebecca Sisko and her mother, Kasidy, watched as Ben and Jennifer made eye contact for the first time in many…many years. Rebecca held her mother's hand tight, giving her as much support as she could. A smile spread across Jennifer's face, and an equally wide smile spread across Ben's face as well.

And it was at that moment that Kasidy Sisko realized that her husband's heart was no longer hers' alone.

* * *

**Earth…**

**Riverside Iowa.**

A large five story Victorian style house was situated on a large parcel of land. High atop the balcony stood a man who was gazing out upon the view provided. His name was Collin Moore and he had lived his entire life as a resident of Riverside Iowa. The small city had not changed much in that time, and had retained a rural feel to it. Collin Moore held a glass of bourbon in his hand and watched a flock of birds in the distance. It was nearly 4pm, and soon it would be time to leave for the special event; the homecoming of the legendary James T Kirk.

At that moment, Collin's sister Sarah came out onto the balcony in a flowing dress which accented her figure and beauty.

"My dear sister," Collin said, "you will shine brighter than all of the other women who will be there to greet the returning hero."

"Well," Sarah said with a bright smile, "that is what this is all about isn't it?"

Collin nodded his head.

"Very true," Collin replied. "He will not have any choice but to fall for your charm," he told her as he handed her a small fingernail sized piece of gel. "However, just in case; make sure you use it at the appropriate time," Collin went on to say as he watched her place the gel inside the crevice of her slightly exposed bosom.

"I know my part in all of this," Sarah said, after she straightened up her dress a little. "However, this just isn't some small time target. This man is notorious for escaping danger and his ability to see the truth; this will not be easy."

Collin nodded his head, and dumped the rest of his drink over the side of the balcony.

"Sarah; no one said this would be easy," Collin said, as he looked back at his sister. "However, James T Kirk is not aboard a mighty starship, and his Vulcan friend, Spock, is attending an official function at the Vulcan embassy, so Kirk will be here alone. And when Kirk," Collin came over to his sister, and ogled her ample breasts, "gets a look at you, and your," he smiled, "assets; he will melt like butter." He pointed at a parsec of land in the distance. "We must do what is necessary in order to make that piece of land ours."

"And if seduction doesn't work?" Sarah asked.

"Then my dear," Collin said, "we will kill him."

And with that, Collin and Sarah more headed downstairs to their private Transporter and beamed over to the Mayor's mansion where, in less than an hour, James T Kirk would be officially welcomed back to the town of Riverside Iowa.

Continued…


	303. The Highland Expanse

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Highland Expanse**

**Earth;**

**Star Fleet Command…**

Admiral Jean-Luc Picard and Commodore William T Riker walked through a corridor at Star Fleet Command. The two men were the closest of friends after having shared so many of those years as crewmates and close confidents. And, as fate would have it, they were being paired together again.

"What is this all about," Riker asked his friend as they made their way toward the office of the secretary of Federation defense; Jy'lor Paream.

"The Secretary wouldn't say," Picard replied. "However, since Secretary Paream answers only to the President of the Federation, I would fathom it will be quite interesting."

Riker smiled.

"Always the master of the understatement, aren't you Jean-Luc," Riker said, poking humor at Picard's ever so natural stoicism.

"Here here," Picard said, with a slight pump of his fist. "I'll play the role they wish for me to play."

"And you play it well," Riker added in all due seriousness, with a smiled added.

Moments later they entered the office of the Secretary of Defense. Secretary Jy'lor Paream, who came from the world Norvace-Seven, was standing near the large window that had a magnificent view of Paris France. Secretary Paream came from a world of hominoids. His skin was a dark greenish-hue, and his eyes were level to where his mouth was. He motioned for the two men to sit down and they did.

"I want to thank the two of you for coming to see me as quickly as you have," Secretary Paream said. "It is not often that I get to converse with people in the flesh, since most of my interaction with others is via holograms."

"Yes," Picard said, with a slight tone of remorse in his voice, "that seems to be the growing trend Mr. Secretary."

Secretary Paream came over and sat behind the desk.

"Let me get right to the point," Paream said. "I have a special mission for the two of you. I want to stress that you are under no obligation to accept it, and I would understand if you passed on it."

"Now you have us intrigued," Riker said, with a gleam in his eyes.

Secretary Paream smiled.

"Yes, I sort of had a feeling you'd say something like that," Paream said to Riker. "I've learned that sometimes a good mystery can inspire the mind to do things it might normally not seem inclined to do. And, to be sure, the two of you have had to wade your way through many mysteries as Star Fleet Captains and commanders."

"What kind of mystery are we talking about?" Picard asked.

Paream pivoted in his chair and faced one of the side walls, and Picard and Riker did the same upon prompting from the Secretary. The wall slid apart, revealing a monitor. Paream pushed a button on his computer console and then a map of the galaxy, with a view from above, was displayed. The spiral shaped galaxy was divided into four slices, each its own color; the typical four quadrant model that was common place.

The image zoomed in on an area of space that was deep inside the Beta-Quadrant, but also spilled over into the Delta-Quadrant. Picard nodded his head as he recognized the area of unexplored space.

"What is that area?" Riker asked.

Before Secretary Jy'lor Paream could answer, Picard did instead.

"It is called the Highland Expanse," Picard told Riker. "It is an area of space that Star Fleet became aware of thanks to data obtained from a damage Borg sphere that the USS Highland encountered fifteen years ago."

"Yes, I heard about that," Riker added. "As I recall, the Highland encountered the damaged sphere and was destroyed. The Highland's last transmission stated that the sphere became operational and had attacked them; they were never heard from since. So what does any of that have to do with that area of space?" Riker asked as he pointed at the map. "Even at top speed it would take a starship twenty- years just to get there."

"Twenty-five actually," Picard corrected Riker.

"That's still an eternity," Riker said to his friend. "I still don't get it."

"Well, as usual," Secretary Paream said to them both, "there is more to the story than that simple encounter. To make a long story short, I want the two of you to lead a mission to the Highland Expanse."

"Excuse me sir," Riker interjected, "the USS Highland's encounter with that Borg sphere occurred here, in the Alpha-Quadrant. What, if anything, does that ship have to do with an area of space so far away?"

"Alright," Paream agreed. "What I am about to tell you is highly classified, and will not leave this room."

Both Picard and Riker nodded in agreement.

"Before contact with the Highland was lost, the captain of the Highland, Jacob Canary, father of Captain Jonathan Canary, whom I believe you both know, on orders from Star Fleet, had led a landing party over to the sphere. They found data in the sphere's computer that referred to this area of space," Paream motioned to the area of the map that was denoted as the Highland Expanse. "And then, while Captain Canary and his landing party were still aboard the sphere, without warning, the sphere became active and attacked the Highland, destroying it and killing all aboard her. However; the Highland was able to send out a buoy that included the last scans taken by its sensors before its demise. The data contained in the buoy's final transmission showed that he sphere had activated its Transwarp engines, and according to the last message sent by Captain Jacob Canary, the sphere was on course for what we now call the Highland Expanse. We gave this area of space the designation Highland Expanse in honor of the sacrifice the ship's crew had made."

"Alright," Riker said after a moment. "What is so special about this area of space, other than the fact it actually encompasses an area of space that stretches from the Beta-Quadrant over to the Delta-Quadrant, and is twenty-five years away from us."

"The buoy's communication, which included the sphere's data, was only partially recovered at the time, due to imperfections in the data collection," Secretary Paream explained. "However, recent technological advances, as well with the assistance of Annika Hansen and Dr. Walter Bishop, we have been able to recover the lost data. According to the recovered data, the Borg avoided the Highland Expanse like the plague. Star Fleet wants to know why. And with the Borg threat seemingly neutralized, thanks to the Voth, we want to launch a mission, real hands on mission, to discover the mystery as to what is inside that expanse."

Picard smiled at Secretary Paream.

"While that sounds like a very tempting mission," Picard stated, "twenty-five years, and really fifty years if you think about how long it would take to return, would seem to disqualify me by virtue of my age."

"Me too," Riker added.

Secretary Paream smiled back at the two men.

"Yes, on the surface, the time factor involved would seem to preclude sending a crew there," Paream agreed. "However, what if I told you that both of you could be there in," Paream paused for affect, "two hours."

"How is that possible?" Picard quickly came back with.

"It is possible because," Paream thought for a moment, and then he continued, "technically; you're both already there."

Picard and Riker looked over at each other, and then back to Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream.

"Would you repeat that?" Riker asked.

* * *

**The Nassiance...**

Rebecca Sisko and Lal were seating at one of the many cafes that lined the food court located inside the massive Star Fleet base inside the Naissance Dysonsphere.

"I notice that you are consuming more food than you usually do," Lal said. "Is this an example of human emotions dictating food intake?"

Rebecca looked at her friend and smiled.

"Sometimes I wish I was like you," Rebecca told her android friend. "I wish I could turn off my emotions as I do a light switch. I just have the strangest feeling that the return of Jennifer is going to mess things up between my mom and dad," Rebecca said. "I know this may sound cruel; but part of me wished Jennifer and her son Kaleb had never returned."

"I do not understand the human behavior of predicting future events with their emotions," Lal said to her friend. "Since emotions are erratic, at best, why even use them to predict what is yet to come."

"It's what we do," Rebecca said, as she nibbled on her salad. "I mean, think about it; my father has been married to my mother far longer than he was ever married to Jennifer."

"Your father and your mother are still married as we speak," Lal said after a moment. "Do you think their union is in jeopardy merely because of Jennifer Sisko's return?"

Rebecca looked her friend and shook her head.

"Didn't you see how my father smiled upon seeing his first wife again," Rebecca stated. "My mom saw that, and I could tell it was breaking her heart. I just hope it isn't an indicator of things to come."

Lal had no answer for her friend…but she would be there just as a good friend should be….

* * *

**Earth; Riverside Iowa…**

A small gathering of local socialites had come to the Mayor's mansion to get a glimpse of James T Kirk. The legendary Starship Captain was at last returning to his hometown of Riverside Iowa. It was a big event, thus a big party was thrown in Kirk's honor. Kirk, who usually shied away from such affairs, did his best to make the rounds.

Two of the socialites had stayed back from the throng, waiting for the best moment to meet Kirk. They were Collin Moore and his sister Sarah Moore. Sarah chuckled at the women who were throwing themselves at Kirk, knowing that he was a single man and probably the most famous single man on Earth. Whoever said that materialism was no longer part of Earth's culture was living a pipe dream.

"Look at them," Collin said, as he sipped on a glass of wine. "All those women couldn't hold a candle to you."

"Maybe I should approach him now," Sarah said. "There will never be a better time to impress him," Sarah added.

"Impress Jim Kirk," a voice asked from behind Sarah and Collin. "Why would you want to do that?"

Sarah and Collin turned around to see an attractive blond woman who was standing with a fair haired Vulcan.

"I am sorry, I didn't mean that to sound the way it did," Sarah said, as she blushed.

"It's okay," Amanda said. "Jim is a very special person, and he doesn't need to be impressed. If you want I will introduce you to him."

Collin reached out as Amanda reached out her hand. Collin kissed the top of her hand, and smiled at Amanda and S'vath.

"I'm sorry," S'vath said, "who would you might be?" Collin asked.

"My name is Amanda, and this is my husband S'vath," Amanda said.

"Pleased to meet you," S'vath said. "And as my wife just said, Jim is a unique person and a very close friend of my father; Spock of Vulcan."

"Anyway," Amanda added, "it was nice to meet you. Come on honey," Amanda added, "we're supposed to join Jim and the mayor for dinner."

Amanda and S'vath said their goodbyes, and headed away from Collin and Sarah.

"I don't know about you," Sarah said to her brother, "but I took that as a warning to stay away from Kirk."

"As did I," Collin said, with irritation in his voice. "Be that as it may, it will not stop our plan."

The two of them continued to keep an eye on Kirk, but Collin kept a more watchful eye on S'vath and Amanda. Because if push came to shove, Collin would eliminate any interference; and he had the resources to do it.

continued...


	304. MIA Heralds

**STAR TREK: The Galaxy Window**

**MIA Heralds...**

**Previously…**

_Inside a dark and dingy cave…_

_Garak stood up. For reasons he could not explain, his strength had returned. He still remembered having been on the Enterprise that existed outside space and time, and it being destroyed, and his struggle to find the cave he was inside of for shelter. But just moments earlier he had been near death, suffering from starvation and thirst; but now he was fine. But how had this happened? (Jonathan Archer's doing, which Garak has been made to forget; for now). Then, suddenly, he heard footsteps coming toward the cave entrance. Garak hid behind a large boulder, but he could still see the cave entrance. Someone stepped in from the outside._

_"Odo," Garak said as he stepped out from the boulder._

_"Garak," Odo grimaced as he spoke the name. "What are you doing here?"_

_"It's funny you should ask," Garak said. "However, I am glad you are here because I have important information and I must get it to…" Garak paused, "Jim Kirk."_

_"Well now, that is very odd," Odo said; a tone of doubt in his voice as he spoke. "As it turns out, I too am in need to talk to Kirk."_

"_Then it will be, as I'm sure Julian would say if he were here, the good times."_

_Odo shook his head in obvious annoyance at having to spend time with the Cardassian._

_Once they were outside the cave, Odo activated a device on his wrist, and the two of them were teleported off the planet. Once they were gone, a third person stepped out from the cave, having witnessed their conversation; a man named Khan Noonien Singh…._

**Our story continues…**

* * *

A spaceship streaked through space, its destination being Earth. On board the small craft were two passengers; Prime-minister Odo of the Founders, and Garak.

"What kind of ship is this again," Garak asked. "And why do you even need one. Haven't you learned how to shape-shift like Laas?"

"This ship was designed by the Federation, but was built by the Vorta," Odo explained. "And no, I have never even attempted to take the shape of a spacing traveling vessel."

Garak recalled the events that had led to Laas's death, as told to him by Ben Sisko many months earlier.

"It must have been pretty hard on you," Garak stated, "finding out that Laas had been conspiring against the Founders, as well as the Federation, with that other shape-shifter; Azami."

"I fail to see why," Odo came back with. "The Federation, and the Founders, found themselves against the wishes of others, such as the Cardassians, many times before. Why should it be so unique that another race of shape-shifters would want to do the same?"

"They wanted to impose order on the galaxy," Garak replied, "and Laas was willing to help them. I am willing to bet he was going to be rewarded with his efforts by being made the ruler of the Founders, which means, eventually he would have gone up against you."

"Enough of this," Odo said, after a moment. "We are nearing Earth's solar system, and it would appear, according to message traffic, as if Martok's flagship is indeed in orbit of Earth. Apparently there is some sort of official function at the Vulcan embassy."

"We need to get to him, alone," Garak said. "If someone is out to kill Jim Kirk, Martok needs to know. The two have become close friends, and believe me, if Martok even believes for one moment that Kirk's life is in danger, he'll do anything he can to stop to it. And if what you're saying is true, that the Q are somehow involved with all of this and are working with Star Fleet operatives, he could get word to Picard about that as well. I have had some interesting encounters with Federation types recently myself."

"Such as," Odo asked.

"Months ago I was sent by Benjamin Sisko to investigate an individual named Harrison Riker," Garak explained. "I ended up on a world that had once been a Cardassian prison colony. I went there because that is where Harrison had been born, and I wanted to pick up the trail from there. I found his grave and to make a long story short, Riker climbed out of that grave, but not as an infant, but as the grown man I had met earlier on Timus. In fact, he should have been on Timus, and I later found out he was. As it turned out was killed on Timus by that Cardassian hit-man, and somehow, nearly instantly, he dug himself out of that grave on a planet light-years from Timus. It was then that three strange glowing balls of light appeared and…he was gone."

"You said you encountered Federation or Star Fleet officers," Odo reminded Garak.

"I did," Garak went on to say. "After the energy lights left, a Star Fleet landing party arrived. A man named Commander Randolph Donnelly took me from that world, and eventually sent me to the Enterprise that was trapped outside of time to destroy it. But, like I said, it all started because I was investigating a man who had died as an infant on that Cardassian prison world; a man named Harrison Riker."

"Now that is very interesting," Odo said to Garak. "It so happens that I saw that man, Harrison Riker, winked out of existence by Q."

"Well that's the point," Garak stated. "He died on that prison world as an infant. And yet, he showed up on Timus years later as an adult, where you would eventually see him killed. I don't like this Odo," Garak added. "It does not make any logical sense."

Suddenly Garak was rocked by a spasm in his mind, and he moaned in pain. Odo came over to him.

"What happened," Odo asked.

"Odo," Garak said, as he was now short of breath. "For just a moment I had…" Garak forced himself to swallow, "a memory flash. Something is going on," Garak said, with a near dazed look on his face. "Memories I don't remember having are suddenly showing up inside my mind. Where's a Vulcan when you need one?"

"What do you mean?" Odo asked.

"I am convinced that someone has been playing with my memory," Garak explained. And then he saw another lost memory; DNA proof that K'mpec was still alive. "Sorry for interrupting," Garak said to the shape-shifter, "you say that you saw Harrison Riker killed on Timus?"

"Yes," Odo continued. "He had chased Myran's killer into the forest, and had killed him when Q suddenly arrived. Harrison pleaded with Q to let him die so that he could face eternity with Myran. At first Q was reluctant, but then he used his powers, and Harrison was gone. I was in the shape of a bird, so Q did not know I was there; but that is what I saw."

The ship suddenly began to shake. Odo left Garak's side and went back to the control console. Suddenly, and without warning, a strange distortion or swirling red energy appeared in the pathway of Odo's ship.

"What is that," Garak asked as he sat in the seat next to Odo, "and where did it come from?"

"How would I know," Odo barked back. "Whatever it is, it's changing course to match my own course changes."

"What does that mean?" Garak asked.

"It means," Odo said, with a cold look on his smooth face, "we're not going to be seeing Martok anytime soon."

And with that, the strange swirling ribbons of energy engulfed the ship; and it was gone.

* * *

**Elsewhere…**

Ryan Tolbert opened his eyes. The last thing he remembered was encountering his former friend and mentor, Stephan Cassadine, on the planet Dan'gin. Now he found himself in a holding cell, on the ground and locked behind an energy barrier. He struggled to stand, due to the dizziness in his head. He leaned against the wall for support. The energy barrier was emitting a reddish glow, but he could still see through it. The control panel on along the wall on the other side of the barrier was definitely made with Federation technology. Suddenly stepping into view was a man wearing some sort of Star Fleet uniform.

"Mr. Tolbert," Randolph Donnelly said, "my name is Commander Randolph Donnelly. I think there is a very good chance that you and I can become close friends."

"I doubt it," Tolbert said. "If Stephan Cassadine is working for you, then I have serious doubt about your intention."

Donnelly smiled.

"Alright, you have me there," Donnelly said with a slight chuckle. "Let me be more to the point," Donnelly added. "What about your wife and child. What if I told you that their lives, as well as being able to see them again, were hanging in the balance?"

"Stephan said the same thing," Ryan Tolbert came back with. "They died years ago."

"In a horrible fire, their bodies burned beyond recognition," Donnelly added. "That must have been very hard on you."

Tolbert just stared back at Donnelly, not wanting to discuss the matter.

"Those bodies were planted there," Donnelly suddenly said. "They were planted there to make it seem as if your wife and child had died, when in fact they had not."

A look of anger came over Tolbert's face.

"I don't believe you," Ryan Tolbert spat back.

Donnelly chuckled, and then he grinned and left the room, leaving Ryan Tolbert with a tornado of confusion in his mind. Was it possible? Had his wife, Helen, and their daughter, Marissa, survived the fire after all?

* * *

**Earth**

**Star Fleet Command…**

Admiral Jean-Luc Picard and Commodore William T Riker sat in the office of the Secretary of Defense; Jy'lor Paream. He had just told them about a mission he wanted them to take on, but would require 25 years to get to an area of space called the Highland Expanse.

"It sounds interesting," Picard said, "but I am far too old for that sort of time constraint."

"So am I," Riker added.

"Yes, on the surface, the time factor involved would seem to preclude sending a conventional crew there," Paream agreed. "However, what if I told you that both of you could be there in," Paream paused for affect, "two hours."

"How is that possible?" Picard quickly came back with.

"It is possible because," Paream thought for a moment, and then he continued, "technically; you're both already there."

Picard and Riker looked over at each other, and then back to Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream.

"Would you repeat that?" Riker asked.

Secretary Jy'lor Paream smiled and stood up. He walked over to the screen and touched an area that was near the Highland Expanse. A small white dot suddenly had a circle around it.

"This is a starship that is approaching the expanse," Paream explained. "It was launched from Starbase 147 approximately fifteen years ago."

"I have never heard of such a launch," Picard said with a soft voice.

"Obviously the launch of the ship was classified," Paream told the two. "We didn't want the Romulans tagging along, so we went through great measures to make sure they didn't know about it."

"I thought you said it would take a ship from here twenty-five years to get to the Highland Expanse," Riker said. "According to that map, that ship will be there in weeks if not days. What happened to the other ten years?"

"While that is a good question," Picard said to Riker, "I'd like to know more about what you said a moment ago. You seemed to imply that we, Riker and I, are already aboard that ship."

"And you are," Paream replied, "as well as Commander Beverly Crusher, Professor Geordie Leforge, and," Paream paused, "Lt. Commander's Worf and Data."

"This is lunacy," Picard said with a laugh. "It's obvious that Commodore Riker and I are still in this room; and on top of that, Lt. Commander's Worf and Data are dead."

"Technically you are right, they are dead," Paream said. "However, the crew aboard that ship isn't conventional. You see, Jean-Luc, ships have entered the Highland Expanse before. They weren't Federation, but it appears as if several Delta and Beta Quadrant empires have tried, as have the Borg. And according to top-secret information told to us by Chancellor Martok, even the Klingons tried a century ago. Ships go in; but they never come out."

"But you seem to think that our ship, the one that the Admiral and I are already on and is about to arrive there, will enter it and succeed and return; why?" Riker asked.

Jy'lor Paream headed for the door to his office.

"Come with me gentlemen," Paream said back to them. "I have something to show you."

Picard and Riker shared a weary glance; they had no idea what was happening…and they both had a worried look on their face.

* * *

**Earth…The Tribal lands of North America.**

Many Native American villages were scattered about the deserts of the North America's southwest. With the Colorado River returned to its past glory and deep banks, there was no longer an endless drought; nor want for wild game. The main village, the capital for lack of a better term, was called Tay'ake. The late Satangkai had made it so, and ever since, that has been the center of the Native American people.

Limanu, who was now the chief of the Native America people, was visiting the nursery. As per his promise to Jim Kirk, Limanu made it a point to check in on Kirk's children every day to make sure they were being well cared for. He smiled as he watched as three-year old Mathew was finger painting with the other toddlers. He then saw that Dahme, the one year old girl who had faced certain death after being shot by a Cardassian hit man months earlier, was being held by one of the tenders. Limanu bowed his head at the elder tender, and then left the nursery made his way down the path that led to his Tepee.

From the corner of his eye he saw a Bald Eagle sitting atop a nearby tree. It was rare when one of the larger species of birds came so close to human settlements. Limanu turned to enter his Teepee when, at the same moment, the Bald Eagle swooped down and flew into the Teepee as well, and landed on the rug covered ground. Limanu could only stare in wonder, and then…the bird changed shape and a man stood in the bird's place.

"Satangkai!" Limanu said in disbelief. "You have come back from beyond."

It was indeed Satangkai, but as he appeared when he was much younger…when he was a young man.

"I have only come to warn you that soon...our people will be tested. You must prepare for what is to come." Satangkai warned.

And then Satangkai changed back into a bird, and few out of the Teepee. Limanu had no idea what Satangkai was referring to or how to prepare. Yet he knew the spirits would guide him.

Continued…


	305. The Sound of Music

I have created an all new INSTRUMENTAL THEME song for this story and video credits. You can see them by using the URL I have at my profile….if that doesn't work then send me an EMAIL to .

Rob


	306. Home

**STAR TREK: The Galaxy Window**

**Home**

_I have created an all new INSTRUMENTAL THEME song for this story and video credits. You can see them by using the URL I have at my profile..._

**Earth; Riverside Iowa…**

Collin Moore, and his sister Sarah, arrived at the mayor's mansion. A special party was being thrown for the returning legend; James T Kirk. Collin looked at his sister, who was in a dress that accented her curves.

"When Kirk," Collin ogled his sister ample breasts, "gets a look at you, and your," he smiled, "assets; he will melt like butter." Collin pointed at a parsec of land in the distance. "We must do what is necessary in order to make that piece of land, Kirk's land; ours."

"And what if mere seduction doesn't work?" Sarah asked.

"The tiny flask you hid within the crevice of your bosom back at home will make sure it does work," Collin told her. "There are tear droplets inside of it and they come from the planet Elas. I have had them augmented with your DNA. One drop on his skin will make Kirk fall madly in love with you. He will be under your enchanted spell forever."

"I have read about the tears of Elas," Sarah said with a smile. "But what if they do not sway Kirk's heart to fall for me?" Sarah asked.

"Then he will have to die…"Collin said in a soft tone. "But his death would lead to an investigation and that would delay our efforts. These tears, and your charm, will have to do the trick."

"That's what you think this is," Sarah said with a coy sound to her voice, "turning a trick?"

"It is funny you should put it that way, but then again, knowing your past as well as I do, it is not surprising."

Upon entering the crowded party, Sarah and Collin found it to be rather crowded. Many of the people who were there at the party were friends of theirs, so they paid their wishes. After twenty minutes of socializing, Sarah and Collin tried to approach Kirk, who was surrounded by several well connected socialites, as well as the mayor. As Collin and Sarah tried to walk over to Kirk, two strangers suddenly blocked their approach.

"I'm sorry," S'vath said, "however, Jim Kirk is trying to keep the crowd around him manageable. If you wait for another ten minutes or so, I'm sure the rush to see him will have lessened."

Collin looked from S'vath over to Amanda.

Collin reached out as Amanda reached out her hand. Collin kissed the top of her hand, and smiled at Amanda and S'vath.

"I'm terribly sorry," Collin said to them both, "who would you might be?" Collin asked.

"My name is Amanda, and this is my husband S'vath; son of Spock," Amanda said.

"Pleased to meet both of you," Collin said. "Jim Kirk is indeed a unique person and yes, we would like to meet him. This gorgeous creature is my sister."

S'vath and Amanda smiled at Sarah.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Amanda said.

"If it is a problem," Sarah said, "we could try another time."

"It will be no problem," S'vath said to Collin. "Just ten more minutes is all I ask."

"Anyway," Amanda added, "it was nice to meet you. Come on honey," Amanda added, "the Mr. Guard-dog routine is wearing thin."

Amanda and S'vath said their goodbyes, and headed away from Collin and Sarah.

"I don't know about you," Sarah said to her brother, "but I think they are trying to protect him; but why?"

"You heard her," Collin replied, "S'vath is Spock's son. I am quite sure it is Spock's way of protecting his friend from people like us. A," Collin paused, "logical step but ultimately futile. Be that as it may, it will not stop our plan."

The two of them continued to keep an eye on Kirk, but Collin kept a more watchful eye on S'vath and Amanda. Because if push came to shove, Collin would eliminate any interference; and he had the resources to do it.

"Stop looking at the Vulcan so intently," Sarah said, "he'll get suspicious."

"I so utterly despise Vulcans," Collin said in a near whisper. "Their arrogance is as subtle as snow in winter."

"All isn't lost Collin," Sarah said to her brother. "In ten minutes I will take up the Vulcan's offer, and then I'll get close to Kirk. I just hope these enhanced tears you gave me work as good as you think they will."

Collin smiled at his sister.

"My dear," Collin said, "have you ever known me to be wrong?"

Sarah shook her head.

"I need to use the women's lavatory," Sarah said after a moment, "I will be back in a moment."

"Don't take too long," Collin said, as Sarah walked away. "That ten minute window may not come again."

Collin watched as his sister disappeared into the throng of party goers. He made his way over to a window that in the distance, held a view of the futuristic ranch home that was now Kirk's home. It was situated upon a hill that over looked Kirk's land, the land that Collin needed domain over. He had convinced his sister that Kirk's land had once belonged to their family, but was sold to Kirk's uncle nearly two hundred years earlier, and they were only getting back land that was rightfully theirs.

Yet, while part of it was true, the land having been sold to Kirk's family, it was really just a ruse that Sarah had no knowledge of.

He couldn't tell his sister the truth because she would never have understood that the value of Kirk's land wasn't above it, but below it. It was only by a chance meeting during the Dominion War with a Vorta when Collin found out the truth as to what was hidden beneath Kirk's land; an Iconian Gateway. But this wasn't just an ordinary gateway; it required the life essence of a particular person to open it, and that person was Kirk's toddler aged son; Mathew. Once the land was in Collin's possession, he would turn his attention toward the abduction of Kirk's child, who, according to Collin's contacts, reside somewhere in the tribal lands of New Mexico.

He raised his glass and made a mock toast to Kirk's ranch home in the distance.

"Soon," Collin said as he drowned his drink, "very soon indeed."

Meanwhile, in the lavatory, Sarah smiled at herself in the mirror. Knowing that no one else was in the room with her, Sarah took out the flask that contained the tears from Elas. She dabbed them into her eyes, and then went for the door.

At that moment, the doorknob turned. Someone else was coming in, but the old style doorknob had hammed.

"Here, let me try again," a man's voice said from the other side.

Suddenly the door swung open, knocking Sarah to the ground. She stared up and saw S'vath.

"I am very sorry about that," S'vath said. "My wife couldn't open the door, so I helped. I guess I helped more than I should have. If you wish," S'vath said, as he offered his hand to the fallen woman, "I can introduce you to Jim Kirk now."

Sarah stood up and smiled back at S'vath as he took her hand and pulled her up. Amanda could see the lust in Sarah's eyes as she looked at S'vath, it was so obvious. But then again, Amanda thought, a Ménage  
à trios with her and S'vath aroused Amanda. She would let the flirting continue so as to see where it might lead.

* * *

**The Naissance Dysonsphere…**

Admiral Benjamin Sisko and his son Jake entered the medical office of Commander Julian Bashir.

"Please have a seat," Julian told them both.

"What can you tell us about Jennifer's progress; and her son's as well," Ben asked as he sat down.

"First of all," Julian, "I want to thank the both of you for not pushing the issue of seeing her. Deanna Troi, who is overseeing the processing of the former drones, sent me a personal message and asked that we take it slow. As for Jennifer, and her son," Julian continued on, "I have had counselor Lt. Edoin T'riana, she is also Betazoid I might add, helping them get acclimated to their new surroundings."

"Julian, how can this all be happening so fast," Jake asked. "My mother was assimilated twenty years ago, and her son has always been a Borg. I thought leaving the Collective was difficult."

"Generally, yes, you are right," Julian said, nodding his head in agreement. "But over the years new medications have been developed that can help with the process. In fact," Julian added, "Doctor Zimmerman, the EMS who was aboard Voyager during her trek across the Delta-Quadrant, developed most of those medications and other procedures that he had used to ease Annika Hansen into a life of normalcy. By the way sir," Julian said to Ben Sisko, "he is due to arrive here in two days. He wants to help with Jennifer's progress, and since he is an expert, I think it would be wise to take advantage of his skills in these matters."

"That's fine with me, but when can we speak with her?" Ben asked, after a moment.

"She has been asking about you, and Jake," Julian said with a smile. "However, when I take you to see her, please avoid the subject of you and Kasidy."

"She will have to be told the truth, eventually," Ben said. "I can't lie to her about being married to Kasidy."

"Like I said," Julian repeated, "Just try to avoid the subject. There is no way of knowing what the psychological ramifications could be for her after such a short time from being liberated from the Collective."

"I'll do my best," Ben agreed.

Unknown to Commander Bashir and the others, Lt. Aubrey Hemming was listening in on the conversation from the other room which was just around the corner of the wall. She shook her head in disagreement to what Julian Bashir had just said.

"No Julian," Aubrey said in a whisper to herself, "Jennifer has a right to know now. And if you won't tell her," Aubrey paused, thinking through the ramifications of her possible actions, "then I will."

* * *

**The Naissance Dysonsphere…Continent 4-25-AA**

There were nearly 14,000 "Australia-sized" continents located inside the massive Naissance Dysonsphere. A few of them were already home to various endangered life forms brought to the Naissance from all over the known galaxy.

But Continent 4-25-AA was one of the continents that was already occupied by what was not only several endangered species from Earth; but they were extinct as well. A singularity, which reached back into the era of the dinosaurs, had brought the creatures to the Naissance, and as Ensigns Rebecca Sisko and LAL observed several of the large animals near a massive lake, Rebecca couldn't help but think about the last time that she and her android friend had visited this place; it had not been by choice.

"It seems so long ago," Rebecca said to LAL. "In fact, it all seems like a dream now."

"Well I can assure you," LAL said back to Rebecca, "it was not a dream. However, as I recall, most of that time I had been deactivated."

"That's right," Rebecca said, "you were. When we arrived, via that singularity in our dorm room back on Earth, you malfunctioned and became inoperable. We had to leave you, right over there," Rebecca pointed to a point in the distance, "but when we came back to get you; you were gone. Nog had reactivated you and had moved you to another location."

"Look at that magnificent creature," LAL suddenly said, as she pointed at a T-Rex in the distance.

"Oh, I remember that one alright," Rebecca said with a smile. "That's the dinosaur that killed Lawrence Thorn (ISSUE #127). If there is such a thing as poetic justice then he got his. That dinosaur chased him for about ten feet, then grabbed him by its mouth, and literally bit him in half." The smile faded from her face. "I suppose no one should have to die like that, even someone like Lawrence Thorn."

Rebecca turned to face LAL, but before she could say anything, LAL place a finger to her lips; the universal gesture for silence.

"We are being watched," LAL said in a whisper. "Someone is watching us from over by that cluster of trees in the near distance; a male."

Rebecca arched her eyebrows in a coy manner.

"Is he cute," she asked LAL.

LAL used her android eyes and zoomed in on the human, and she saw him very well.

"Fascinating," LAL said after a moment.

"What," Rebecca countered with, "who is he and why is he so fascinating?"

LAL looked at her friend.

"I am quite confident that the human male who is observing us from the trees is Curtis Daystrom; but I can't explain it," LAL said, though her vocal tone denoted curiousness.

"You're right," Rebecca agreed "How could it be him. He died on Drobix saving us from those dead re-animated flesh eating humans (yes readers.. Zombies)." (ISSUES #259-260)

"He obviously doesn't want us to know that he is watching us," LAL added. "Perhaps we should head back to the complex and alert your father."

Rebecca thought for a moment, and then a devious look came across her face.

"Where's the fun in that," Rebecca said. "Why don't we play cat and mouse with him."

"Must I remind you," LAL said with seriousness in her voice, "ensign Sisko, we are supposed to be collecting soil samples for the science labs."

"And we are," Rebecca replied. "But we could be dealing with a potential," she searched for the right word, "terrorist threat."

LAL rolled her eyes.

"You do realize that there are giant dinosaurs in the general area," LAL reminded Rebecca. "And I do not believe you wish to be devoured by them."

"Shut-up already," Rebecca said with a laugh. "Now; I will head over to those other trees over there. You pretend to be doing something mundane, and then sneak up on him."

LAL thought for a moment. Her father, Data, would have called such behavior illogical and needless. But Rebecca was LAL's best friend, and sometimes, as LAL had observed, friendly actions rarely were fueled by logic.

Back at the Starfleet complex, Ben and Jake Sisko followed Dr. Julian Bashir down a corridor. They stopped outside a door. Bashir looked back at both Siskos, who he had known for many years. He smiled and then pressed a button next to the door, and then the door open.

Jake entered the room, followed by Ben. Jennifer was looking at a series of images of Earth, with her son, Kaleb, who was in his early 20s, sitting next to her.

"Jennifer," Julian said, "I have two men here who would like to see you."

They had not seen her in 20 years, and both Ben and Jake Sisko were in a state of rapture as she turned to face them. She smiled at both of them.

"Ben," Kasidy said, with a tear coming down her face, "Jake."

She came over to the two of them and hugged them with all her might.

"Jennifer," Ben Sisko said, as she pulled back from the hug, "how are you?"

"Mom," Jake said, before Jennifer could respond. But before he could say anything else, Jake started to cry. He walked over to his mom and she held him close.

Ben Sisko made his way over to the young man, Kaleb, who had stood up as well. Kaleb was the same height that Ben Sisko was. Kaleb did not smile, he just stood motionless.

"Hello there," Ben said to Kaleb, the son he never knew he had until just a few days ago. "I am Benjamin Sisko," Ben told the young man.

Kaleb nodded his head, and bowed his head. Ben reached out, and placed his hand under Kaleb's face and pulled it back up.

"Welcome home, son," Ben said to his son.

They both hugged. And as Jennifer was hugging Jake, and as Ben was hugging Kaleb, Kaleb and Jennifer, unseen, glanced over at each other. And then a smile came across Jennifer's face; and a devious look too. Kaleb, seeing this, smiled as well.

Continued…


	307. The Ever Changing Ebb of Life

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**The Ever Changing Ebb of Life**

_Previously…_

**Star Fleet Command…**

Admiral Jean-Luc Picard and Commodore William T Riker sat in the office of the Secretary of Defense; Jy'lor Paream. He had just told them about a mission he wanted them to take on, but that it would require 25 years to get to an area of space called the Highland Expanse.

"It sounds interesting," Picard said, "but I am far too old for that sort of time constraint."

"So am I," Riker added.

"Yes, on the surface, the time factor involved would seem to preclude sending a conventional crew there," Paream agreed. "However, what if I told you that both of you could be there in," Paream paused for affect, "two hours."

"How is that possible?" Picard quickly came back with.

"It is possible because," Paream thought for a moment, and then he continued, "technically; you're both already there as well are Commander Beverly Crusher, Professor Geordie Leforge, and," Paream paused, "Commander's Worf and Data."

"This is lunacy," Picard said with a laugh. "It's obvious that Commodore Riker and I are still in this room; and on top of that, Lt. Commander's Worf and Data are dead."

Jy'lor Paream headed for the door to his office.

"Come with me gentlemen," Paream said back to them. "I have something to show you."

Picard and Riker shared a weary glance; they had no idea what was happening…and they both had a worried look on their face.

_our story continues..._

They exited the Secretary's office and walked down a long corridor.

"Sir," Picard said, as Jy'lor Paream walked between Picard and Riker, "before we get too much further into this, what about the Borg? Has Star Fleet decided that they are no longer a threat on just the mere words of the Voth; as species we know little about?"

"For the most part, yes," Jy'lor said to Picard. "The information provided by Commander Chakotay is pretty impressive. It includes tactical data to support the Voth claim that they have eliminated the Borg threat."

"Then what about our new friends the Voth," Riker interjected, "have they now become the latest galactic threat, following on the heels of the Borg and the Dominion?"

"I certainly hope not," Paream said with a sigh.

The three men entered a Turbo-lift which took them down several levels. The doors opened and the exited the lift.

"What is this place?" Picard asked.

"One of those levels you're not supposed to know about, Admiral," Paream said with a slight smile.

Picard and Riker shared yet another apprehensive glance.

After entering three more guarded entrances, Secretary Jy'lor Paream stopped just sort of going through the next door.

"I should warn the two of you," Secretary Paream said to Picard and Riker, "that what you are about to see may seem out of the ordinary. However, I will explain everything after that point so that you can understand better."

Picard and Riker simply nodded their heads, and then Secretary Paream spoke a command so as to open the door.

"Secretary Jy'lor Paream," he said, "Code 3167367-RF."

And then the door slid opened. Jy'lor stepped through first, and then Picard and finally Riker.

The two former Enterprise officers surveyed the room and what they saw induced Picard to say just two words.

"Oh my…"

* * *

**In Space...**

The giant Borg super-cube, the one reportedly to be their last surviving vessel, hung in space like a giant ghost ship. Over 25,000 Borg drones had been round aboard the vessel, within its maze of alcove riddled corridors. All of the drones had been transferred to a large mushroom shaped Starbase, which had been towed to the location and given the special designation of Starbase Life Line.

Because the drones came from all over, special arrangements were made for the many governments who had citizens among the drones to retrieve them. Klingons, Romulans, Breen, Vulcans, Cardassians, Bajoran, and several other races, were well represented and ships from those respective powers were granted special permission, if need be, to enter Federation space.

G'oneth piloted this spacecraft through the large doors of Starbase Life Line and landed it at the coordinates provided. Once it was moored, he turned to face Colton MaCahan and Corvana.

"My ship…is your ship… now," Goneth said.

"I think this is all just bullshit," Colton (Leonard McCoy) MaCahan said. "I still can't believe that they are going to make you turn yourself in just to see your wife?"

G'oneth nodded his head.

"It isn't right," Corvana added. "Those cold hearted mean son-of-a-bitch ass wipe mother fu…"

"Hey," Colton cut her off. "I have a bar of soap back there young lady."

She stood up from her seat and went over and hugged the large Gorn whom she had come to know as a friend. She stepped back.

"What about G'orgo," she asked, as she pointed at the child Gorn, G'oneth's offspring, which was sleeping in its specially made aquarium and was nearly the size of an average human's leg.

"My mate…will take him…home." G'oneth said.

Corvana began to cry. She had grown close to the little reptile, feeding it as she had for nearly two weeks.

"You mean I'll never get to see him again?" Corvana cried.

G'oneth looked to Colton; he was unsure of what to say to the broken hearted little girl.

"You will see the little poozer again," Colton assured Corvana, "Because if this big monster or his mate wife say no," Colton said to G'oneth, "I'll still find away to let you see G'orgo anyway." Colton reached for his shotgun and aimed it at G'oneth; though it was just for fun and they all knew it.

"I…will…miss…you," G'oneth said.

"It's kind of strange," Colton said to the Gorn. "I wanted to kill for so long, after what happened. But now, after all this time we've spent together, I feel like I'm losing brother."

At that moment a signal came through.

"This is Starbase Life Line security," a deep voice, "please leave your vessel and submit to the security team. If any resistance is given, it will be met with overwhelming force."

"Assholes," Colton said upon hearing the warning.

Several minutes later, Colton and Corvana watched as the lumbering Gorn, now with shackles around his wrists, was taken away by the security team. Tears came down from Corvana's eyes as she watched the Gorn disappear into the large Starbase inners.

"What now," Corvana asked as she looked up at Colton.

Colton didn't answer, as he lit up a cigar, and Corvana knew why; he was in deep thought. She smiled as she correctly deduced what he was thinking about.

"I know what you're doing," she said in a soft voice. "You're going to try to break him out the brig, aren't you?" she asked in a prodding way.

"Yep," was all Colton said.

A Star Fleet officer, a human male, walked by and shook his head.

"Hey, can't you read," the officer said as he pointed at a sign. "No smoking in the landing bay."

Colton flipped him off. The officer just shook his head and continued walking by.

"Let's get going," Colton said, as he headed toward the ship.

"Wait," Corvana said, "I thought we were going to break G'oneth out of jail," she continued to say as they walked back up the boarding ramp to the ship.

"Are you nuts," Colton told her. "This place is too heavily guarded," he told her. "When they transfer him from this Starbase to one of the penal colonies; that is when we'll make our move."

"Yeah," Corvana added. "We'll shove our shotguns up their buttholes and then we'll blow those mother fuc…"

Colton grabbed her by the arm.

"C'mon," Colton said as they entered the ship, "you've suddenly got an appointment with a bar of Lever soap…little girl!"

The door slid closed…

* * *

**Elsewhere on the same Starbase…**

Chakotay sat in his quarters along with his former Voyager crewmates Captain Tom Paris and Neelix. They were all sitting around a table eating from a large bowl of peanuts.

"I wish the Admiral had stayed," Neelix said to Chakotay. "Your life is hanging in the balance, and she waltzes out of here to go back to that giant globe in space."

"Hey now," Paris told Neelix, "the Naissance is important to Admiral Janeway and she has more important things to do than to just hang around here waiting for some bureaucratic red tape to spin. Besides, I don't think she would have left if there was any doubt as to how they will decide."

Neelix shook his head.

"What do you think," Neelix asked Chakotay. "Do you think they are going to make you serve the rest of the sentence they handed out to the other Chakotay before he broke out of the prison?"

"I don't know; it is reallyup to the brass now to decide," Chakotay said. "I'm actually still upset from finding out that Harry is dead."

Paris nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah," Paris said in a soft tone, "that was pretty bad. The Planet Killer sliced that planet up like it was a block of cheese; the people on that world, including Harry, didn't have a chance." (ISSUE #92)

Chakotay shook his head.

"What will you do with your life if they decide in your favor," Neelix asked.

"I don't know," Chakotay said with a slight chuckle. "I think I might head back to Earth. From what I hear, most of the Native people who left Earth have since returned to Earth to our tribal lands. I think I would like to be part of that."

Captain Tom Paris was about to comment when suddenly the door opened and an officer from the JAG stepped in. His name was Harmon Rabb, and he was a Commander in Star Fleet.

"What's the news," Tom Paris asked.

"I've got good news, and I've go bad news," Commander Rabb said. "Which do you want to hear first?"

Neelix looked over at Chakotay.

"Always go with the good news first, is what my father would say," Neelix said.

Chakotay smiled at Neelix, then looked back Commander Rabb.

"You heard the man," Chakotay said. "Go with the good news first."

"Alright," Commander Rabb said, "Star Fleet has dropped all the charges against you. A few of the admirals believe that you are Chakotay-prime, and should still face the discipline of having been with the Maquis, and they were almost willing to come after you."

"They're right," Chakotay said, "so why don't they make an issue of it?"

"One name," Rabb said, "James T Kirk."

"James T Kirk," Chakotay replied, "what does he have to do with this?"

"I'll tell you why," Tom Paris said, "As you know, the Chakotay that returned with Voyager became a major player in crime. But at the very end, right before he died, he saved Kirk's son."

"And apparently," Rabb added, "Kirk is back on Earth and becoming quite the celebrity. Not to mention the fact that he's pretty much a legend to those old stiffs on the Starfleet council. One of them contacted Kirk and he voiced his support for you."

"So what's the bad news?" Neelix asked.

"You have been summarily expelled from Starfleet," Rabb said flatly to Chakotay. "Now, if you want, we can protest that decision."

"No," Chakotay said, after a moment. "I'd rather consider my time with Starfleet over, but thank you anyway."

Commander Rabb nodded his head, and then left the room.

"Well, if you need a ride to Earth," Paris said, after a moment, "I'm going back there myself and I have the Delta-Flyer 2 with me."

"What about you Neelix?" Chakotay asked. "Where are you headed?"

"I need to be getting back home, actually," Neelix said. "I'm glad that everything has worked out, and I am glad to see you again; Commander."

"I am no longer a Commander in Starfleet," Chakotay said with a smile.

Neelix nodded his head.

"Old habits," Neelix said as he headed toward the door.

"Neelix," Tom Paris said, "I know the Admiral was busy with the issue of the drones before she left, but I am sure she appreciates your efforts concerning Varrim and her father's message."

"Thank you," Neelix said, and then he smiled at his former crewmates and left. But then, on a dime, he came back in. "Then again," Neelix said, "I have never been to Earth. Is Mr. Tuvok there?"

"Actually I believe he is," Tom Paris said. "He was traveling with, of all people, Jim Kirk as I recall. What made you change your mind?"

"Nothing in particular," Neelix said, thought he wasn't telling the truth. There was something else fueling his desire to go to Earth, and he couldn't quite figure it out.

"Then, we should get going," Paris said.

"Tom, before we go; is Annika still here on the station?" Chakotay asked.

"Ummm," Paris thought for a moment, "I think she is, however, due to the stability of her mind being fragile and all, you may want to hold off any idea of meeting up with her."

Suddenly the door chimed, and it slid opened. Chakotay immediately realized he would not have to find Annika Hansen at all; she had found him.

* * *

In space...deep inside the Highland Expanse...the Galaxy Window opened its eye...

continued...


	308. Roar II

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Roar II**

**Previously…**

Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere…on continent 4-25-AA (one of 14,000 continents inside the Naissance)

Ensigns Rebecca Sisko and LAL were assigned to collect soil samples when LAL, using her enhanced eye sight, spotted another young Ensign observing them as he hid behind a tree. ..

LAL looked at her friend.

"I am quite confident that the human male who is observing us from the trees is Curtis Daystrom***; but I can't explain it," LAL said, though her vocal tone denoted curiousness. "He obviously doesn't want us to know that he is watching us," LAL added. "Perhaps we should head back to the complex and alert your father."

Rebecca thought for a moment, and then a devious look came across her face.

"Where's the fun in that," Rebecca said. "Why don't we play cat and mouse with him."

"You do realize that there are giant dinosaurs in the general area," LAL reminded Rebecca. "And I do not believe you wish to be devoured by them."

"Shut-up already," Rebecca said with a laugh. "Now; I will head over to those other trees over there. You pretend to be doing something mundane, and then sneak up on him."

LAL thought for a moment. Her father, Data, would have called such behavior illogical and needless. But Rebecca was LAL's best friend, and sometimes, as LAL had observed, friendly actions rarely were fueled by logic.

After a few minutes had passed, Rebecca began to play her part. She opened up her Tricorder and pretended to be scanning the plants that dotted the landscape. There were several varieties of bushes and flowers, not to mention the thick grass which covered the ground. She had a pretty good idea that the young man, Curtis, whom she had developed a crush on back on Drobix before he supposedly died, was watching, which kind of turned her on. Rebecca was known to have flirted with her academy mates, but always in a playful way. Suddenly her communicator chirped softly.

"I am in position," Lal said, "What should I do next?"

"Great," Rebecca said, "I'm going to innocently look at the bushes directly behind me, and when I do, I want you to throw something, like rock or something like that, and have it land near to him. Hopefully it will startle him and then I'll spot him and then," Rebecca pulled out her phaser, "I'll teach him a lesson," she said in a playful tone.

"Please do not tell me what form of punishment you have in stored for Mr. Daystrom," Lal added, "I don't want to get into any higher level of trouble with your father, as I am sure we will both be when we return to the Star Fleet complex..."

Suddenly the sounds coming from the communicator were garbled.

"Lal," Rebecca said into her communicator, "I can't hear you; what are you saying?"

Rebecca looked up from her position by an outgrowing of bushes and at the area Lal said she was at. And then Rebecca saw a scene straight out of hell! The T-Rex had Lal in its mouth; its powerful mouth. Seeing the T-Rex caused Rebecca to freeze in fear, and then it happen; the T-Rex crunched down, its powerful jaws crushed Lal in half…

Rebecca screamed…

* * *

**Elsewhere…in space…**

Federation Security Bureau agent Ryan Tolbert was still inside of a holding cell. He had been given a simple piece of bread and a plastic cut of water, and even a portable waste unit. But other than that, he had not spoken with Commander Randolph Donnelly in over two days, when he had been left with a cryptic message about his wife and daughter, both of whom had died years ago in a fire set by an escaped criminal.

Tolbert had also used that time to explore his cell, and had come to the simple conclusion that there was no way out but through the nearly invisible energy field that kept him at bay. Suddenly the door slid opened and in walked the man known a Commander Randolph Donnelly.

"Who do you work for," Tolbert asked Donnelly, as the ebony skinned man walked over to the energy barrier.

"The same people you do," Donnelly said with a warm smile.

"Then if that is the case," Ryan said, "why am I being held against my will?"

"Mr. Tolbert," Donnelly began to explain, "While you and I are both charged with the security of the Federation; we have not been given the same charter to see that through."

"Thus," Ryan concluded, "you are not governed by the same rules and restrictions that I am."

"It goes something like that," Donnelly said, as he nodded his head in agreement. "The agents, like your former friend Stephan Cassadine, who as you know brought you here to this place, do not work under the same conditions that you do. They do what they are assigned because I use coercion of all varieties to keep them on the right track. Take for example, Mr. Cassadine."

"I know something of my ex-friend," Ryan interjected. "Stephan was crooked long ago."

"Would it surprise you to know that he became crooked, as you put it, only after his nephew was stricken with a rare virus, and the only known cure was in my possession?" Donnelly asked. "After that, he willingly joined my cause without further coercion, but none the less, that is how he started. These days he just does what I ask without question; like retrieving you from Dan'gin."

"Why," Ryan asked. "Why did you send him for me?"

"Because I need you to do something for me Agent Ryan Tolbert," Donnelly explained. "However, let me show you the carrot I am dangling for you."

"Don't bother; I believe you have already alluded to my wife and child, who died years ago," Ryan said in a soft tone.

"It's one thing for me to tell you they are alive, it's another to show you," Donnelly said with a slight chuckle.

Donnelly reached into his pocket and took out a device and pressed a button. Shackles suddenly appeared around Ryan Tolbert's wrists and then the energy barrier disappeared and Donnelly motioned for Ryan to leave the cell. Donnelly also held a phaser, and kept it aimed at Ryan.

Moments later they were walking down a corridor and then they entered a darkened room. And then, at the far end of the room, Ryan Tolbert saw two life pods. He walked over to pods and looked at the occupants inside.

"Angela," Ryan Tolbert said at seeing his wife. Then he looked at the other Pod and saw his 9 year old daughter. "Jan," Ryan said as he looked at his daughter.

Neither his daughter nor wife had aged at tall since he had last seen them seven years earlier.

"They're clones, or some other trick," Ryan said as he looked at them.

"No, this isn't a trick," Donnelly said after a moment. "You see, agent Tolbert, "I knew back then, seven years ago, that I would need your services someday and I made arrangements to get them so that I could use them to make you do something for me."

"But the reports," Ryan interjected.

"Come now, Ryan," Donnelly countered, "I shouldn't have to explain everything to you, and besides, you don't have the time."

Ryan took one last look at his wife, and then turned around to face Donnelly.

"What is it you want me to do," Ryan asked in a soft voice.

"Over the past few decades," Commander Randolph Donnelly began to explain, "certain individuals have cheated death and walk among us now as if nothing ever happened. I want you to help me eliminate them. I want you to eliminate them because their very presence could jeopardize everyone, everywhere."

Ryan Tolbert could deduce where the conversation was head.

"You mean Jim Kirk," Ryan told Donnelly.

"Among others, yes," Donnelly said, as he nodded his head. "Colton MaCahan is another. As I am sure you well know he is actually Leonard McCoy. He doesn't know who he is, but he recently existed outside of time on a duplicate Starship Enterprise. The rest of the crew of that ship has since been eliminated and now he is the only one left."

Ryan thought for a moment.

"You have all these resources at your disposal," Ryan said, as he motioned at room around them, "why don't you just eliminate Kirk and McCoy yourself; why do you need me?"

"There is another interest at play," Donnelly explained, "and I don't know who they are. Suffice to say, Kirk and McCoy, and all the others, have someone protecting them. So the only way I can get to Kirk and McCoy, and Spock for example, is to do it with someone they trust. You have been part of Kirk's inner circle ever since you helped him save his son from Chakotay all those months ago on Dan'gin."

"Spock doesn't exist in this time due to a time anomaly," Ryan corrected Donnelly. "Why him?"

"You're right, the former Ambassador, Spock, has lived a normal life in the here and now after having lived the standard trajectory of a mere mortal like us; thus I am not targeting him." Donnelly agreed. "However, his unborn child is not quite as ordinary since its mother, Elizabeth Pike, is the daughter of a man who died over a hundred and forty years ago; Christopher Pike. That would make Elizabeth very old, and yet, she at best looks to be in her late thirties. She isn't normal, thus a conclusion can be made that her child isn't normal either."

"Are you going to force me to kill a mother and her unborn child," Ryan asked quickly. "I won't do it."

"Don't worry," Donnelly said, "I have someone else in mind for that task. I just want you to take care of Kirk and McCoy."

"And by taking care of them, you mean you want me to kill them," Ryan concluded. "And if I don't," he said as he looked back at the pods containing his wife and daughter, "they die instead."

Donnelly nodded his head.

"I like your directness," Donnelly added with a smile.

Ryan went over to the two pods to see his wife and daughter again. Was it really that easy? Kill James Kirk and Leonard McCoy, and then his wife and child would live again?

* * *

**The planet Dan'gin…**

Agent Stephan Cassadine had arrived on the southern most continent of the lawless world. Flawlessly He landed his private craft down through a thick outgrowth of trees. As it turned out, Cassadine was a married man; his wife lived back on Earth. But because he spent so much time in space, and had desires for companionship, he had secretly come into possession of a cabin on Dan'gin where he would routinely arrange to have a prostitute, or two, waiting for him. Just before arriving at Dan'gin he had arranged for two prostitutes, one male one female, to meet him at the cabin. As he powered down his craft, he saw that the light inside the cabin was on which meant that very soon he would be in bed with the two prostitutes.

Stephan stepped out of the space craft and headed over to the cabin and went inside. He was pleased to find a naked blond woman, he preferred blonds, on the bed. Several sex toys were spread across the bed.

"I see you came prepared," Stephan said to the woman. "Where is our friend?"

She pointed at the door to the lavatory.

"He's freshening up," the woman said in a sexy voice. "I want to watch the two of you first," she added with a smile.

"Hooo ha," Stephan said with a wild smile, "I can't wait," he added as he began to take off his clothes.

The door to the lavatory opened and a bald man wearing a trench coat stepped out. Stephan looked over at the man.

"Wow, I've never hooked up with a bald man before," Stephan said with a sinister smile, "this ought to be hot," he added as he stood back up, totally naked. "Let's get it on; I need this! Take of that damn jacket and show papa what you've got!"

The bald man's face had a cold stone look to it.

"Where is he," the bald man asked, "where is Ryan Tolbert."

It was at that moment that Stephan Cassadine realized he was in trouble. He instinctively reached for his slacks, where he kept a small hand phaser, but the bald man opened up his trench coat and pulled out a phaser pistol of his own.

"Who the F—k are you," Stephan demanded.

"My name is Hank Algren," Hank said. "You and I work for the same team, but, the division I work for is so classified, by my even telling you about it means that I will have to kill you, which is the point of all of this."

"Look," Stephan said, "I was following orders when I apprehended Tolbert."

"Who gave you that order?" Hank asked as he stared back at the naked man.

"A man named Randolph Donnelly," Stephan answered.

"I pretty much figured as much," Hank said. "But you've been working for him for years, haven't you? I already know about the leverage he used against you at the start; your nephew's illness. But you've kept on working for him, and now it's going to get you killed."

Stephan looked over at the naked blond woman, who was watching the scene from over on the bed.

"You won't kill me in front of her," Stephan said with a smile.

Hank snapped his fingers and then the blond woman disappeared.

"Hologram," Hank said to Stephan, with his own wicked smile. "Pretty hot one too. Now listen, Stephan, you will not leave this cabin alive. The choice as to how you will all depend on your candidness. And don't try to lie because," Hank added with another sinister smile, "I am a good judge of character. Now, get on the bed," Hank said.

Stephan Cassadine did as instructed and got on the bed. The moment he did, two shackles appeared at all for corners of the bed, and they locked around Stephan's ankles and wrists.

"What the f—k is this," Stephan demanded. "Are you some sort of sick f—k?"

Hank shook his head and then he pressed a button. A vat opened in the ceiling and a clear liquid dumped out all over Stephan's naked body.

"What the hell are you doing; and what the hell is this stuff!" Stephan yelled. "What is that smell?"

"It's called gasoline," Hank replied. "It was once a precious commodity, now, on words like Dan'gin, it is used to make all sorts of cheap illegal narcotics. In this specific case," Hank said, as he came closer to the bed, "it is highly flammable and will provide you a very painful death as flames consume your body. Where is Ryan Tolbert?"

"I don't know," Stephan replied.

"Bulls—t," Hank said. He took an old style lighter and lit it, and held it above Stephan's body. "I will only ask this one more time; where is Ryan Tolbert."

Stephan knew he was powerless to escape. He knew he had to come clean.

"Alright," Stephan said, "I brought him to the planet Inora," Stephan replied. "It's located in nearby system. Take me with you," Stephan added, "I can help you get past the security measures."

"No," Hank said, satisfied that Stephan had spoken the truth. "I'd rather see you burn in hell."

"Hell?" Stephan asked with a laugh, "that's just a myth for stupid people."

"Perhaps you can find out and let me know," Hank said as he lit the lighter and dropped it down on Stephan's naked stomach.

Instantly a flame ignited, and a blood curdling scream came from Stephan's mouth. Hank had seen enough, and left the cabin. As he stepped inside his own private space craft, Hank watched as the cabin became engulfed in flames.

Moments later, Hank piloted his craft into space and then he set course for Inora.

* * *

The planet Gamma Trianguli VI…(TOS third season episode "THE APPLE" took place on this world. And this happens to be the world where we first met S'vath (Spock's son) and his wife Amanda.)

The Federation sociologist had arrived for their annual checkup on the natives of the world. As promised by Jim Kirk over a hundred and twenty years earlier, the natives of the world were looked on to make sure they got proper medical care and nutrition requirements.

Another Federation team was manning the science post which was located three miles from the tribe. The ten-person team was there to analyze the green crystals which had been sprouting all over the world ever since Kirk had destroyed the Vaal computer which had controlled the planet's atmosphere, as well as its people.

_(Author's note; readers…way back in this story it was established that an alternate version of Kirk's infant son, Mathew, ended up in the past 50 thousand years ago and was a powerful god like entity known as Meh'tahq. To make a long story short, only the combined powers of Vaal and the Wormhole aliens, as well as the Q, were able to prevent Meh'tahq from taking over the universe. How Kirk's son, who was an adult in his alternate form, had even gotten to the past was a mystery…but it's a mystery we are heading toward with this current plot)_

Unknown to either Federation science team, another ship other than the one which had brought them to the distant world, was in orbit of the planet as well. It was several times larger than the Federation science vessel; it was a Jem'Hadar battle cruiser and it was fitted with a phase/cloak which rendered the ship invisible.

Jem'Hadar soldiers manned various posts on the bridge of the giant vessel. They all attended to their duties as First Imak'Ulvay entered the bridge. To the crew of the battle cruiser, the war with the Federation had never ended and they were still on a top-secret mission. None of the regular soldiers knew what the mission was, but First Imak'Ulvay did. He left the bridge and entered the office of Keevan-9, their Vorta leader.

"Well," Keevan-9 asked, as he stared out the window at the world below. "Do tell me that the crystals are down there."

"They are," Imak'Ulvay replied. "There is a large deposit of the crystals near the Federation science base. If we go down there to get them, it will give up our position and jeopardize our mission."

Keevan-9 shifted his gaze from looking at the planet below, over to where Imak'Ulvay was standing.

"Remember your place, First;" Keevan-9 said with an air of arrogance in his voice, "I alone will determine the risks we face. Your only reason to live, aside from worshiping the Founders, is to do what I demand."

"Understood," Imak replied.

"Good, I am glad we have settled that. As for the crystals; prepare your men to go down there to get them," Keevan-9 instructed.

"What about the Federation teams?" Imak asked.

"Oh, they won't be a problem," Keevan-9 said with a sneer. "Once your men return with the crystals then we will simply use this mighty vessel and destroy the planet."

"It will alert Star Fleet," Imak countered.

"Yes it will, but that is why we destroyed that Romulan vessel a year ago in the Beta-Quadrant after we had taken their weapon systems," Keevan-9 explained. We will now use them to so as to cast blame on the Romulans which will provide a diversion and give us the time we need to see to the creation of the Meh'tahq."

"And to do that we need to open an Iconian gateway on Earth," Imak asked.

"Yes," Keevan-9 said. "The human, Collin Moore, will soon play his part in all of this. Yet for that to work, we need those crystals. The infant and the gateway are both on Earth already; we just need the crystals."

Imak nodded and then he left the Vorta's office.

* * *

On Earth, in tribal lands of the Native near New Mexico, a bald eagle sat high upon a nestling of trees. The bird kept a watchful eye on the children at play in the village below. The bird especially kept an eye on a toddler named Mathew Kirk.

continued


	309. Out of Body

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**(all new VIDEO OPENING Credits can be found at URL located at my profie)**

**Out of Body**

**Previously…**

_Star Fleet Command; Earth_

_Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream, Admiral Jean-Luc Picard and Commodore William T Riker entered a Turbo-lift which took them down several levels. The doors opened and they exited the lift._

_"What is this place?" Picard asked. "I've never seen it before."_

_"This is one of those levels you're not supposed to know about, Admiral," Paream said with a slight smile._

_Picard and Riker shared yet another apprehensive glance._

_After entering three more guarded entrances, Secretary Jy'lor Paream stopped just sort of going through the next door._

_"I should warn the two of you," Secretary Paream said to Picard and Riker, "that what you are about to see may seem out of the ordinary. However, I will explain everything after that point so that you can understand better."_

_Picard and Riker simply nodded their heads, and then Secretary Paream spoke a command so as to open the door._

_"Secretary Jy'lor Paream," he said, "Code 3167367-RF."_

_And then the door slid opened. Jy'lor stepped through first, and then Picard and finally Riker._

_The two former Enterprise officers surveyed the room and what they saw induced Picard to say just two words._

_"Oh my…"_

**OUR STORY CONTINUES…**

What they saw amazed them. It was a medical lab of some sort, and in the distance, was the strangest sight of all at the far end of room.

"Is that…" Picard began to say when the object, an animal, made its customary sound.

Moooooo….Moooooo

"That's a cow," Riker said, with a wide smile, to Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream, "a dairy cow I believe."

"You are quite right, and her name is Gene," a man's voice said from the other side of the cow. The man stood up and he was wearing a white lab jacket, large goggle over his eyes, plastic gloves and he was holding a bucket. "I was squeezing her big boobies, or utters if you will, but I like to say boobies. In fact, when I milk her, I sometimes get an erection."

Picard cast a suspicious gaze over at Paream.

"Sir," Picard began to say, "Why is there a cow in at Star Fleet command."

"Dr. Bishop wanted a cow," Paream said, "so we got him a cow."

Riker nodded his head and laughed.

"Dr. Walter Bishop I believe," Riker said with a knowing smile. "Admiral Janeway's message to me about Annika Hansen being found alive and well after being abducted from my cabin in Big Bear mentioned something about a Dr. Walter Bishop being involved with the whole Borg/Romulan affair recently."

"Correct; but if I recall my history," Picard said, as he stared at Bishop, clad in his lab coat, goggles and holding a bucket, "you were involved with questionable medical practices on children decades ago. Dr. Beverly Crusher told me about you long ago sir; I despised your name thereafter."

"Yes," Walter Bishop admitted with a soft voice. "But I assure you, and your friend there, that I am not that man any longer. I'm sure you will see that I am no longer involved with questionable medical practices; on children at least."

Picard shook his head, and then he looked at Secretary Paream.

"What is the purpose of all this?" Picard asked in a nearly demanding tone of voice.

"Dr. Bishop," Paream said, "can you show these gentlemen why they are here?"

"Certainly," Bishop said as he put the bucket down and removed his gloves and goggles. He came down from the small stable setting and motioned for Picard and Riker to come over to a strange looking device.

"Now," Walter explained, "on the outside this appears to be your standard 8 foot tall shelf with a secured door on the outside. The twisting organic wiring you see threading in and out of it probably is a clue to that this is more than just a shelf; and you're right, it is far more than that."

"Let me guess," Riker said with a smile, "there's something inside of it."

"Quite right Commodore Riken," Walter replied. "I see that your grade school education is paying off quite handsomely."

"It's Riker, not Riken," Riker added quickly.

"Yes, of course," Walter said. "I guess the simplest thing for me to do is to simply just open it."

Picard did not like the sideshow that was happening before his eyes. Cows, mad scientists; it did seem to wrinkle his feathers.

"That would seem to be," Picard said softly, but with an edge of irritation in his tone, "the shortest course to getting us back to reality in this situation."

"I dare say, Admiral; when you and Commodore Ripken see what is inside this device of mine," Walter said in a cryptic tone, "your perception of reality might take a dark twist."

"Really," Riker said, who unlike Picard; enjoyed the strangeness going on around them. "And doctor; its Riker not Ripken."

Dr. Walter Bishop pressed a button and the door on what was essentially just a large shelf slid open and revealed a very intriguing sight; brains. There were six of them, and not all of them were human. Four of the six were obviously human, but the other two were different. One of the other two was definitely organic, and slightly larger than the four human brains. The sixth brains resembled the construct what was inside of Data's head. But there was no mystery as to who the brains belonged to.

Each of the six brains was contained inside of its own stasis field, and was levitating inside of it. But, more specifically, there were six different computer devices operating one of each of the brains, and they were labeled as following; PICARD-RIKER-B CRUSHER-WORF-DATA-LA FORGE.

"Mr. Secretary," Picard said in a disgusted tone, "what is the meaning of this. I will assume that these are what they appear to be, but how did they get into Star Fleet's possession?"

Before Secretary Paream could respond, Riker cut in.

"Even if you managed to get these replicas of our brains," Riker stated, "how did you get these two," Riker said as he pointed at Data's and Worf's stasis fields. "Data died during the ordeal with Shinzon, and Worf died in an explosion on Deep Space Nine (earlier plotline of this story)."

Paream smiled at the two men.

"Lots of questions, and as I said earlier gentlemen, right before we entered this lab, I would explain after you saw all of this," Paream explained

"Does this have anything to do with the ship approaching the Highland Expanse?" Picard asked.

"Yes," Walter answered before Paream could. "It has everything to do with that ship," Walter continued. And then he looked directly at Paream. "Stop pussyfooting around and just tell them; or I will."

"Is this to say that he," Picard said, referring to Walter Bishop, "is somehow involved with this?"

"Yes, I am afraid so," Paream said. "Come with me."

The two Star Fleet officers followed Paream into a conference room which was located area above the main lab floor. He motioned for Picard and Riker to sit, as he, Paream, sat at the head of the table.

"I will do my best, but what I am about to tell you happened during my predecessor's tenure." Paream began to explain. "As you know, the events surrounding the Highland's disappearance occurred during the time between the 1701-D's destruction and your assuming command of the 1701-E."

"Alright," Riker said, "but we were not involved with the Highland in any capacity."

"You are correct," Paream replied, "at least, that is what you recall."

"What do you mean by that," Picard asked, in a low tone.

"In fact," Paream said directly to Picard, "you and your crew were prepped for a mission that would not actually be initiated until another ten years from now," Paream went on to say.

"You want us to believe," Picard interjected, "that we allowed ourselves to be part of this nightmarish scenario? That we let you make cloned copies of our brains so that we could be part of some cloak and dagger fool's errand?" Picard shook his head. "I want you to put a stop to this right now."

"Admiral Picard," Paream said, after a moment had passed. "You did not enter this mission voluntarily at all. At that time, fifteen years ago, you were coerced into it, as were the others, by Section-31. In the here and now, that division has been permanently shutdown. But back then it was a very powerful wing of Star Fleet security. They had their hands into everything at the time, and even long before, in the name of Federation security. You both know that they were responsible for the virus that nearly destroyed the Founders. Even closer to home, they used coercion to make Thomas Riker steal the Defiant so as to gain knowledge about the Obsidian Order's intentions."

"What did they do to us," Riker asked; even his jovial mood from before had soured.

"Apparently, about a year or so after the NCC-1701-D's destruction," Paream said, "the two of you, as well as the android Data, and Klingon Worf, and fellow humans Beverly Crusher and Geordi La Forge, all got together on Starbase-147. You had gone there for a conference concerning the tactical threat the Jem'Hadar posed to Earth and other worlds in the Federation. It was there at Starbase-147 when Commander Sloan, Section-31's most active operative at the time, approached you and used his subtle coercion techniques to get the DNA samples, as well as an exact copy of Data's positronic-Construct."

"What possible information did he have," Picard came back with, "that would make us capitulate so easily?"

"In your case," Paream replied softly, "as well as Beverly Crusher's, he had come into possession of your son; Wesley Crusher."

Riker looked over at Picard with a look of disbelief about the news he had just learned. Before Riker could say anything, Paream continued.

"In your case, Commodore Riker," Paream went on to say, "if you will recall, your wife became very ill around that time after having been bit by a rare insect while the two of you visited Risa."

"That's right," Riker said. "She nearly died but a rare anti-toxin was found." Riker paused and snapped his fingers. "We were lucky."

"No, it wasn't just luck. The anti-toxin was always in Section-31's possession," Paream said. "As it turns out, so was the insect that bit her in the first place."

"So you're telling me the insect bite wasn't just a deadly accident," Riker said, with anger growing in his voice.

Picard cut in.

"So, one by one," Picard began to deduce, "this Commander Sloan found a weakness for all of us and exploited it so that we would take part in a mission that wouldn't take place for twenty-five years."

"Except it's only been fifteen years," Riker said.

"That's only because," Paream said, "the ship was able to cut ten years off of its travel time due to the discovery of another stable wormhole while on the way. The ship, the USS Hauck, is due to arrive at the expanse in three days."

"So our DNA was used to create these cloned brains," Picard went on to deduce. "So I assume that the rest of our bodies are on that ship. But even if that is the case, then what makes you think we will want to have any part of this, considering our involvement 15 years was against our will in the first place?"

Secretary Paream pressed a button and activated a monitor. The face of Commander Sloan appeared on the screen.

"My name is Commander Sloan," Sloan began to say. "I realize that by the time the USS Hauck reaches the Highland Expanse, I might well be dead."

"And he is," Paream injected quickly.

"I admit to using less than ethical means to get the crew I have assembled," Sloan went on to say. "However, the facts are these; the USS Highland's destruction has set into motion a string of events that, for the Federation's survival, we must investigate. As I make this recording, the cloned bodies of Picard, Riker, Crusher, La Forge and Worf have been placed aboard the ship, as well as the android Lore's body with an exact copy of Data's positronic-Construct.

I can only hope that these individuals are still alive and operational when the Hauck reaches the Expanse. I have set into motion several protocols that will assure completion of the mission even if I am no longer alive when the mission is engaged. If any attempt is made to stop or interfere with the mission's goal, exploring the area inside the Highland Expanse, these defense protocols will initiate. Trust me; you do not want to test those protocols; they will cost many thousands of lives."

"He's bluffing," Riker added.

"I wish he wasn't," Paream came back with. "Do remember the star liner that was destroyed near the Corvalla system years ago?"

"According to reports," Picard replied, "she was destroyed by Breen vessels during the War."

"That was just a cover story," Paream said, after a moment. "That ship was destroyed by a bomb. Sloan had sent Star Fleet command a coded message warning us that an event of that magnitude would occur two days after the message was received. Every two years since that time, other events have happened with similar warnings."

"How are these warnings sent, if," Riker said, "Commander Sloan is dead?"

"For all his faults, ruthless being one of them," Paream said to Riker, "he was very capable. But we believe someone, alive in the here and now, is helping his cause. We just received a coded message, sent to us in the same manner Sloan had sent his messages, warning us that if the mission isn't completed within the next few weeks, a series of anti-matter bombs will be detonated within Romulan territory, including on their home world of Romulas."

"He's willing to risk an intergalactic war with the Romulans, just to see this mission through?" Picard asked.

"Yes," Paream stated softly. "So you see," Paream went on to say, "We need you, and the others, to finish the mission."

Picard and Riker looked at each other, and then Picard looked at Paream.

"What is it we're supposed to do?" Picard asked.

Paream nodded his head, and then pressed a button on his console.

"Dr. Bishop," Paream said into the device, "can you come in here please?"

* * *

**Elsewhere..in space**

The Borg super-cube, though no longer operational, was still a very ominous sight. With all the drones removed from the large vessel, Star Fleet teams had arrived to begin the process of tearing down the ship.

Near to the super-cube's position was the mushroom shaped star base that was tasked with overseeing to the needs of the drones that had been removed from the super-cube. With most of the processing nearly completed, the crew of the star base was slowly being reassigned to other billets throughout Star Fleet.

Deanna Troi sat in her office aboard the star base. She had been in command of the processing of the drones with advice from Annika Hansen on how to do just that. Annika had departed the previous day, with her friend Fredric Thorn, when the last of the drones had been processed.

Deanna was packing her things, and preparing to leave on the next transport when suddenly a call came in.

"Commander Troi," the voice said. "There is a medical emergency in the sickbay. Your presence is required.

"On my way," Troi said.

Deanna could only wonder what the situation was due to the fact that only a skeleton crew remained aboard the temporary star base.

Moments later, Commander Deanna Troi entered the sickbay and found that there was only one patient. A little girl was standing next to the patient.

The station's doctor, an aged Andorian male name Tahnj, greeted Deanna when she entered sickbay.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice," Dr. Tahnj said in a pleasant tone, "We have a bit of a solution on our hands."

"You mean a mystery," Troi corrected him.

"Yes, I suppose you are right," Tahnj said. "In any event, he claims to be Leonard McCoy. I checked the database and…"

Troi rushed past the doctor and over to the beside of the patient. Instead of seeing the Leonard McCoy from how she remembered him from history texts, instead she saw a man in a black leather jacket, with a five o'clock shadow, with the distinct smell of alcohol on his clothing and breath. Troi looked to the little girl.

"Do you know this man?" Troi asked the girl.

"Yes," Corvana said. She was obviously sad. "His name is Colton MaCahan."

Deanna remembered being told by her husband, William Riker, about the existence of a duplicate of McCoy.

"What happened?" Troi asked.

Corvana sniffled, and dried her eyes, and then she spoke.

"Two months ago he saved me from my father," Corvana said, with pride in her voice. "And then today we were going to try and break Goneth out of jail but then last night he collapsed," Corvana said, as she held Colton's hand.

Troi looked to Dr. Tahnj who then handed her a datapad with information on it. Troi read how Colton (Leonard McCoy) MaCahan had suddenly shown up at Starbase-147 two weeks earlier. James T Kirk and Spock confirmed that Colton was indeed McCoy, with Spock going so far as to sharing a mind-meld with the duplicate McCoy. Yet, even when confronted with the truth, McCoy still professed to be Colton MaCahan and was allowed to leave.

"How is he," Troi asked the Andorian doctor.

"I have stabilized his condition," Dr. Tahnj replied, "However; the scans seem to indicate much activity inside of his cerebral-cortex. I am no expert on Vulcan mind-melds, but it is almost as if this man is enduring one right now."

And then, without warning, Colton MaCahan opened his eyes.

"Colton," Corvana said with a broad smile, "you're alive!"

Colton looked over at the little girl, but there was a look of confusion on his face.

"I'm sorry little girl," McCoy said, "I think you have me confused with someone else," and then he looked over at Deanna Troi. "My name is Leonard McCoy."

* * *

**Earth…the tribal lands of the Native Americans.**

The entrance to the tribal lands was located in an area known as Trujan New Mexico. Even in the late 24th century Trujan resembled an old desert town.

A man walked toward the entrance, and was holding an old beaten up gray colored knapsack. Inside of the sack was everything the man owned; his name was Chakotay. The gate opened and Chakotay stepped through and he was greeted by the chief of the native lands; Limanu.

"Welcome home," Limanu said. "When we heard that the great Chakotay was coming back to Earth, I decided to greet you here."

"You needn't go through the effort," Chakotay said. "I wish only to take my place among our people."

Limanu smiled.

"And you will; but as the hero you are," Limanu said.

The two men turned and made their way over to two horses. Limanu climbed up on his horse and watched as Chakotay began to strap his knapsack onto his horse's saddle. It was then that Limanu's communicator chirped.

"Go ahead," Limanu said.

Limanu was wearing an earpiece, and listened as the person on the other end spoke. The person told Limanu that his fiancé, Kymia, had been abducted. And if Limanu ever wanted to see her alive again, he would await new instructions. Limanu was warned that if he tried to get help or let anyone else know; it would lead to the instant death of Kymia.

"Is there something wrong," Chakotay asked as he mounted his horse and saw the look of concern on Limanu's face.

"No," Limanu said softly as smiled back at Chakotay. "Nothing at all…"

Continued…


	310. On The Other Side of Me

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**On The Other Side of Me**

* * *

**Earth...Kirk's ranch**

Four horses galloped at full speed, and in their waske was a whirlwind of dust which was thrown about upon the flat land. That is was James T Kirk saw as he looked out about the land that was now his. To his left stood his friend Spock, and to his right stood Spock's son S'vath. All three of them wore cowboy hats, blue jeans, casual shirts, and stood next to wooden fence which stretched out in either distance. S'vath looked over at his father and smiled. Spock looked over at his son and arched an eyebrow; still unaccustomed to seeing his only son smile.

"Father," S'vath said, "I can't believe I'm about to say this, but you look pretty good with a black cowboy hat on your head. It brings out a whole new side of you that I am sure would have made grandfather's blood turn into bright blue boiling Romulan ale."

"He's right," Jim Kirk added. "You ought to think about wearing that cowboy on a regular basis," Jim said with a chuckle. "I have more than enough room here."

The men looked out as the horses had stopped to graze on a throw of hay which Kirk had put out upon the field earlier in morning. It was his fifth day living on the ranch; his fifth day of peaceful content.

"I envy you Jim," S'vath said. "This is a wonder place," he added.

Kirk took a deep breath, and looked about the near distance.

"Yes it is indeed. I haven't been here since, well, a long time ago," Jim replied. "My uncle spent every penny he had on this place, and I remember coming here many times and taking out a horse to ride. It was a much simpler time back then."

"So I guess you intend to stay here for the foreseeable future?" S'vath prodded.

"God willing; yes," Jim said with a nod of his head. "And I already know that you," he said to S'vath, "have been looking into finding a place of your own nearby. Now gentlemen," he said, as he looked over at Spock, "I know when I'm being coddled and well," he smiled, "I understand why. But I assure you that I'm perfectly able to take care of myself."

"Jim," Spock said, after a moment. "Ever since the other Kirk was discovered to be alive on Bajor; his life, and now your life, has not seen much rest."

Kirk was about to respond when S'vath cut in.

"Jim; don't deny it…my father's right," S'vath interjected. "From the abduction of Sisko's daughter, and then the Diamond ship caper, which fed into the reactivation of the Planet Killer, the war of the Gods, fighting dinosaurs as well as Trelane and Gary Mitchell in the Naissance, Sybok, Dahme's shooting, Scotty's death, Mathew's abduction, Myran's death and not to mention that craziness with Satangkai just recently; you have to admit that events of all proportions seem to follow you around on a regular basis."

"That may be true," Kirk said. "But I don't expect you to babysit me on a regular basis either," Jim told them both. "However," he added, "since I know your father won't let you stop; why don't you and Amanda and the kids move in with me? In fact," Kirk said to Spock, "you and Elizabeth should move in too. I have a ten room mansion, a large ranch, and I'm going to lose my mind if I'm left here alone."

S'vath looked to Spock.

"What about it dad," S'vath said. "Elizabeth loves it here on Earth. She's actually in Yucca Valley visiting with relatives of hers while learning of Chris Pike's family history. Why not let her take the time to explore the past."

"It would be," Kirk added, "the logical thing to do. So stay here on Earth, stay here on this ranch and let that child your wife is pregnant with be the first person in your family line born on Earth. I think your mother would find that touching."

There was a pause in the conversation as Spock thought it over.

"I would of course refuse to ride horses," Spock added. "My last attempt was not pleasing."

"Oh hell Spock;" Kirk said, "don't compare my horses down there on that field with those runts we rode up on Nimbus III all those years ago. Those," Kirk said, pointing at the four horses, "are majestic beasts."

Suddenly, Kirk heard a voice calling to him. It was Amanda's, S'vath's wife.

"You have a subspace message coming in," Amanda said as she approached Kirk and the others. "It's Deanna Troi."

"Wasn't she part of Picard's crew?" S'vath asked, as they headed back to the ranch house.

"In fact," Spock replied, "She is also married to Commodore William T Riker," Spock explained.

"I wonder what she wants," S'vath pondered rhetorically.

"Let's find out," Kirk said as they entered the large ranch house.

They walked into the main den where a subspace console and screen were located, and the beautiful face of Commander Deanna Troi smiled back at them.

"It is an honor to speak with you sir," Deanna said with a broad smile.

"The pleasure is ours," Kirk replied, "what can I help you with Commander?" Kirk asked.

"Well actually," Troi said, "I have someone here who would like to speak to you," Troi replied with a slight chuckle.

Suddenly, coming into view, was a man that Kirk, Spock and S'vath immediately recognized.

"Hello there Colton," Kirk said. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"_Actually Jim," McCoy replied with a look of friendship on his face, "it's me; Bones."_

Kirk looked to Spock.

"It is possible," Spock said to Kirk. "His memories were still in his mind when I initiated the mind-meld with him. He just could not mentally build a bridge to them."

"_Hey you two," McCoy said, "I'm the doctor here, so if you don't mind, I'll handle the medical side of the house. And trust me when I tell the two of you that my mind was injured; physically," McCoy told them. "It happened when I…came home."_

"Bones," Kirk began to say, "exactly how is it you are here?"

"_I could ask the same of you, Jim," McCoy said. "I can understand Spock being alive in this time, due to the lifespan of a Vulcan, but you look like you've only aged twenty-years in the past 130 years or so. But listen to me first," McCoy added before Kirk could respond. "I have existed, as has the rest of crew, on the Enterprise. If I'm here, then they are still alive and hopefully we can save them too."_

"That doesn't make any sense," Kirk said to McCoy. "Bones; the Enterprise was destroyed by Klingons at Genesis."

"_Yeah, Commander Troi has already given me a brief history lesson," McCoy said, after a moment. "But I am also telling the both of you that a duplicate Enterprise was created when we escaped the Tholian web all those years ago. The Enterprise you both returned on, and the one I was on."_

"So you're telling us," S'vath said, before Spock or Kirk could respond, "That two sets of crews were created."

"_I'm sorry," McCoy said to S'vath, "who are you?"_

"He's Spock's son," Kirk said with a smile.

McCoy looked directly at Spock, and then shook his head.

"_You never cease to amaze me, Spock," McCoy said in a wry tone._

"Nor I myself," Spock admitted.

"_Well anyway, your son is right," McCoy went on to say, "two sets of crews were created, but only one Kirk since, at the time this all happen, you were in between the Defiant and the Enterprise."_

"The energy of our phasing through space, combined with the energy put off by the Tholian web," Spock explained, "must have created the duplicate Enterprise, which I suspect has existed outside of the space time continuum. Time did not pass for those on that Enterprise."

"You're right about that two," McCoy added.

"Bones," Kirk said, falling back into the old habit of using his friend's nickname, "we have known of your existence here in this time for several months. You lost your memory and believed yourself to be a smuggler named Colton MaCahan."

McCoy nodded.

"Yes," McCoy said softly, "I have been made aware of that as well. Jim, would you mind if I returned to Earth and met up with you and Spock. I'd like to do whatever can be done to reach the others. You can't imagine what living inside of forever is like."

Deanna Troi came back into view.

"Sir," Troi said, "I have already contacted Star Fleet and as it turns out, one of the ships here is heading back to Earth in four more hours."

"If you could do that I would be very appreciative," Kirk said to Troi.

Troi smiled.

"Are you kidding," Troi said with a chuckle, "All I have to do is tell them that Dr. Leonard McCoy would like to visit James T Kirk and Spock on Earth. That would nearly part the red-sea."

Kirk smiled back at Commander Deanna Troi as the screen went blank.

"What do you think father," S'vath asked. "Does that explain his being in this time?"

"It could," Spock said, after a moment. "However; finding the ship and the others aboard her will not be so easy."

"Well, I know one thing;" Kirk said, "it seals the deal. With Bones coming here, and the fact he has nowhere else to live, you and Elizabeth have to stay here at my ranch; I won't take no for an answer."

"I suppose you are right," Spock said as he began to look for his communicator. "I will inform Elizabeth of our plans," Spock as, as he found the communicator and headed out of the house for the privacy of calling his wife on the device.

S'vath looked at Kirk.

"I think this is great," S'vath said to Kirk. "I have never seen the three of you together," S'vath said with nostalgia on his mind.

"Bones is right though," Kirk said. "The three of us; your father and I and McCoy, are from three different points of time."

"Ahhhh, so what," S'vath said, with awe in his voice. "I think having the three of you together again is all that will matter. Besides; I'd give anything to see McCoy beat my father in a debate over the logical use of emotions."

Kirk listened as S'vath went on and on about the legendary threesome of Kirk, Spock and McCoy. But the fact was, his mind kept turning to the image of Sarah Moore. On the night of the party, when Kirk had first arrived, Ms. Moore had become so honored to meet him that she was crying. Kirk had done the gentlemanly thing and had used his fingers to dab here tears away. But ever since that night, he had thought nothing of the beautiful woman; and he had to have her; the urge was getting more powerful than he wanted to admit.

Continued…


	311. Just For You

New video credits of STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW can be viewed at the URL provided at my profile. I have composed music that uses a "riff" from each of the TREK shows, and a "cast" call for the current issue. Check it out…I think it's pretty cool.

Rob


	312. Chain Reaction

**Star Trek; The Galaxy Window**

**Chain Reaction**

**Earth…**

While Riverside Iowa was still a small town, it did have one of the better restaurants for miles around. It was called The Floating Rib. People from surrounding towns would flock to the upscale eatery so as to hobnob with the upper crust of society. As Jim Kirk and his date, Sarah Moore, were escorted to their table by one of the hostesses, Kirk could not but help feel like a fish out of water. But he had promised the beautiful woman a date, and Jim Kirk had no problem with showing her a great time.

"Let me say again," Kirk said, as they sat down across from each other at the dining table, "you are very stunning tonight."

Sarah smiled back at Kirk.

"Nice try, Jim," Sarah said with a coy look in her eyes, "but I saw more than one woman cast her eyes at you as we made our way through the maze to our table."

A server came over and poured them each a glass of wine.

"I have to be honest, Sarah," Jim began to say to her, "I haven't been able to keep my mind off of you since we met at the welcoming party."

Sarah smiled at Jim, and blushed. But she knew full well that the fake tears that had been given to her by her brother were the real reason Kirk was enamored with her. The tears were augmented with her DNA, and when they came into contact with Kirk's skin, they created a chemical response that was slowly causing Jim Kirk to fall in love with her.

"Thank you," Sarah said, as she sipped on wine, and stared seductively into his eyes. "It may sound forward, but I have been thinking about you as well."

Smile came over Kirk's face.

"Well, that is good to hear," Jim said.

A waiter came over and took their order. Kirk to the lead and ordered for Sarah, and then ordered for himself.

"Are you sure you're from Riverside Iowa," Sarah asked.

"Why do you ask," Jim came back with.

"Well, I have lived in this town for most of my life, and the men here, at least the ones that I know, would never be as so gentlemanly as you have been tonight," Sarah told Kirk. "It is pleasure to know that there are still men out there who value you chivalry."

"You've lived your entire life here in Riverside?" Jim asked. "I left the first moment I could. I enjoyed growing up in a small town, but I just had to see what was out there."

"Actually, Jim," Sarah came back with, "I lived off world for several years when I was married."

"You were married?" Jim asked.

"I hope that doesn't make think any differently about me," Sarah interjected quickly.

"Oh no, not at all," Jim assured her. "We're both adults here."

"Anyway, that was a long time ago," Sarah explained. "He was a commander in Star Fleet. My parents tried to talk me out of it; mainly because I was eighteen, and he was thirty-five. But I believe, and always have, that love has no bounds."

Kirk nodded his head, knowing he had no right to judge Sarah. In fact, Antonia, one of the loves of his wife, whom he came very close to marrying, had been much younger than he was.

Jim and Sarah continued their small talk, getting to know each other. As they talked about their lives, Jim was unaware that on the second level of the restaurant, another patron sat alone and kept his eyes on the two of them. It was Sarah's brother, Collin Moore.

But as he watched his sister work her charms on the unsuspecting Jim Kirk, Collin was becoming worried because it was quite clear, by looking at the expression's on his sister's face, that Kirk's charm was having an effect on her as well.

Several minutes later, food was served for Jim Kirk and Sarah Moore. As they ate their food, Sarah shot a brief glance up at the second level, knowing all along that her brother was observing. She could tell by the scowl on Collin's face that he was not happy with the progress being made and she knew he would not be happy when she returned home later in the night.

Later that night, Jim Kirk walked Sarah to the entrance of her home. They were holding hands and smiling.

"I enjoyed our evening," Jim said to her. Inside he felt like a young man again, having enjoyed the courting of a beautiful woman.

They came to a stop outside the door.

"Thank you, Mr. Kirk," Sarah said back to him. "I enjoyed our evening as well."

Kirk leaned in and then they kissed; intimately.

"Thank you," Sarah whispered.

She let herself in and closed the door behind her.

Jim Kirk took a deep breath and headed back down the street and toward the local Transporter hub. From there he would beam back to his ranch house which was located five miles from Sarah's home.

Sarah entered the warm den. Collin was standing next to the fireplace holding a glass of Bourbon.

"I saw you looking at us," Sarah said to her brother. "Why did you look mad?" Sarah asked. "I'm doing my part."

"My dear sister, you're not moving fast enough," Collin shot back. "We need access to his land, and you're still at the first stage."

"I'm not a slut," Sarah fired back. "We don't want to rush things or he will get suspicious."

"No he won't," Collin said back, with anger. "The Elan tears are supposed to make the infatuation happen faster. You're moving to slow, and I want you to speed it up." He came over to his sister and stood behind her, and began to massage her neck. "And as for your not being, as you say, a slut; don't forget where you were last year. You had become attached to that Orion loser, and he had you strung out on rushers. And if I recall," he said as he turned his sister around to face him, "I found you employed as a pleasure giver on Risa."

"I was not a slut," Sarah said softly. "Pleasure givers on Risa are professionals and we are well cared for."

"Whatever," Collin said, as he brought his lips closer to hers, "just remember that your part in this entire equation is to give Kirk pleasure so as to distract him and to get him to fall in love with you. We are working on an easy time scale, but it is not infinite. So," he said as placed his lips next to his sister's ear, "let him in."

She pushed her brother away.

"I am not a pleasure giver anymore," Sarah said.

"Perhaps not anymore," Collin said with a smile, "but when you were, you sure gave me my money's worth."

"You're sick," Sarah said as she turned away in disgust. "How could you have done that to me?"

"You were blind folded," Collin reminded her. "But in any event," Collin said, "do you r job and get Kirk into your bed."

And with that, Collin left the room.

Sarah looked out the window, and in the distance, she could see Jim Kirk's ranch house. Was what they were doing, both she and Collin, worth the pain that would come to Jim Kirk? She had to force herself to say yes.

**Previously…**

**In a star system not far from Dan'gin**…a Giant gaseous planet orbited a distant star. The planet had 12 satellites, one of which had a secret base build beneath its surface. It had been built by Section-31 years ago, but was now used by another shadowy agency.

Ryan Tolbert stared at his wife and daughter, who were kept alive in stasis chambers. Commander Randolph Donnelly re-stated his demands.

"Just take care of them both," Donnelly said again.

"And by taking care of them, you mean you want me to kill them," Ryan concluded. "And if I don't," he said as he looked back at the pods containing his wife and daughter, "they die instead."

Donnelly nodded his head.

"I like your directness," Donnelly added with a smile.

Ryan bent over the two pods that held his wife and daughter. Was it really that easy? Kill James Kirk and Leonard McCoy, and then his wife and child would live again?

"I'll do it," Ryan finally said.

"I knew you would," Commander Donnelly said. "Everyman has a price, Tolbert, even you." Donnelly handed Tolbert a device. "When you've completed the task, press the green button. It will send a signal to me and then we'll set a place where you can reclaim your family."

"How can I be sure you won't double-cross me," Tolbert asks.

"You're just going to have to trust me, Agent Tolbert," Donnelly said. "But remember this; if you double-cross me then they," he pointed at the life pods, "will die."

Donnelly held another device and he pressed a button. Before Ryan Tolbert could react, Tolbert was teleported away and found himself back inside his private space cruiser. It was time to find Jim Kirk and Leonard McCoy.

Several hours later, another small spaceship entered orbit around the obscure planet. Its lone passenger beamed down into the base only to find it had been abandoned. His name was Hank Algren. And while it seemed on surface as if the base had not been used in quite some time, Algren could tell that it had recently been used. He used a Tricorder and scanned the area.

"Nice try," Hank Algren said rhetorically, "but I know you were here."

In one of the abandoned rooms he found a security holding cell. He entered the cell and scanned it as well, and sure enough, the Tricorder located a small clip of skin. He scanned the skin more thoroughly and got a match from the DNA; Ryan Tolbert.

"Hang in there Ryan," Hank said to himself.

Hank Algren knew what Ryan Tolbert was being forced to do; to kill anyone who existed in the present but had come from another point of time. Algren knew this because he had accidently come across highly secured communications between Commander Randolph Donnelly and others. Algren couldn't prove it yet, but he was confident that Donnelly was getting his orders from higher-up; perhaps even from the office of the Federation's President.

**The Naissance Dysonsphere..**

Ben Sisko and his ex-wife, Jennifer, walked together inside the giant arboretum located in a structure next to the massive Star Fleet complex inside the Naissance.

"This is an incredible place," Jennifer said with a soft voice.

"Yes, the Naissance, as it is called," Ben explained, "has over 14,000 continents and several thousand oceans as well, and as of yet, the entire structure has yet to be totally explored."

"I still don't understand the concept of a Dysonsphere," Jennifer said, with a chuckle.

"Imagine it this way," Ben said. "We are on the inside skin of a ball that surrounds a star. The skin surrounds the star at a point where life can exist. We…" Ben stopped talking when he saw the look of humor on Jennifer's face. "Is there something wrong?"

"The way you are describing this place," Jennifer said with a tone of pride. "It reminds me of the young officer I met on the beach all those years ago. I love how you can be so devoted to something, and lose yourself talking about it. It is one of the reasons I fell in love with you."

Ben smiled.

"But ever since I've returned from the Collective," Jennifer went on to say, "you've been very nice to me and our son, Kaleb, but you haven't been more than just a friend. Ben, I don't want to lie to you anymore; I know about you and Kasidy."

"You do?" Ben asked. "How did you find out?"

Jennifer looked at a collection of plants nearby, and then back at Ben.

"A woman can tell when her man's heart belongs to someone else," Jennifer said. "I would be a fool to think that your life wouldn't have gone on without me." A tear came from her eye, but she dabbed it away quickly with a finger. "How is she? Is Kasidy a nice person?"

Sisko nodded his head.

"Yes," Ben said, "she is. Our daughter, Rebecca, is an up and coming officer in Star Fleet. But you have to believe me Jen," Ben continued to say, "It took many years for me to let you go and move on with my life. It was hard on both of us; Jake and me."

Jennifer reached out and placed her hand on Ben's.

"Ben," Jennifer said, as she looked up into his eyes, "I still love you and I always will. Is there a chance that we…"

Ben withdrew his hand from hers.

"No," Ben said softly, "I'm sorry; but I love Kasidy."

"You loved me once," Jennifer said with a smile. "You can love me again."

"Jen," Ben said, after a moment. "My life went on without you, certainly you can understand that."

Jennifer bowed her head, and then looked up.

"I guess I have no choice," Jennifer said.

Suddenly the voice of Admiral Janeway came from Ben's communicator badge.

"_Ben," Janeway said, "I need to see you in my office immediately. We have an emergency, and it concerns your daughter and Lal. Please prepare to be beamed directly to my office."_

"Go ahead," Ben replied to Admiral Janeway. Then he looked at Jennifer. "I'm sorry; I really am."

And then Sisko shimmered away.

Jennifer stood alone, and then she continued walking through the array of exotic plant life. She stopped and sat on one of the benches that were positioned throughout the arboretum to sit and admire the plants. Moments later she was joined by her son Kaleb.

"How did it go mother?" Kaleb asked.

"He loves this other woman, Kasidy," Jennifer said, her bottom lip trembling. "He won't return to me."

He reached out his arm and let her hold it.

"We knew this was possible," Kaleb told his mother. "What do you want to do now?"

Jennifer's sad face slowly became rock hard with anger as she held her son's arm. Her fingernails dug into his skin, causing him to wince in pain as blood dripped down from four small wounds the nails had caused.

"If he won't return to our family Collective on his own," Jennifer said, "then we will make the choice for him. His resistance," Jennifer added with a maniacal smile, "is futile." A look of happiness came over her face. "Now come with me my son," Jennifer said. "Let's go look at the rose garden I keep hearing about."

They stood up and made their way toward the rose garden. Kaleb reached and, when he was sure no one was looking, he dried the blood from his arm on the inside of his shirt. He knew his mother had anger issues, and, as it turned out; so did he which was something his two siblings (Jake and Rebecca) would soon learn as well.

Continued…


	313. Roar III

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Roar III**

**Previously…**

**Inside the Naissance...**

_While collecting soil samples for the science department, Lal and Rebecca realized they were secretly being watched by Curtis Daystrom. It was hard to believe it was Curtis because they had both seen him killed by flesh eating ghouls on the planet Drobix. (What they don't know, and what you do know cunning readers, is that Curtis is an Android; just like Lal…)_

_Rebecca was quite curious as to how Curtis could still be alive, so she convinced Lal to help her trap the young and attractive man…_

**Our story continues…**

After a few minutes had passed, Rebecca began to play her part. She opened up her Tricorder and pretended to be scanning the plants that dotted the landscape. There were several varieties of bushes and flowers, not to mention the thick grass which covered the ground. She had a pretty good idea that the young man, Curtis, whom she had developed a crush on back on Drobix before he supposedly died, was watching her, which kind of turned her on. Rebecca was known to have flirted with her academy mates, but never in a slutty way. Suddenly her communicator chirped softly.

"I am in position," Lal said, "What should I do next?"

"Great," Rebecca said, "I'm going to innocently look at the bushes directly behind me, and when I do, I want you to throw something, like rock or something like that, and have it land near to him. Hopefully it will startle him and then I'll spot him and then," Rebecca pulled out her phaser, "I'll teach him a lesson," she said in a playful tone.

"Please do not tell me what form of punishment you have in stored for Mr. Daystrom," Lal added, "I don't want to get into any higher level of trouble with your father, as I am sure we will both be when we return to the Star Fleet complex..."

Suddenly the sounds coming from the communicator were garbled.

"Lal," Rebecca said into her communicator, "I can't hear you; what are you saying?"

Rebecca looked up from her position by an outgrowing of bushes and at the area Lal said she was at. And then Rebecca saw a scene straight out of hell! The T-Rex had Lal in its mouth; its powerful mouth. Seeing the T-Rex caused Rebecca to freeze in fear, and then it happen; the T-Rex crunched down, its powerful jaws crushed Lal in half…

Rebecca nearly screamed but her fright would not let her, which probably saved her life.

Unable to move, due to being totally frightened, Rebecca could only watch as the gigantic T-Rex chomped down on Lal's torso, biting her in half. The android's upper half fell to the ground, her eyes still open as she hit the hard ground below. Before Rebecca could do anything, the massive beast took a step and squashed Lal's upper torso, as well as her head.

The dinosaur was not remotely satisfied by the metallic meal it had just devoured, and spit it out; but then it sniffed the air, the scent of a warm blooded snack was not far and it looked in Rebecca's direction.

Rebecca, for her part, had remembered seeing an old movie from several centuries ago about a dinosaur amusement park and how a T-rex's sight could only track moving objects.

The dinosaur took another step toward Rebecca. There were about a hundred feet between Rebecca and the massive creature; but the she could still feel each step it took. It took all her might to stand still, as well as to stop herself from screaming or crying out for help. What made it even harder was the fact that the T-rex was staring directly in her direction.

Rebecca's bottom lip began to quiver. The instinct to simply run in the other direction was starting to flood her thoughts. And why would it not? Sure, humans and dinosaurs never coexisted. But what humans lacked in instinct they more than adequately made up with vivid imaginations, which Rebecca had in abundance.

And then it happened; the dinosaur took a deep breath and then it roared! The sound was thunderous, and even from where she was, the gush of air made its way to Rebecca, and it stunk. And then the T-rex began charging Rebecca. Rebecca came to two conclusions; one of them was that Steve Spielberg had no idea what he was doing 400 years ago, and the other conclusion was that it was time to run. She screamed turned around and ran in the opposite direction.

With each step the dinosaur took, Rebecca could feel the ground shaking, even as she was running as fast as she could. She looked back and saw that the T-rex was only, at best, 10 yards behind her.

"Shit!" she screamed again. "DADDY!" she began to scream, knowing that the end was near. And if anyone could work miracles, it was her father; Benjamin Sisko.

And then suddenly she looked up into the bright sky and saw a shuttle-craft. She felt her body begin to tingle and then; she was beamed away.

She re-materialized in the shuttle and instantly ran to her father's out reached arms.

"I knew you would save me," Rebecca said, crying as she spoke.

"Are you alright?" Ben asked his daughter.

"Yes," was all Rebecca could muster to say at first.

Through her tears, she smiled at Captain Jonathan Canary who was piloting the shuttle.

"That must have been fun; being stalked by a dinosaur," Canary said with a wry tone. "I bet it's something you never got to do," he added as he spoke to Admiral Janeway who sat in the co-pilot's seat.

"Just take us back," Janeway said softly.

Ben Sisko looked down at Rebecca, who was still trembling.

"It's okay Rebecca," Ben told her, "you're safe now."

He patted her on the back, trying to comfort his daughter.

"Father," Rebecca said through her tears, "that thing destroyed Lal."

"Yes," Ben said softly. "We saw it happen, but we were too far away."

And then worry came over Rebecca's face. "We have to go back," Rebecca said to her father, and then she looked over to Admiral Janeway. "Someone else was down there," Rebecca added.

"Captain Canary, reverse course; take us back," Janeway ordered quickly, and then she looked back at Rebecca. "According to the duty roster, only you and Ensign Lal were assigned to this project."

Rebecca dried her tears as she spoke.

"Yes Admiral," Rebecca said, "we were. And then we realized that someone was secretly watching us. I don't know how he got there, because he didn't get there in the shuttle with Lal and me."

"Wait a moment," Ben said, cutting in, "Who was he?"

Rebecca didn't answer, at first, because she was worried what her father might think.

"Rebecca," Ben Sisko came back with, as he put his hands on her shoulders, "if someone else is down there, then their life is in grave danger. You've got to tell us now so we can get them out of there."

"I know, but you won't believe me." Rebecca said, as tears were still coming down from her eyes. "It was that man from Drobix, the one who had saved Lal and me from those creatures," Lal told him. "His name was Curtis Daystrom," Lal added.

Ben Sisko hugged his daughter again, and then cast a glance over at Janeway. Ben Sisko and Admiral Janeway already knew that Curtis Daystrom was an android, and that he had somehow transferred his essence to another android construct after being killed by the Ghouls on Drobix.

"So how could it be him," Rebecca finally said, as she looked up at her father.

Janeway keyed a command into the shuttle's main console as Captain Canary maneuvered the shuttle over to where they had beamed Rebecca up from. The T-rex could be seen stalking the area below, looking for its lost prey. It even cast a glance up at the shuttle.

"Look at the eyes on that thing," Canary said, shaking his head.

"There he is," Rebecca suddenly said, "there's Curtis! He's hiding by that cluster of trees. We have to do something!"

"Calm down Ensign; we are," Janeway responded.

"Hey," Captain Canary said back at Rebecca, "get off the Transporter pad,"

Rebecca did so in a hurry. And then, right before her eyes, Curtis Daystrom shimmered into view. As soon as he solidified, he looked around and then at Rebecca.

"Hello Rebecca," Curtis said with a broad smile…

And then she fainted…

Continued…


	314. Brain Matters

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Brain Matters**

**Star Fleet Command HQ…**

**One of the many conference rooms located in the upper level of the tall structure…**

Professor Geordi Laforge walked over to the large window that looked out at the distant Golden Gate Bridge. He shifted his gaze from the bridge down to the walkway, far below, that led from Star Fleet Academy over to the famous landmark. He could see several dozed cadets making their way to and fro, still so young and innocent when it came to their careers in Star Fleet.

"Geordi," the voice of Jean-Luc Picard said from behind him, "I know it's difficult to fathom that anyone in Star Fleet would even think of doing such a thing. But we need you."

Laforge looked away from the window and over to the conference table he had just stood up from moments ago. Picard sat at the head of the table, flanking to his left was Commodore Riker, and to his right was Commander Beverly Crusher. He looked over at Crusher.

"Beverly," Geordi Laforge said, "you do understand what they're telling us?" he asked, looking over at Picard and Riker and then back to her. "This man, Slone, cloned us, and Worf, and then he stuck Data's Positronic inside of Lore's body, and sent the entire package on a starship so they could explore some unknown area of the galaxy. I don't know about you, but I feel violated."

Beverly Crusher was about to respond but Riker cut in first.

"Don't you think we feel the same way?" Riker asked.

"Maybe," Laforge said, "but you're still in Star Fleet, Will; I'm not. I'm a civilian and I find it utterly repulsive." And then he chuckled, "And now you want me to help you convince Lal to join this freak show?"

Picard stood up and walked over to the window. He placed his hands on Laforge's shoulders.

"I'm not going to candy coat this one," Picard said to his friend, "but unless we play our part in this strange charade, then we could be facing a war with the Romulans."

"Jean-Luc; instead of going along with it," Laforge countered, "why not find whoever it is who is carrying out Sloan's wishes in the here and now. Certainly Star Fleet must have some kind of clue as to who it is."

"I would have thought so too," Picard said. "But after Jim Kirk's ordeal with Project Diamond (an earlier plotline in this story where rogue Star Fleet officers were going to use special fleets commanded by Betazoids to take over Star Fleet command) it is entirely possible that another rogue element is at play here."

"Which means," Riker added from where he sat at the conference table, "we don't have time to find his allies."

"Jean-Luc," Crusher said, after a moment had passed. "I don't understand what it is they want us to do. If they cloned you, Will, Geordi, Worf and myself, and somehow aged them, then doesn't that mean they will be leading the mission? Why even involve us at all?"

"I know this is going to sound quite bizarre," Picard said as he returned and sat down at the table, "but they removed our clone's brains."

Laforge laughed as he sat back down.

"Excuse me, Admiral, but this is getting even more outlandish by the moment," Laforge said. "Are you serious; they really removed their brains?"

"Yes," Picard said. "Using experimental technology devised by Doctor Leonard McCoy over a hundred thirty years ago, and coupling it with more recent tech created by Dr. Walter Bishop, the bodies of our clones will be controlled, by us, right here at Star Fleet Command."

"Say that again," Crusher said, as she raised her eyebrows in puzzlement.

"Beverly," Riker interjected, "You are aware of the incident where aliens removed Spock's brain. McCoy was able to create a devise which was able to," Riker searched for the right term, "animate Spock's body."

"Yes Will," Crusher said, "I am aware what he did. And for ethical reasons, and the dangers it imposed, McCoy's creation, while ingenious as it may have been, was destroyed and further attempts at such technology was banned by the Star Fleet Surgeon General."

"Let me guess," Laforge said with a laugh, "that was just a lie."

"Section-31, and more specifically Sloan, was aware of the technology," Picard told Laforge and Crusher. "And what little knowledge is known of this area of space the USS Hauck is approaching suggests that anyone who attempts to cross the strange barrier that surrounds it will go mad; instantly insane."

"So to that end," Riker continued for Picard, "far below this building, in a secret area, are the cloned brains of the four of us, Worf, and an exact duplicate of Data's brain as well. We will be using McCoy's technology to control our clones."

"News flash," Laforge said, cutting in, "Both Worf and Data are dead. Now, obviously, I can see why you want Lal. She could theoretically upload a program and control Lore's body; but what about Worf?"

"Worf's body will be controlled by his son, Alexander," Picard answered. "Dr. Bishop has been able to enhance the elements of Worf's brain that he and Alexander shared."

"I'm starting to agree with Geordi," Crusher said. "I'm feeling more violated by the moment. But I don't see that we have a choice."

"You're telling me," Geordi said. He looked at the large seal of the Federation on the far wall. "Sometimes I wonder if any of this is worth it. What are we actually protecting if such lengths as these are used to force our service?"

Suddenly the door swooshed open and Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream came in.

"Excuse me for the intrusion, however I think you better see this," Secretary Paream said as he pressed a button on the desk and activated the monitor on the wall.

The image of Admiral Kate Janeway came into view.

"It's a recorded message," Paream added.

"_Jean-Luc," Janeway said in a soft tone, "I'm extremely sorry for what I am about to report to you, but Lal has been destroyed. She was a very special person, and we will all miss her very much. But listen…" and then her image faded in midsentence. _

"How," Picard asked Secretary Paream.

"Some sort of attack by one of the animals inside the Naissance," Paream answered.

"Why did you cut her message off," Riker asked. "What was she about to say?"

Paream looked at the four of them, and then he pressed the button to continue the message.

"_But listen," Janeway repeated, "I believe I might be in possession of," and she smiled. "a miracle."_

And then the message ended.

"What did she mean by that," Picard asked Secretary Paream.

Continued…


	315. Showcase 1

Star Trek: The Galaxy Window: SHOWCASE #001

Active Plotline review…

Kirk/Sarah Moore/Iconian Gateway…One of our story threads is centering on a hidden Iconian Gateway somewhere beneath Kirk's property in Riverside Iowa. Yes, the chances of a gate existing beneath Kirk's house cannot be a random act as we will soon find out. We already know that Kirk's son, Mathew, did become some kind of "God like" entity in an alternate timeline…but is that alternate timeline really so alternate?

Sarah Moore's job in all of this is to get Kirk to fall in love with her so that her brother, Collin, can get access to the gate without alerting Star Fleet. Because, on the other end of the gate is an army of Jem'Hadar invaders…and they want to take over Earth once and for all!

In coming issues, Leonard McCoy, who has his memory back, will be arriving on Earth. He will bring knowledge to Kirk/Spock about another Enterprise trapped outside the space-time continuum. What McCoy doesn't know, but we do, is that Garak unwittingly destroyed the Enterprise when he was sent there by Commander Sean Donnelly. The last we saw of Garak and Odo, they were on their way to warn Kirk as well but a mysterious wave of energy surrounded the ship they were on and…they and the ship disappeared.

Another development was a mysterious communication sent to Limanu by Collin Moore. Limanu is the new chief of the Native Americans who exist in the tribal lands in North America's southwest region. That is where Kirk's two children are living. Will Limanu betray Kirk? Chakotay will soon be arriving in the Native lands and will soon become involved in the plotline there.

Spock has married Elizabeth Pike, the daughter of Christopher Pike. We know from way back that Elizabeth may have "powers" not that different from those of the Talosions, though Spock is unaware of that fact. We also know that she is pregnant and that Commander Donnelly is aware of this as well.

Ryan Tolbert knows that his wife and daughter are alive, but kept in stasis. He has been told by Commander Donnelly that if he ever wants to see his family again, he must kill Kirk and McCoy.


	316. Eyes Have It

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**The Eyes have It**

_**(Readers...please try out my new story "STAR TREK: FRANK GRAYSON. What if a man, an ordinary man in our real universe, drempt a real NCC-1701 into existence! That's what Frank Grayson does. I am also doing a "audio presentation" of this story on YOUTUBE. The link to it is currently on my profile. If you can't find it, send me a PM)**_

**Earth…**

**The small city of Clovis in what used to be New Mexico…**

On the out skirts of Clovis was a rundown building which had once been a factory that built nacelles for old classes of starships that had long since seen their day of use. After the construction of newer nacelles was taken off world, the massive building was converted to other uses, one of which was a small diner that was a favorite of the local residents. The diner was called El'Polvo, and served traditional Mexican and/or Andorian dishes.

Limanu, chief of the Native American tribes, walked into the diner. He wore a black leather jacket and slacks, and looked like just another customer. The diner was half full, and the sound of old style Mexican music played in the background.

"Senior," the pleasant looking hostess said, "can I help you?"

Limanu was about to respond when he saw someone wave at him from a table near the back window.

"No thank you," Limanu said with a smile, "however, please bring me some water," he added.

Limanu made his way to the back of the diner and stood before the lone occupant of the table.

"And you are…" Limanu asked.

"My name is Collin Moore," Collin replied, as he looked up at Limanu.

Limanu sat down at the table, just as the waitress came by and placed a glass of water at his side. The waitress smiled, and then left the two men alone.

Collin had a plate of Emati before him, which was an Andorian salad made from the Emati fruit found on that distant world.

"I do so very much enjoy Andorian food," Collin said as he took a sip from a glass of wine. "Don't you?"

"Mister Moore," Limanu said, annoyed by the casual demeanor of Collin Moore, "my time is very important to me, and I am very busy. Why have you gone through backdoor channels to get into contact with me?"

Collin nodded his head, and slid the plate of food to the side.

"I appreciate your honesty," Collin said. "I too value my time, and understand completely so I will get right down to the point," Collin went on to say.

Collin opened his suit-jacket slightly and took out a data pad. He activated it and put it on the table, rotating it 180 degrees so that the screen was facing Limanu.

"Do you recognize this man," Collin asked, referring to the face on the screen.

"Yes I do," Limanu said. "His name is Jim Kirk and he is a friend and to my people," Limanu replied.

Then another face appeared on the screen; a child's face.

"I recognize that child," Limanu stated. "His name is Mathew."

"That is correct," Collin said with a soft voice. "Sometime soon, associates of mine are going to come to your Native American lands, and they are going to take that child and you will let them."

Limanu's face became filled with anger.

"How dare you threaten a child," Limanu spat back. "If you or your associates attempt to take that child, or try to harm him, I will kill you myself."

Collin smiled a friendly smile.

"I have no doubt that you would," Collin said, "and, fortunately for me, I was prepared for that answer. Take a look at the screen again."

The screen's image phased to one of a dark haired woman and a little girl standing next to her.

"My sister, Tolani," Limanu said, "and her daughter Draline"

Limanu snapped, and reached over the table and grabbed Collin by the front collar of his jacket.

"What is this, have you hurt them," Limanu demanded, causing others in the diner to look their way.

"Please calm down," Collin said. "Nothing has happened to them; yet," Collin added. "Look at the screen again."

Limanu looked at the screen which showed his sister and niece. But it wasn't a still image, it was live images.

"This signal is being sent to us all the way from the planet Timus," Collin said. "You're sister is a teacher on that world, and from what I know, she is a very good one. Let me be blunt, Limanu. Unless you do as I say, and let my associates take Kirk's child when the time comes, the person taking these images will bring harm to your sister and her child. Now; let go of me before I really get unpleasant and have their lives ended sooner; much sooner."

Limanu let Collin go.

"Thank you," Collin said. "Now, before you think about ambushing me at some future point, or think about warning Kirk or your new friend Chakotay, or anyone else so as to inform Star Fleet or the Federation Security Bureau; think twice about it. I have contacts that will inform me of any such move, and your sister and niece will die; horribly. Some of my associates are quite powerful and would not think twice about protecting their interest; and right now their interest is insuring that Kirk's child will be available when the time comes. Have I made myself clear?"

"Why are you doing this," Limanu asked, after a moment. "What could be so important about that child?"

"I don't see where that is any of your business at all," Collin said, as he stood up from the table. "I will be in touch. Oh, and by the way, you're being observed too; don't forget that…boy."

Collin looked down at Limanu with an arrogant scowl on his face, and then he turned and left Limanu at the secluded table so as to ponder about the helpless situation he was in.

**Riverside Iowa**

It was a festive occasion as a Federation shuttle-craft, one of the smaller models, made its way down from the sky and landed on a small landing pad which was situated right next to Jim Kirk's ranch house. The door to the craft opened and stepping out of the craft was Leonard McCoy and a young girl.

Jim Kirk, Sarah Moore, Spock, Elizabeth, S'vath and Amanda all waited to greet McCoy and the young girl as they made their way over to them.

"Who is that girl with him," Sarah asked Kirk.

"I don't know; who is she," Kirk then asked Spock.

Spock shook his head.

"I have insufficient data for making an estimation at this time, however, I suppose we will find out in due course," Spock said, sounding much like himself from the old days, which did not go un-noticed by Kirk…who smiled.

"Maybe she's his daughter," Elizabeth said to her husband, Spock.

"Maybe she's his wife," Amanda added with a coy smirk on her face.

"Please behave Amanda," S'vath told his wife.

Amanda smiled back at her husband.

Meanwhile, Saran held Kirk's hand in hers.

"I am so happy for you," Sarah said, as McCoy and the girl neared them.

Fake tears of happiness came from Sarah's eyes, and she wiped them on her fingers and then re-held Kirk's hand letting the tears dry upon his skin.

The shuttle took off and headed back into the sky. McCoy came over to the others.

"Bones," Kirk said, "are you alright?"

McCoy looked at Kirk and the others, but the happy chipper expression that was usually on McCoy's face was gone.

"Jim, Spock," McCoy said to his two friends, "This is my friend Corvana," McCoy said, as he looked down at the girl briefly. "We just left a debriefing with Star Fleet about an hour ago," McCoy told them both. "But I didn't tell them anything important because I can't trust them; any of them."

"Doctor," Spock said to McCoy, "how is it you came to be in this time period?"

"It's funny you should ask that," McCoy said to the much older version of Spock who stood before him, "but trust me," he continued saying to Spock, and then to Kirk, "we don't have much time. Unless we act now, I'm afraid everyone else aboard the," he paused, "Enterprise is going to die."

A puzzled look came over everyone.

Next time; Ryan Tolbert arrives on Earth…intent on killing Kirk and McCoy!


	317. Humanity 101

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Humanity 101**

**The Naissance**

Two doors slid apart, and then a gurney, pushed by three men wearing red sanitized outfits, was rushed into a sophisticated laboratory. Scattered about the large gurney were various components of a Soong-type android; her name was Lal. Her android body had been shredded part by the powerful jaws of a massive T-rex. The gurney came to a stop, and as two of the men went about setting up for an emergency medical, the third man, Ian Maddox, rushed out of the lab. Waiting outside the lab were Admirals Ben Sisko and Kate Janeway, as well as Rebecca Sisko. She had witnessed the attack upon her android fan, and was understandably delirious. Admiral Sisko held his daughter as tight as he could, to help her feel at ease, but it was having little effect. Dr. Maddox came over to Rebecca.

"Please," Dr. Ian Maddox pleaded with Rebecca, "I need you to calm down. Everything is going to be fine, but you must calm yourself if this is to work."

Admiral Sisko looked at Dr. Maddox with a look of skepticism on his face. Sisko glanced over to Admiral Janeway who then nodded her head in agreement with Maddox.

"Rebecca," Admiral Janeway said to Rebecca, "You need to be strong for Lal."

"What for," Rebecca shot back with. "They can't save her. She's gone and it's all because of me!"

Suddenly walking into the waiting era was Curtis Daystrom; an android himself. But Rebecca was the only one in the room who didn't know that fact, but that was about to change. Rebecca looked up and saw that Curtis had come into the room. His presence had an immediate calming effect upon Rebecca.

"Hello," Curtis said as he came over to wear Rebecca was standing; next to her father.

"Why are you here," Rebecca asked. "Or better yet; how are you here? I saw you die on Drobix."

Admiral Sisko and Janeway glanced at each other, and then Janeway gave him a slight nod of her head.

"Rebecca," Ben said to his daughter, "you are not only my daughter, but you are also part of Star Fleet. And what is said here, and I mean right here and now, must remain confidential; meaning you can tell know one what you are about to learn."

"What," Rebecca said back to her father, "that we're in the presence of a dead man? Maybe he is one of those flesh eating monsters from Drobix; had that crossed your mind?"

"Rebecca," Curtis said, as he came closer and reached out his hands. "Take my hands."

Rebecca looked to her father, who nodded, and then she slowly reached out her hands.

"We need to hurry this up," Dr. Maddox said to them all, but Janeway motioned for him to back off for now.

Curtis's hands were face up as he reached out; and then Rebecca placed her hands on his...and then suddenly reality caved in. She was standing alone with Curtis, surrounded by millions of stars.

"How did you do that," Rebecca asked. "Where are we?"

Curtis smiled at her.

"Rebecca; we are inside what you could describe as my mind," Curtis told her. "Just like you, I turn to my mind, my thoughts, when life becomes jagged and torn. And right now, you find yourself in such a place because of what happened to your friend. Nothing can be gained from something that is not true."

"How very kind of you," Rebecca said with sarcasm in her voice, "but how have you brought me into your mind; and why?"

"The simple truth," Curtis said, "is that I am not human. I wish I could tell you more, but Lal's life, her essence if you will, will soon be at a place that not even I could reach. Dr. Maddox is right though; I need you to be at calm, or I will not be able to save her. Can you do that for me, for her; can you purge your guilt."

Rebecca nodded her head.

"Yes," Rebecca said, in a soft voice, but with doubt in her tone. "What will it accomplish?"

"Humans have long given up the concept of miracles," Curtis said, and then he smiled. "I am here to counter that thought."

And then, instantly, Rebecca opened her eyes. But Curtis was not there, instead, she was in her father's arms.

"What happened," Rebecca asked."Where did he go? What's happening?"

Sisko motioned for her to look at a monitor that displayed the inside of the laboratory. Maddox, and the other two men in red suits, had arranged Lal's components on the gurney. Her head, torso, legs and arms were arranged in the general configuration of a body, but they had not been attached.

"What are they doing to her," Rebecca asked.

And then, stepping into view on the screen was Curtis Daystrom. Unlike Maddox and his assistants, Curtis did not wear the red sterilized suits; instead, he was totally nude. But as Rebecca stared closer, she noticed that Curtis's body has a strange, almost near perfect smoothness to it. It almost looked liquid.

"What is this," Rebecca softly said. "What is he?"

"I believe Spock of Vulcan once said it best," Admiral Janeway said, with a look of wonder on her face. "He may be the next step in our evolution."

And then, as they all watched, Curtis began to glow. The effect, which appeared thousands of tiny blue globes of energy, started at his eyes, but then it spread across his body. And then the glowing effect expanded from Curtis and engulfed Lal's components. The glowing effect became so bright that it drowned out the image on the screen…

* * *

Meanwhile, several levels below, near the bottom of the Star Fleet complex located inside of the Naissance, was one of many power stations that proved energy to the massive complex. It was used by the maintenance crews, but was mainly monitored by redundant computer systems. The crisscrossing rows of machinery hummed at a constant pace, and other than the flickering lights on the various consoles, there was no other light source; meaning it was dark and quiet, and for Jennifer Sisko, it was where she came when ever she had extra time. Being there put her mind at ease, made her feel at home; on a Borg-cube. She closed her eyes and took in the soft humming, as she leaned up against one of the computer constructs. Not only was it soothing, she found the setting to be erotic. She wanted so much to use her hands, and touch her body in an intimate way. But she was there for another purpose, and he had just arrived.

"Mr. Kilo," Jennifer said a smile, as she saw the small Ferengi walking toward her.

"Why must we always meet down here," Kilo said, in a protesting manner. "It's too dark and I find it very droll."

"Just tell me you have what I want," Jennifer said; her voice cold and demanding.

Kilo reached out his hand and handed Jennifer a small data-rod.

"It took some digging," Kilo said, "but I found information about Kasidy Sisko that you will find most interesting. I had to bribe others to get it, which I will add to your tab. I trust you find it useful."

"I hope I do," Jennifer said. "Will it be enough to drive her away from my husband?"

"Let's just say," Kilo said with a smile, "she will not want the info on that rod to come out, if she values her freedom. Now; when can I expect payment?"

Suddenly, stepping up from behind Kilo was Kaleb Sisko, Jennifer's son. He put his hands on both sides of the Ferengi's head, and then twisted it, snapping Kilo's neck and killing him instantly.

"Fool," Jennifer said as he watched the lifeless body of the Ferengi fall to the ground.

"Did we really have to do that mother?" Kaleb asked. "Did we really have to kill him?"

Suddenly, Jennifer slapped her son across the face as hard as she could; the slap echoing through the chamber.

"We didn't do it; you did," Jennifer said to her son with a stern voice, "Don't you forget that." She paused for a moment, and then she continued. "Now get rid of that," Jennifer said, as she looked down at the dead body. "I will be in our quarters; meet me there when you are done."

Kaleb simply nodded as his mother walked away. Jennifer looked back at him, and then she smiled.

"Kaleb," Jennifer said with a broad smile, "don't forget we are having dinner with your father tonight. He will be so happy to see you. I know for a fact he loves you and Jake far more than he loves that bitch daughter of his; Rebecca. Don't you agree?" she asked in a giddy manner.

Suddenly her face turned stone cold, and she continued walking away, leaving Kaleb alone in the near darkness so as to dispose of the dead Ferengi's body.

_Continued..._

_(Yes, I know dear reader…I know you have many questions! Who is Dr. Ian Maddox…what exactly is Curtis Daystrom…and what the hell is going on with Jennifer Sisko! All in good time…all in good time!)_


	318. To Sharp for Doves

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**To Sharp for Doves…**

(readers..be sure to check out the "opening credits" to this chapter via my YOUTUBE video. You can find the link to it at my profile…)

**Riverside Iowa…**

_**Railroad Park; a regional park which is chiefly comprised of grass fields, trees…and playgrounds for kids. The park was designed by Richard Bashir…**_

It was a bright sunshine filled day as Amanda arrived at the park with her two children; Lenora and Sarek. Lenora had just turned for years old, and at that ripe "old" age, she had become an expert on how to tend to "her" baby brother Sarek. That was because, in her four year old mind, after reading every book she could comprehend (author's note; she's part Vulcan don't forget) she had learned it all and there was nothing anyone could tell her on how to feed a baby, or change its diaper, or how to hold the infant properly; she was an expert and Amanda, her mother, had to admit, she was pretty damn good. Lenora was becoming one of those "know it all" kids, which again, annoyed Amanda but made her love her daughter even more.

Amanda sat down on the blanket which she had spread across an area of grass that overlooked a playground and a cluster of trees nearby. The park was located five miles from Jim Kirk's property, where they were staying, and going to the park via the hover sidewalk had become a daily event for Amanda and her children. S'vath had come with them a couple of times, but usually it was just Amanda and the two children.

There were other park goers as well, including a human elderly couple in their nineties that sat on a nearby bench, whom had been there every day as well. Amanda had said hello to them on a couple occasions, and learned that they had met while in Star Fleet, and had retired twenty years earlier and were now enjoying their later years in Riverside Iowa, where they had both grown up. Amanda's thoughts were brought back to reality by Lenora's voice.

"Mother," Lenora said in her very stoic manner (author's note; she's part Vulcan, so again, what do you expect?) "Since I changed Sarek's diaper just ten minutes and thirty seven seconds ago, I would now like to go look at the flowers near the trees."

Lenora had, in the past couple weeks, adopted a very stoic Vulcan way to her personality which her Grandfather, Spock, was quite taken with. Amanda found it all too annoying, but cute all the while.

"Go ahead, just stay where I can see you," Amanda said to Lenora.

"How would you not see me, mother, unless I had phased into another parallel universe," Lenora said in her matter of fact tone.

"Another one?" Amanda said with a chuckle, "you've done so before?"

"It is quite possible that…" Lenora began to explain until Amanda waved her off.

"Forget it," Amanda said, "just go look at your flowers."

Lenora bowed her head, and then she smiled, and then ran toward the cluster of trees which was surrounded by flowers.

Amanda looked over at Sarek, the two year old, and smiled at him. She had brought some of the toddler's toys, and his favorite was a hand sized toy replica of the USS Enterprise-D. It was the ship that Jean-Luc Picard had commanded for many years before it was destroyed by a warp core breach.

"I don't know kid," Amanda said as she looked at the Enterprise-D, "I think that one is ugly. Why don't you play with this one anymore," she took the Enterprise-D out of Sarek's hand and replaced it with the Voyager which promptly caused Sarek to begin to cry. Amanda immediately gave him bad the Enterprise-D which caused him to calm down.

With Sarek content and with Lenora looking at the flowers nearby, Amanda activated her Ipad-100. It was a tiny device, no larger than a fingernail, which projected a holographic generated beam which charged air particles into a rectangle shaped area which acted like a viewing screen would. It allowed Amanda to check her messages, or allowed her to interface with the galactic web so she could purchase items, such as a new outfit she had seen in a catalog recently.

Jim Kirk's ranch-house…

The large den inside of Kirk's house was equipped with the latest technology. And as Jim Kirk, Spock, S'vath and Leonard McCoy entered the room, each holding a mug of freshly brewed coffee, the far wall, with its gun collection and various other antique items, disappeared and was replaced with a Federation emblem. The wall was obviously not only a wall, but could become a monitor which interfaced with the Federation and Star Fleet data systems. The Federation emblem was replaced by the image of a planet.

"Bones," Kirk said to his friend, as they all sat down. "Let's pick up where we left off last night. It got so late, that much of what we talked about is a blur in my mind. I'm sure Spock and S'vath remember just fine, but let's go through it again for my sake. You're saying that you appeared on this uncharted world several months ago."

"Yes," McCoy said. "For reasons I cannot understand, which hopefully Spock can, that world acts as a doorway between the Enterprise, stuck outside the blasted continuum, or whatever they call it, and the universe."

Kirk looked to Spock.

"What about it Spock," Kirk said to the Vulcan. "Could the energy of the Tholian web, and/or the interphasing effect of the surrounding area of space, have created another Enterprise?"

Spock nodded his head.

"It is theoretically possible," Spock allowed. "However, McCoy's being here brings it out of the realm of possibility and into the realm of fact."

"Jim," McCoy said upon hearing Spock, "we don't have time for this. I want you and Spock, and me, to get up to that world and see what we can find. I have a bad feeling about all of this."

"Doctor," Spock said to McCoy, "while I understand your frustration, I am not sure as to what we can do. If what you're saying is true, then the Enterprise you came from is indeed trapped outside the space-time continuum. And even in this century, such a place is beyond our ability to reach."

"Perhaps, perhaps not," Kirk said, after a moment. "I think I know someone who can help us…"

Suddenly, and without warning, a wind began to blow inside the house; so brisk was the wind that it became louder and louder.

"What is that father?" S'vath asked, as he and the others stood up.

Their coffee cups were all blown of the table and splattered all over the wall monitor.

"Spock," Kirk said as the sound of the wind grew louder, "should we get the hell out of here?"

"It sounds logical to me," Spock replied.

But then there was a bright red flash and the wind began to slow. But what was more incredible was that three men suddenly appeared inside the den. One of them was a Cardassian; one of them was a shape-shifter and finally; one of them was human, and Jim Kirk recognized him immediately.

"I know who you are," Kirk said to the human who had just appeared.

"Yes, as do I," Spock added. "His name is Jonathan Archer."

"Garak," Kirk said with a smile to the Cardassian, "it is good to see you; but where the hell have you been and what the hell is this all about?" Kirk reached out his hand.

Garak shook his head, and had a look of remorse on his face, and then he shook Kirk's hand.

"Jim Kirk; we have much to discuss," Archer said, before Garak could reply to Kirk. "And we don't have a lot of time."

"And that is putting it mildly," came from the shape-shifter; Odo.

"Minister Odo," Spock said to the shape-shifter. "I have read reports of your disappearance; it is good to see you are well."

"You don't know the half of it," Odo said, with a smirk.

Moments later, after brief introductions, they had all relocated to another room. It had been decided that Jonathan Archer would open the discussion, since his being there was somewhat of an enigma.

"As I'm sure most of you know," Archer began to say, "I died over two-hundred years ago. Normally I would expect people hearing that fact to be somewhat amazed, but then again," Archer said to Kirk and McCoy, "your both being here renders that moot. You, Kirk," Archer said to Kirk, "are the combined essence of two Jim Kirks. And you," Archer said to McCoy, "have existed for over a century on an Enterprise trapped outside of time."

"You mean exists outside of time," McCoy corrected Archer, "not existed."

"Unfortunately," Garak said abruptly, "I destroyed that ship."

"How, and why," McCoy demanded. "Jim, are you hearing this?"

"I didn't go there with the intention of destroying the ship," Garak said, cutting off Kirk's response, "I went there under the impression I was going to help them, but Spock," he looked at older-Spock, "the Spock on that ship, realized that I had been sent there as a weapon to destroy the Enterprise; in essence I had been sent there to kill them, not save them."

"Destroy them with what," S'vath asked.

"I can answer that," Jonathan Archer replied. "The man you all knew as Harrison Riker was, like me, alive due to the interference of Q. He was also the product of immoral experiments before he died as an infant on a Cardassian prison planet during the Dominion War. To make a long story short, Mr. Garak here somehow absorbed unique attributes of Riker's essence. That energy Garak absorbed was used to destroy the Enterprise trapped outside of time."

"Perhaps it was an accident," Kirk suggested.

"No, it wasn't." Archer replied to Kirk. "The Q-continuum, for whatever reason, was unable to ever reach the ship; but they knew what could destroy it and gave that knowledge to another interested party, and they got it done by tricking Garak to go there; and he did."

It was clear to all present that Garak felt ashamed.

"But trust me, Leonard McCoy," Garak said, "the man who sent me there to do that is the same man who wants many more to die in the name of saving the universe."

"Just continue," Kirk said to Archer. "How is it you are even here Captain Archer?"

"Myself, as well as your father," Archer said to Spock, "and K'mpec, the former leader of the Klingon Empire, were all kept from going to oblivion by an entity known as Q."

"I know who Q is," Kirk said to Archer. "I've had dealings with him in the past. He was rather smug I recall, and I thought he was killed on the Naissance sometime back."

"As did I," Spock added.

"Well he survived," Archer replied. "And, to make a long story short, Jim, for some time now he has been assembling what would best be described as a star chamber, with me, Sarek and K'mpec acting as judges. We would decide guilt or innocence on concerns which had far reaching ramifications, and we would carry out any sentence we prescribed. In fact," Archer said to S'vath, "on a smaller note, we were the ones who intercepted Sybok and stopped him from taking your child."

"I don't believe you," S'vath said after a moment.

"It doesn't really matter what you believe," Archer said. "We created the myth of a new alien threat called the Sihg, never truly revealing ourselves. But trust me; we were given ultimate power. In fact," Archer said, as he pivoted to face Kirk, "we were the ones who maneuvered the other Kirk to enter the Nexus, with the intent of trapping him there forever; except, once again, you found away to come back into existence. You can thank Q for that…"

"Excuse me," Jim Kirk said to Archer, "but from what I know of the Q, I thought they have a universal presence. Why would they concern themselves with petty concerns like this?"

"The Q-continuum had a civil war sometime back," Jonathan Archer explained, "And the end result was that they would no longer interfere with the events of others. But some Q's, and one in particular, decided they didn't want to fade into oblivion. So they carved up the universe like a pie, and the Q I am specifically speaking of, became, for lack of a better term, the judge of this galaxy and this galaxy alone. He would no longer directly interfere, but would have his deputies, in essence myself-Sarek-K'mpec, and others from all over the galaxy, acting as some sort of court deciding what would and wouldn't happen as it pertained to galactic events. The idea was that it would create galactic harmony."

"There is some logic to this course of action," Spock said, after a moment.

"I'm not so sure about that, Spock," McCoy said. "The last thing we need is some high-minded God force deciding what we lower life forms should and shouldn't be doing. And saving a child seems to run counter intuitive to what he just said. And this court; what's stopping it from passing judgment and deciding the outcome of events that could kill millions in the process. I for one think it is sickening."

Archer smiled at McCoy.

"And you're right," Archer said. "Because, unknown to Sarek-K'mpec and myself, Q, in order to equal out the concept harmony, also saved others from oblivion; including men like Khan Noonien Singh. I only recently discovered that Khan has been responsible for causing civil wars on worlds in far off corners of the galaxy, resulting in the deaths of over 20 billion lives. It is this wanton disregard for natural progression that has to stop; and I am here to start that process."

Jim Kirk took a sip of his coffee, and then looked at Archer.

"While all of this is very interesting, what does this have to do with Garak and Prime Minister Odo," Kirk asked, "and the perceived danger to me and McCoy?"

"Perhaps I can explain," said a new voice from the other side of the room.

Kirk and the others glanced over and saw a man whom Kirk recognized immediately.

"Ryan," Kirk said, as he stood up to greet the man whom he had become friends with over the past year or so. "What are you doing here?"

Ryan was holding what appeared to be a weapon and aimed it at Kirk.

"He's here to kill you," Garak said to Kirk. "I can see it in his eyes. Ask him about Commander Randolph Donnelly."

"What's he talking about," Kirk asked Ryan Tolbert.

"Jim," Tolbert said, with remorse in his voice. "Donnelly has my wife and child."

"I thought you told me they were dead; killed years ago," Kirk said to Tolbert.

"It was all a lie," Tolbert came back with. "Donnelly staged their deaths, and kept them in stasis until such time they could be used to get me to do something I didn't want to do. Unless I kill you, and McCoy, my family will be killed; I'm sorry…" and then Tolbert pulled the trigger.

But immediately Archer disappeared and reappeared in front of Kirk. The blast of energy struck Archer instead. S'vath used the distraction to approach Tolbert from behind. Tolbert turned to face him, but it was too late; S'vath punched Tolbert knocking him out.

Kirk knelt down and held Archer's head in his lap. McCoy came over and took out a small scanner which he always kept in the ready for such occasions.

"He's dying," McCoy said to Kirk.

And McCoy was right. Archer was visibly aging before their very eyes. He appeared to be 70 years old, but was aging rapidly.

"It was polarized Nectonic energy," Archer said with a smile. "It wouldn't have killed you Jim Kirk; but it was meant to kill me! Blast Q! He guessed my move," Archer said with a chuckle. "In a way, I'm glad I can finally really die."

"Captain Archer," Kirk said, "what is this all about?"

"Garak and Odo can explain the rest after I am gone," the visibly tiring 100 year old Archer replied. "Just know that …you have much to be proud of Jim Kirk, and much more to do. Before I go…" Archer said, his voice fading in strength, but still smiling, "why can't I tamper with the future one more time; I mean…who's to stop me from granting a miracle now?"

Archer reached up and touched Kirk's arm and then there was a brief flash of light on his fingers…and then…Archer closed his eyes and was dead; his body fading out of view in mere seconds.

"Would someone explain to me what just happened?" Kirk asked, dumbfounded.

Suddenly a Transporter signal shimmered into view and then a bald-man stood in the center of the room. At first Kirk that it was Picard, but it wasn't.

Kirk stood up, and with McCoy and Spock to either side of him, Kirk confronted the new comer.

"Who are you," Kirk demanded, "and why are you in my home?"

"Believe me Jim Kirk, "Hank Algren said, "My name is Commander Hank Algren and I am not here as your enemy, but as a friend. But first," Hank said to McCoy, "please revive Agent Tolbert."

"Don't do it," Garak countered to McCoy, "Agent Tolbert is here to kill Jim and you. And for some reason," Garak added, "I believe that both of them, Tolbert and this bald man, are somehow connected to Commander Randolph Donnelly."

McCoy took a step toward Tolbert, but then Odo changed shape and took the form of a bear, blocking McCoy's attempt to tend to Tolbert. Kirk looked to Algren.

"What about that," Kirk said to Algren. "Ryan is a close friend of mine; why would he suddenly be trying to kill me unless his family was being used to manipulate him?"

"Because they are," Algren told Kirk. "But I can save them and you and McCoy; you have to trust me."

Spock came over to where Kirk and Algren were.

"Sir," Spock said to Hank Algren, "is any of this related to the Starship Enterprise which existed outside the time continuum?"

"Yes," Algren replied. "Commander Donnelly, whom the Cardassian is referring to, has direct orders to see to the deaths of anyone who exists in this time that arrived here via unconventional means. That includes people like Kirk, McCoy and even your wife's unborn child, "Algren said directly to Spock.

Kirk looked at McCoy, and then back to Algren.

"And so this Donnelly character," Kirk deduced, "used Tolbert's family as bargaining trip, knowing we would never suspect him, so that he could kill us," Kirk said, his face filling with anger. "I would like to meet this Commander Donnelly and end this once and for all."

"You might get your chance, but first," Algren said. "We've all got to come together on this. And now it's not only your lives on the line, but also the lives of Ryan's wife and daughter."

The bear, Odo, morphed back into the shape of his hominoid self.

"Yes, as individuals that would be difficult," Odo said, in reply to what Algren had just said. "But together, if we pool our resources," Odo said, as he looked to the others, "We could stop all of this."

"Commander Donnelly, as his title suggests, is part of Star Fleet isn't he?" S'vath asked. "Why would he be doing any of this in the first place?"

"Donnelly is acting on behalf of the Federation President, who is getting his orders from the Continuum," Garak said. "Had Jonathan Archer survived, he would have told you this."

"The President is in on this?" S'vath said with a chuckle. "Do you understand how, sorry father, illogical that sounds?"

"Garak is speaking the truth," Odo said to S'vath. "I have information of my own that backs this up. In fact we, Garak and I, were on our way to warn Jim Kirk when we were attacked by unknown forces. Archer saved us."

"Why would the President condone this?" Kirk asked.

"The Continuum believes," Algren explained to Kirk, "that people such as yourself, or Dr. McCoy, or even your unborn child," Algren said to Spock, "represent a threat to the fabric of the universe; and so you must all be destroyed.."

"That is why I was sent to the Enterprise; to destroy it," Garak said to Kirk. "And I did. Only two other souls made it off that ship, besides me; and one of them was McCoy."

"Who else made it off?" Kirk asked without hesitation.

"It was Montgomery Scott," Hank Algren replied. "I intercepted a communication from Donnelly to his superiors. He told them that Commander Scott had made it off the ship, and had entered the universe via the focal point on the same world which McCoy had appeared on months earlier. Donnelly reported that he had killed Scott, and had buried him there."

"He's telling the truth," Garak said, sounding even more remorseful.

Kirk slammed his fist in the palm of his hand.

"I want to meet this man Donnelly; now," Kirk demanded of Algren.

"Again, I understand," Algren said to Kirk. "But we can't just go after him; that would lead to the deaths of more innocent people; Agent Tolbert's wife and child." Algren said. "And I don't know about you, Jim Kirk," Hank Algren said, "but I won't tolerate the murders of a mother and child just to save your lives."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile..At Railroad Park…

Amanda watched as Lenora was picking flowers near the trees. Content that all was well, Amanda went back to playing with Sarek and his toy starship collection.

Lenora was indeed picking flowers, and had several of them in her hand, separating them by size. Her mother would of course suggest she separate them on their beauty, but because beauty was in the eye of the beholder, size seemed a more logical way to separate flowers. She made her way past a tree, and found more flowers…and then she heard a voice. A park bench was situated nearby, and Lenora could not help but hear what the man sitting on the bench was saying. Lenora recognized him as being Collin Moore, a man whom she had seen her mother and father talking with at Kirk's house a few days earlier. She listened as Collin Moore spoke into a device he was holding in his hand.

"Yes, I assure you," Collin Moore said to the person on the other end, "our time table will be reached. My sister has succeeded with getting Kirk's attention and soon I will have access to Kirk's property and the Iconian Gateway beneath it. I have also taken measures to take possession of Kirk's son when time comes…"

"Do not fail me," came from the voice on the other end of the communication.

Lenora used all her concentration to remain silent so that Collin Moore wouldn't see her. Once Collin was gone, Lenora would run to her mom and tell her what she had heard so that they could warn Uncle Jim.

Collin Moore closed the communication device and then put it back in his pocket. He stood up, took a deep breath, and then walked away. Lenora took a deep breath as well, and then turned to run the opposite direction and back to her mother. But before she could take a step, a massive figure suddenly appeared before her. She looked up at the massive Jem-Hadar warrior. She recognized the species of hominoid from her studies at school. She looked at him and smiled. The Jem-Hadar reached down…

Amanda was sitting on the blanket when she heard the scream; it was the kind of scream that all parents loathed to hear; their child's scream. Amanda snatched up baby Sarek and then ran toward the tree and flowers that Lenora had been playing near. And then, she found Lenora's motionless body. She looked down at her daughter, and saw that her neck had been snapped and then Amanda dropped to her knees and screamed…Lenora was dead.

Continued…next season…


	319. Timeline

STAR TREK: The Galaxy Window

Timeline

(This is a recap of where we left off…a brand new issue will soon follow…)

**Previously; At the Naissance Dysonsphere…**

_Ensigns Rebecca Sisko and Lal were collecting soil samples for the Naissance science department and had returned to where they had nearly been killed a year earlier by a rampaging T-Rex. While collecting samples, they noticed that they were being watched by a young man they thought had been killed on the planet Drobix. They didn't know that the young man, Curtis Daystrom, was an android even more complex than Lal._

But then the T-Rex suddenly appeared! Rebecca could only listen in fright as her communicator relayed the terrible sounds as the massive beast attacked Lal.

"Lal," Rebecca yelled into her communicator, "Oh my God!"

Rebecca looked up from her position by an outgrowing of bushes and at the area Lal said she was at. And then Rebecca saw a scene straight out of hell! The T-Rex had Lal in its mouth; its powerful mouth. Seeing the T-Rex caused Rebecca to freeze in fear, and then it happen; the T-Rex crunched down, its powerful jaws crushed Lal in half!

Rebecca nearly screamed but her fright would not let her move, which probably saved her life.

Unable to move, due to being totally frightened, Rebecca could only watch as the gigantic T-Rex chomped down on Lal's torso, biting her in half. The android's upper half fell to the ground, her eyes still open as she hit the hard ground below. Before Rebecca could do anything, the massive beast took a step and squashed Lal's upper torso, as well as her head.

_Earlier, Admirals Ben Sisko and Kate Janeway and Captain Jonathan Canary had set out to find Rebecca and Lal in a shuttle craft._

Rebecca suddenly she looked up into the bright sky and saw a shuttle-craft. She felt her body begin to tingle and then; she was beamed away.

Rebecca re-materialized in the shuttle and instantly ran to her father's out reached arms.

"I knew you would save me," Rebecca said, crying as she spoke.

"Are you alright?" Ben asked his daughter.

"Yes," was all Rebecca could muster to say at first. "Father," Rebecca said through her tears, "that thing destroyed Lal."

"Yes," Ben said softly. "We saw it happen, but we were too far away."

And then worry came over Rebecca's face. "We have to go back," Rebecca said to her father, and then she looked over to Admiral Janeway. "Someone else was down there," Rebecca added. "I know, but you won't believe me." Rebecca said, as tears were still coming down from her eyes. "It was that man from Drobix, the one who had saved Lal and me from those flesh eating," Lal told him. "His name was Curtis Daystrom," Lal added.

Ben Sisko hugged his daughter again, and then cast a glance over at Janeway. Ben Sisko and Admiral Janeway already knew that Curtis Daystrom was an android, and that he had somehow transferred his essence to another android construct after being killed by the Ghouls on Drobix.

"So how could it be him," Rebecca finally said, as she looked up at her father.

"Hey you two," Captain Canary said back at Rebecca, "get off the Transporter pad. I think I can beam him up!"

Rebecca did so in a hurry. And then, right before her eyes, Curtis Daystrom shimmered into view. As soon as he solidified, he looked around and then at Rebecca.

"Hello Rebecca," Curtis said with a broad smile.

And then she fainted.

**AN HOUR LATER BACK AT THE NAISSANCE COMPLEX**

Two doors slid apart, and then a gurney, pushed by three men wearing red sanitized outfits, was rushed into a sophisticated laboratory. Scattered about the large gurney were various components of a Soong-type android; her name was Lal. Her android body had been shredded part by the powerful jaws of a massive T-rex. The gurney came to a stop, and as two of the men went about setting up for an emergency medical, the third man, Ian Maddox, rushed out of the lab. Waiting outside the lab were Admirals Ben Sisko and Kate Janeway, as well as Rebecca Sisko. She had witnessed the attack upon her android fan, and was understandably delirious. Admiral Sisko held his daughter as tight as he could, to help her feel at ease, but it was having little effect. Dr. Maddox came over to Rebecca.

"Please," Dr. Ian Maddox pleaded with Rebecca, "I need you to calm down. Everything is going to be fine, but you must calm yourself if this is to work."

Admiral Sisko looked at Dr. Maddox with a look of skepticism on his face. Sisko glanced over to Admiral Janeway who then nodded her head in agreement with Maddox.

"Rebecca," Admiral Janeway said to Rebecca, "You need to be strong for Lal."

"What for," Rebecca shot back with. "They can't save her. She's gone and it's all because of me!"

Suddenly walking into the waiting era was Curtis Daystrom; an android himself. But Rebecca was the only one in the room who didn't know that fact, but that was about to change. Rebecca looked up and saw that Curtis had come into the room. His presence had an immediate calming effect upon Rebecca.

"Hello," Curtis said as he came over to wear Rebecca was standing; next to her father.

"Why are you here," Rebecca asked. "Or better yet; how are you here? I saw you die on Drobix."

Admiral Sisko and Janeway glanced at each other, and then Janeway gave him a slight nod of her head.

"Rebecca," Ben said to his daughter, "you are not only my daughter, but you are also part of Star Fleet. And what is said here, and I mean right here and now, must remain confidential; meaning you can tell know one what you are about to learn."

"What," Rebecca said back to her father, "that we're in the presence of a dead man? Maybe he is one of those flesh eating monsters from Drobix; had that crossed your mind?"

"Rebecca," Curtis said, as he came closer and reached out his hands. "Take my hands."

Rebecca looked to her father, who nodded, and then she slowly reached out her hands.

"We need to hurry this up," Dr. Maddox said to them all, but Janeway motioned for him to back off for now.

Curtis's hands were face up as he reached out; and then Rebecca placed her hands on his...and then suddenly reality caved in. _She was standing alone with Curtis, surrounded by millions of stars._

"How did you do that," Rebecca asked. "Where are we?"

Curtis smiled at her.

"Rebecca; we are inside what you could describe as my mind," Curtis told her. "Just like you, I turn to my mind, my thoughts, when life becomes jagged and torn. And right now, you find yourself in such a place because of what happened to your friend. Nothing can be gained from something that is not true."

"How very kind of you," Rebecca said with sarcasm in her voice, "but how have you brought me into your mind; and why?"

"The simple truth," Curtis said, "is that I am not human. I wish I could tell you more, but Lal's life, her essence if you will, will soon be at a place that not even I could reach. Dr. Maddox is right though; I need you to be at calm, or I will not be able to save her. Can you do that for me, for her; can you purge your guilt."

Rebecca nodded her head.

"Yes," Rebecca said, in a soft voice, but with doubt in her tone. "What will it accomplish?"

"Humans have long given up the concept of miracles," Curtis said, and then he smiled. "I am here to counter that thought."

And then, instantly, Rebecca opened her eyes. But Curtis was not there, instead, she was in her father's arms.

"What happened," Rebecca asked."Where did he go? What's happening?"

Sisko motioned for her to look at a monitor that displayed the inside of the laboratory. Maddox, and the other two men in red suits, had arranged Lal's components on the gurney. Her head, torso, legs and arms were arranged in the general configuration of a body, but they had not been attached.

"What are they doing to her," Rebecca asked.

And then, stepping into view on the screen was Curtis Daystrom. Unlike Maddox and his assistants, Curtis did not wear the red sterilized suits; instead, he was totally nude. But as Rebecca stared closer, she noticed that Curtis's body has a strange, almost near perfect smoothness to it. It almost looked liquid.

"What is this," Rebecca softly said. "What is he?"

"I believe Spock of Vulcan once said it best," Admiral Janeway said, with a look of wonder on her face. "He may be the next step in our evolution."

And then, as they all watched, Curtis began to glow. The effect, which appeared thousands of tiny blue globes of energy, started at his eyes, but then it spread across his body. And then the glowing effect expanded from Curtis and engulfed Lal's components. The glowing effect became so bright that it drowned out the image on the screen…

**Star Fleet Command HQ…EARTH******

One of the many conference rooms located in the upper level of the tall structure…

Professor Geordi Laforge walked over to the large window that looked out at the distant Golden Gate Bridge. He shifted his gaze from the bridge down to the walkway, far below, that led from Star Fleet Academy over to the famous landmark. He could see several dozed cadets making their way to and fro, still so young and innocent when it came to their careers in Star Fleet.

"Geordi," the voice of Jean-Luc Picard said from behind him, "I know it's difficult to fathom that anyone in Star Fleet would even think of doing such a thing. But we need you."

Laforge looked away from the window and over to the conference table he had just stood up from moments ago. Picard sat at the head of the table, flanking to his left was Commodore Riker, and to his right was Commander Beverly Crusher. He looked over at Crusher.

"Beverly," Geordi Laforge said, "you do understand what they're telling us?" he asked, looking over at Picard and Riker and then back to her. "This man, Slone, cloned us, and Worf, and then he stuck Data's Positronic inside of Lore's body, and sent the entire package on a starship so they could explore some unknown area of the galaxy. I don't know about you, but I feel violated."

Beverly Crusher was about to respond but Riker cut in first.

"Don't you think we feel the same way?" Riker asked.

"Maybe," Laforge said, "but you're still in Star Fleet, Will; I'm not. I'm a civilian and I find it utterly repulsive." And then he chuckled, "And now you want me to help you convince Lal to join this freak show?"

Picard stood up and walked over to the window. He placed his hands on Laforge's shoulders.

"I'm not going to candy coat this one," Picard said to his friend, "but unless we play our part in this strange charade, then we could be facing a war with the Romulans."

"Jean-Luc; instead of going along with it," Laforge countered, "why not find whoever it is who is carrying out Sloan's wishes in the here and now. Certainly Star Fleet must have some kind of clue as to who it is."

"I would have thought so too," Picard said. "But after Jim Kirk's ordeal with Project Diamond (an earlier plotline in this story where rogue Star Fleet officers were going to use special fleets commanded by Betazoids to take over Star Fleet command) it is entirely possible that another rogue element is at play here."

"Which means," Riker added from where he sat at the conference table, "we don't have time to find his allies."

"Jean-Luc," Crusher said, after a moment had passed. "I don't understand what it is they want us to do. If they cloned you, Will, Geordi, Worf and myself, and somehow aged them, then doesn't that mean they will be leading the mission? Why even involve us at all?"

"I know this is going to sound quite bizarre," Picard said as he returned and sat down at the table, "but they removed our clone's brains."

Laforge laughed as he sat back down.

"Excuse me, Admiral, but this is getting even more outlandish by the moment," Laforge said. "Are you serious; they really removed their brains?"

"Yes," Picard said. "Using experimental technology devised by Doctor Leonard McCoy over a hundred thirty years ago, and coupling it with more recent tech created by Dr. Walter Bishop, the bodies of our clones will be controlled, by us, right here at Star Fleet Command."

"Say that again," Crusher said, as she raised her eyebrows in puzzlement.

"Beverly," Riker interjected, "You are aware of the incident where aliens removed Spock's brain. McCoy was able to create a devise which was able to," Riker searched for the right term, "animate Spock's body."

"Yes Will," Crusher said, "I am aware what he did. And for ethical reasons, and the dangers it imposed, McCoy's creation, while ingenious as it may have been, was destroyed and further attempts at such technology was banned by the Star Fleet Surgeon General."

"Let me guess," Laforge said with a laugh, "that was just a lie."

"Section-31, and more specifically Sloan, was aware of the technology," Picard told Laforge and Crusher. "And what little knowledge is known of this area of space the USS Hauck is approaching suggests that anyone who attempts to cross the strange barrier that surrounds it will go mad; instantly insane."

"So to that end," Riker continued for Picard, "far below this building, in a secret area, are the cloned brains of the four of us, Worf, and an exact duplicate of Data's brain as well. We will be using McCoy's technology to control our clones."

"News flash," Laforge said, cutting in, "Both Worf and Data are dead. Now, obviously, I can see why you want Lal. She could theoretically upload a program and control Lore's body; but what about Worf?"

"Worf's body will be controlled by his son, Alexander," Picard answered. "Dr. Bishop has been able to enhance the elements of Worf's brain that he and Alexander shared."

"I'm starting to agree with Geordi," Crusher said. "I'm feeling more violated by the moment. But I don't see that we have a choice."

"You're telling me," Geordi said. He looked at the large seal of the Federation on the far wall. "Sometimes I wonder if any of this is worth it. What are we actually protecting if such lengths as these are used to force our service?"

Suddenly the door swooshed open and Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream came in.

"Excuse me for the intrusion, however I think you better see this," Secretary Paream said as he pressed a button on the desk and activated the monitor on the wall.

The image of Admiral Kate Janeway came into view.

"It's a recorded message," Paream added.

_"Jean-Luc," Janeway said in a soft tone, "I'm extremely sorry for what I am about to report to you, but Lal has been destroyed. She was a very special person, and we will all miss her very much. But listen…" and then her image faded in midsentence. _

"How," Picard asked Secretary Paream.

"Some sort of attack by one of the animals inside the Naissance," Paream answered.

"Sir; why did you cut her message off," Riker asked Paream. "What was she about to say?"

Paream looked at the four of them, and then he pressed the button to continue the message.

_"But listen," Janeway repeated, "I believe I might be in possession of," and she smiled. "a miracle."_

And then the message ended.

"What did she mean by that," Picard asked Secretary Paream.

**Jim Kirk's Ranch house; Riverside IOWA…**

_Unknown to Jim Kirk, there was an Iconian Gateway deep beneath his ranch, which was located in Riverside Iowa. The gate had been placed there by those who knew that Kirk's son, who was still a toddler, would grow up and become a God like entity after time-traveling 50,000 years into the past. A human named Collin Moore had made a deal with the Jem'Hadar to gain access to the gateway, and the child, and trade them in exchange for absolute rule over humans after an invading army came through the Gateway and took over Earth._

**Meanwhile..At Railroad Park…(near Kirk's ranch)**

Amanda watched as Lenora was picking flowers near the trees. Content that all was well, Amanda went back to playing with Sarek and his toy starship collection.

Lenora was indeed picking flowers, and had several of them in her hand, separating them by size. Her mother would of course suggest she separate them on their beauty, but because beauty was in the eye of the beholder, size seemed a more logical way to separate flowers. She made her way past a tree, and found more flowers…and then she heard a voice. A park bench was situated nearby, and Lenora could not help but hear what the man sitting on the bench was saying. Lenora recognized him as being Collin Moore, a man whom she had seen her mother and father talking with at Kirk's house a few days earlier. She listened as Collin Moore spoke into a device he was holding in his hand.

"Yes, I assure you," Collin Moore said to the person on the other end, "our time table will be reached. My sister has succeeded with getting Kirk's attention and soon I will have access to Kirk's property and the Iconian Gateway beneath it. I have also taken measures to take possession of Kirk's son when time comes…"

"Do not fail me," came from the voice on the other end of the communication.

Lenora used all her concentration to remain silent so that Collin Moore wouldn't see her. Once Collin was gone, Lenora would run to her mom and tell her what she had heard so that they could warn Uncle Jim.

Collin Moore closed the communication device and then put it back in his pocket. He stood up, took a deep breath, and then walked away. Lenora took a deep breath as well, and then turned to run the opposite direction and back to her mother. But before she could take a step, a massive figure suddenly appeared before her. She looked up at the massive Jem-Hadar warrior. She recognized the species of hominoid from her studies at school. She looked at him and smiled. The Jem-Hadar reached down…

Amanda was sitting on the blanket when she heard the scream; it was the kind of scream that all parents loathed to hear; their child's scream. Amanda snatched up baby Sarek and then ran toward the tree and flowers that Lenora had been playing near. And then, she found Lenora's motionless body. She looked down at her daughter, and saw that her neck had been snapped and then Amanda dropped to her knees and screamed…Lenora was dead.

Next time…our story resumes with a…Miracle…


	320. Miracle 1

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY QUEST**

**Miracle I**

**Earth…**

**Railroad Park…Five miles from Jim Kirk's ranch house in Riverside Iowa**

Amanda screamed as she looked down at the dead body of her four hear old daughter Lenora. Immediately other park goers ran over to the area of the park where they scream came from. The site was gruesome. The child's neck had been snapped. An elderly couple consoled the grief stricken mother and a call was made to security officials. Unknown to the small gathering crowd, the child's killer watched from nearby. He was a Jem'Hadar soldier and his presence was shrouded behind a personal cloaking device. He watched without any emotion as Amanda went down to her knees in grief.

The child had overheard a conversation between Collin Moore and Keevan-9. In the conversation, Moore had explained to Keevan-9 his current plan to obtain access to Kirk's house and the Iconian Gateway which was buried deep beneath the land the house sat on. On the other side of the Gateway, 50,000 years ago, was a Jem'Hadar invasion force ready to take over Earth once and for all. All that was required was the gate to be uncovered, and the blood of Kirk's other child, two-year old Mathew, to activate the device. There were two reasons the Jem'Hadar had killed the girl; she was old enough to relay what she had heard and, more importantly, Collin Moore was unaware that he was being tailed by the Jem'Hadar soldier….her death was a tactical need that could have been avoided.

**Kirk's ranch house…**

Jim Kirk, S'vath, Spock and his wife Elizabeth, Leonard McCoy and Corvana, as well as Federation agents Ryan Tolbert and Hank Algren, sat around the den of Kirk's house. A viewing monitor was activated and the image of Commander Randolph Donnelly was displayed.

"This is Commander Donnelly," Hank explained. "He has been systematically killing anyone who exists in this time that did not arrive here naturally; i.e. by living natural lives."

"That includes you and me I suppose," McCoy said to Kirk.

"Just our luck," Kirk said with a grim smile.

"I would hardly call it luck," Prime Minister Odo said from where he sat next to Garak.

"I say we kill his (CENSORED)ing ass," Corvana said from where she was sitting and drinking a Root Beer.

The others looked at her; shocked that a young girl would talk in such a way. Hank Algren actually smiled at her comment.

"Hush up," McCoy admonished her. "Or it's another bar of soap for you young lady."

Corvana shook her head and went back to drinking her soda.

"Unfortunately," Algren finally said, "the young lady maybe right. We may have to kill him."

Garak smiled at Algren.

"I'm starting to like you more and more," Garak said with a devious look on his face.

"Violence is never a necessity," Spock stated from where he stood next to his wife Elizabeth. "There must be a peaceful way out of this."

"I don't know father," S'vath countered. "Look at the list of people this man Donnelly has already had killed. Many of them were Starfleet officers and had families"

"The Bozeman," Odo said. "Wasn't that the starship that came forward into time?"

"Yes it was and," Algren replied. "The first fifty three deaths were former crew-members of the USS Bozeman. But others such as this person," Algren pointed at a picture of Sela, a Romulan officer, "were not and were far from Federation space. This is was led us to believe that Donnelly's efforts were being helped along by the Q. Jonathan Archer's words, before he died before our eyes, would seem to confirm this as well."

"Why would he want to kill our child," Elizabeth asked as she held Spock's hand.

"It is quite clear, my wife," Spock said to his wife. "Your being here would seem to be an anomaly as well, being that you are well over a hundred and sixty years old. They have probably rightfully deduced that you have, in some way, gained some sort of special ability after so many years among the Talosians and will pass that ability on to our offspring."

(Author's note; Elizabeth Pike (Spock's wife) is the daughter of Christopher and Vina Pike. She does indeed have some sort of residual ability due to her living among the Talosians…Spock is unaware that she is aware of this already. The extent of her abilities is yet unknown)

Suddenly Kirk's home communication chirped.

"This is Jim Kirk," Kirk replied.

"_My name is Captain Firdaus Jhadav," a voice replied with a slight Indian acce_nt.

"I know that name," Hank Algren said. "He's the local security officer of this section of North America."

"_That is correct," Jhadav's voice replied. "I must ask that S'vath of Vulcan come to Railroad park, not far from your current position. There has been an unfortunate incident concerning his wife and child."_

S'vath's expression became one of worry, which was rare for a Vulcan. But S'vath wasn't a full Vulcan, and he shunned the emotionless society his father came from.

"I'm on my way," S'vath said.

Spock joined his son as headed for the door. Jim Kirk fell in line as well, as did…well..everyone else because that is how these friends rolled! Odo, Garak and even Ryan Tolbert joined them as they all headed for Kirk's private Transporter machine, and feeling as if they needed to as well, so did Corvana and Hank Algren.

Moments later S'vath and the other's had arrived at the park. S'vath kneeled over the dead body of his daughter, and his face was filled with anger and he held his also kneeling wife close to him.

"How could this happen, here," S'vath said without even looking up at the security officer; Firdaus Jhadav.

"We are still investigating," Jhadav replied. "However, it was definitely a crime and no accident."

"No shit, Sherlock," S'vath said as he stood up.

Spock put his hand on S'vath's shoulder.

"Son; we will find who is responsible," Spock assured his son. "There will be justice."

S'vath replied with a smirk on his face.

"Father," S'vath said, "I don't want justice; I want revenge."

"I know," Spock said, understanding his son's rage. "Revenge can cloud a person's judgment when trying to ferret out the truth."

"I know," S'vath said with anger in his voice. "So you ferret the answers out if you must, but I," S'vath said, "I swear when I find whoever did this I will kill them with my bare hands."

Commander Hank Algren walked over to Security Captain Firdaus Jhadav.

"Captain Jhadav," Algren said, "I am taking over jurisdiction of this crime. I am Commander Hank Algren, and this child's death may be part of an investigation of my own."

"Of course," Captain Jhadav said. "I will assist you as best I can."

Ryan Tolbert looked at his superior office, Algren, and shook his head.

"I don't believe this has anything to do with Donnelly's plan," Tolbert said to Algren. "This child is not here due to some sort of time anomaly."

"I agree," Jim Kirk added.

"Just to be sure," Algren said to Kirk and Tolbert, as well as to Spock and S'vath. "I want to make sure. Donnelly would have no problem with killing the child as decoy."

It was at that instant when Kirk suddenly had a spasm of pain and when down to his knees. Spock knelt down next to his stricken friend.

"Jim," Spock said to his friend. "Are you alright?"

Kirk's body began to glow with bright light and then he looked over at Lenora's dead body. He had the sudden urge to touch the body. And then, as the others watched, Kirk reached out and grasped the hand of the dead girl…

At that instant…in the Delta-Quadrant…deep in what is referred to as the Highland Expanse…the eye inside the window casted its gaze upon Earth….

Back on Earth, Kirk felt waves of energy stream across his body and then…there was a flash of light and Jim Kirk was beneath a dark blue sky. In the distance he saw an animal, a beautiful animal. At first he thought it was a horse, but then he noticed the strange horn coming from its forehead. Kirk gasped as his mind came to terms with what he was seeing; a unicorn; the fabled animal of so many tales from Earth's past. And next to the Unicorn was a beautiful Vulcan woman. Kirk walked over to the woman, who was petting the animal's broad side.

"She's a beautiful animal," Kirk said to the woman.

"Why are you here; Jim Kirk," the Vulcan woman asked. "Now is not your time."

"Actually, I am not sure where I am or how I got here," Kirk said, as he too placed a hand on the animals side and began petting it, smiling as he did so. "You seem to know my name, what is your name?" Kirk asked.

"Lenora," the Vulcan woman replied. "You have entered my living spirit, my Katra," Lenora replied. "I cannot determine how this is possible unless you aim to take me…"

Suddenly there was another bright flash and Jim Kirk repeated Lenora's last word to him…

"BACK!"

Jim Kirk was back on Earth, next to the child Lenora who was now looking up at him, and very much awake, with a smile on her face; she lived again and it was because of him…because of Jim Kirk. Jim Kirk couldn't prove it, nor would he ever try to, but he was sure that at that instant, somewhere in the infinite reach of time and space, Jonathan Archer was smiling…he had indeed altered time.

And then, from across where Kirk and all the others had gathered around the fallen child, and were now cheering in delight, the invisible Jem'Hadar soldier's expression became concerned. The child lived again…and that could not stand!

Continued…


	321. The Breath of Bears

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**The Breath of Bears**

**EARTH…**

Chakotay took in a deep breath of crisp fresh air as he looked out upon the river he stood by. He had come there for food, as did a couple dozen or so who lined the lake shore. None of them carried fishing poles or spears or any artificial means to catch a fish. All they to use were their bare hands. Yes, many native Americans hunted with spears, or used the bow; but the morning Lapta was usually obtained with a man's, or woman's, hand.

He had arrived at the southern tip of the Native American lands, which were located in the four corner section of what was once the United States, three weeks earlier; drawn by a need to re-establish himself with his past. The land that encompassed the area had long been deemed sacred by the Native Americans, long before the first white-men appeared in the early 1500s (standard calendar). Chakotay has always wanted to come to this place, even though it was somewhat north from the area his people came from, which was in the central lower part of the North American continent. But this is the area of land that Earth's government had given back to the Native Americans, and this was now his home.

"You are new here," the voice of young girl said to him. "I've have never seen you gather food for the Lapta (the morning feast)."

Chakotay looked down and saw a little girl who was no more than eight years old as she smiled up at him.

"You are right, I am new here," Chakotay replied, with his own smile. "I have been away from home for far too long. It is good to be here; good to be home."

The girl nodded her head.

"My grandmother says you have probably spent most of your life among the stars; off world." the girl came back with. "She even said you looked lost," the girl added with a slight laugh. "I hope that does not offend you."

"Perhaps years ago it would have," Chakotay admitted, "but your grandmother is very wise," Chakotay said, as he looked about. "I have spent most of my life among the stars; but no longer. This is where I wish to live out the rest of my life."

His eyes came upon a woman who sat in a hover-chair; both of her legs were gone. The girl followed the line of sight and smiled at her grandmother as her own eyes came upon the older woman.

"When the Breen attacked Earth," the girl said, "my mother and grandmother were there. Mother died, and grandmother refused medical attention. She believed, and still believes, that her destiny led her to that point of her life."

"She is much braver than I," Chakotay replied after a moment. "I would have had the operation to fix my legs."

"I must return to her," the girl said. "Do you see the Echlo; the tent of spirits?" the girl asked as he pointed toward the tree line not far from where they were standing.

"Yes I do," Chakotay replied. "I intend pay them tribute after the Lepta," Chakotay said, as he looked back at the river, and hear the rushing sound of the water as streamed by.

The little girl said goodbye and ran back to her grandmother to tend to her. Chakotay removed his boots and stepped into the cold water. Bear creek was normally just that; a lazy trickling creek. But rains from just a few days back had turned the creek into a small river. In moments he had caught his fish, and then put it in leather pouch around his shoulder and then he headed for the Echlo. He would pay tribute to the spirits and then head back to his tent, which was located a mile away near several other tents and tepees. As Chakotay headed toward the Echlo, he was unaware of the bald eagle which was streaming through the sky from nearly five miles above.

Chakotay watched as an elderly couple came out of the Echlo, leaving it for Chakotay to take his turn with the spirits. Chakotay stepped into the Echlo, which was a tepee made of animal skin and had been there for nearly six-hundred years. It was tattered and worn, and had several patches of new skins here and there; but for the most part, the Echlo was as it was; and it was sacred.

Chakotay sat down next to the small fire that burned in a pit located in the center of the dimly lit interior of the Echlo. He took out 12 buttons of the highly potent cactus and consumed them. And then, as his mind became the sideways texture of cream, the Echlo opened and an elderly Native American man stepped through.

"I am Chakotay," he said to the noble and proud man. "I am here to give you respect and to honor you with my being."

"I am," the naïve American elder replied, "Satangkai; son of Kirok." Satangkai replied. "I am not here to guide you to the other spheres you seek…I am here to ask for your assistance; Chakotay. You will seek out the offspring of Kirok, my brother and sister, and bring them to Wolf pass. They can only be safe there. Do not trust anyone, Chakotay; not even Limanu…the chief of our people.""

And that moment, Chakotay opened his eyes and he found himself next to the river. The little girl was gone, as was her grandmother; and the Echlo was gone as well. He saw, high above sitting in a tree, a bald eagle. Chakotay didn't know how or why, but he knew that he had to do one thing; find the children of Kirok and take them to Wolf Pass. The bald eagle lifted off of the branch it was on and flew off and away; Chakotay stood up and went in the direction that the bird had flown.

Continue…

Next time...Miracle II


	322. Miracle II

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Miracle II**

**The Naissance Dysonsphere…**

Admiral's Ben Sisko and Kate Janeway were in her office standing at a large window that had a great view of the park seven floors below. There were several dozen park goers milling about, but Sisko and Janeway kept their eyes on an innocent looking couple; Ben Sisko's daughter Rebecca, and a most unique android; Curtis Daystrom.

"Ben," Janeway said, "can we trust her to keep what she knows about Curtis secret?"

Ben Sisko watched as his daughter held Daystrom's hand, and then he looked at Janeway.

"Rebecca took an oath," Ben Sisko said to Kate Janeway, "She knows her duty as best as an Ensign can. And exactly what do we know about him anyway Kate? You haven't actually told me what he is, and now Picard and the others are on their way here. They will find out that Lal was destroyed by the T-Rex, and then they will learn that Daystrom was able to bring an artificial life form back to life; if there is such a thing as life for an android."

Janeway thought for a moment, and then she realized that perhaps it was time for knowledge about Curtis Daystrom to be told to her friend Ben Sisko.

"Is he another Soong type android; like Lal and her father Data?" Sisko pressed. "Or is there something more?"

"Something more," Janeway said with a sigh. "Ben; what do you know of the Voyager space program from the late 20th century?"

Sisko smiled. It was well known by most that Sisko was an avid fan of Jim Kirk's career in Starfleet, and his encounter with one of the probes that came from that long ago NASA program.

"Do you mean the entire program, or the Enterprise's encounter with Voyager-6 upon its return to Earth?" Sisko pried. "Do you know that when I was a child I built a very detailed model of Voyager-6, and then later, a more detailed model of the construct that V'ger had built around itself during its voyage back to Earth?"

Janeway smiled at him.

"Yes I know," Janeway said with a smile. "You still have them; Kasidy showed me a hologram of them sometime back."

"What does any of this have to do with Curtis Daystrom," Sisko asked after a moment.

"As I'm sure you are well aware of," Janeway continued, "V'ger, along with Captain William Decker and Lieutenant Ilya, evolved into what Spock referred to in his log as a higher form of being; perhaps the next step in our evolution, he wondered."

"Are you saying that Curtis Daystrom is that next step?" Sisko asked. "Or are you saying he is what Decker, Ilya and V'ger evolved into?" Sisko added.

"We don't really know," Janeway replied. "All we know is that seven years ago, Curtis Daystrom wandered out of the Sahara desert with absolutely no memory as to who he was. Eventually he ended up in a medical center where internal scans were taken. The doctor who read those scans found no abnormalities; he was perfect. The scans were recorded and he was sent to a care center in Egypt. Just by luck, Dr. Ian Maddox was at that same medical center visiting an old friend who had taken ill."

"Yes, I have heard of him," Sisko injected. "Just like his older brother, he is an expert on artificial life forms."

"That's him," Janeway replied. "The doctors at the center were so enamored with Curtis's perfect scans; they showed them to Maddox for his opinion. And as it happened to be, just like you, Maddox, as a child, had an obsession with the adventures of Captain Kirk and the rest of his legendary crew. Maddox knew a lot about Kirk's encounter with the V'gr probe. Maddox was aware of the fact that while V'gr was in the form of Ilya, Leonard McCoy did a complete scan of the Ilya avatar. Fast forward to the scans of Curtis that Dr. Maddox reviewed; he saw what the other doctors hadn't; Curtis's scans were too perfect to be true. Maddox would later go on to prove that whatever process had been used to create the Ilya probe had created Curtis Daystrom."

"How did he get that name?" Sisko asked quickly.

"From the moment he was found, he has lived, up until recently, at the Daystrom annex on Galor-IV," Janeway told Sisko. "In fact, he had left Galor-IV on his request to travel throughout the Federation and see humanity. In fact, he was on his way back to Galor-IV, via the Naissance, when, along with your daughter and Lal, that transport vessel they were on crashed on Drobix."

"Yes, I know that part," Sisko said. "According to my daughter, and Lal, there was no way he could have survived the onslaught he saved them from; and yet he did. How exactly did he get off that world and back here to the Naissance?"

Before Janeway could respond, a voice came over the com system.

"Admiral Janeway," a voice stated, "The USS Jillette has entered the Naissance and will be in stationary orbit over the complex in five minutes.

"Thank you," Janeway replied, and then she smiled at Sisko. "I'll tell you more about it later. But in the meantime," Janeway continued on to say, "let's go welcome Jean-Luc and the others."

The two friends left Janeway's office and headed for the reception area of the Naissance Star Fleet complex.

Seven stories below where Sisko and Janeway were was a large park. Plant life from endangered worlds dotted the grassy areas that comprised the park. Star Fleet members and visiting guests seemed to gravitate to the park for peace and quiet. Two such people were Rebecca Sisko and Curtis Daystrom. They were holding hands as they passed by a large blue tree, which was dotted with orange tinted leaves.

"This is a beautiful sight," Curtis told Rebecca as they stopped to look at the tree.

"I'm not sure where it is from," Rebecca said. "But I remember when they planted it."

"Oh, I can tell you where it is from," Curtis said. "It comes from a world called Abacan."

"That's right," Jennifer said, upon thinking about it more. "The sun of that solar system was becoming unstable, and the Emprenda (the Klingon ship commanded by Captain Jonathan Canary and tasked with saving rare plant life and animals from doomed worlds) was sent there to retrieve this tree. The leaves…"

"The leaves, at certain times of the year, can produce a substance," Curtis said, "that can be used to help those who are inflicted with rare brain tumors that, at present, cannot be treated with modern forms of medicines."

"That's right," Rebecca said with a broad smile. "How did you know that?"

"Let's sit underneath it," Curtis said as he grabbed her hand with his and made his way over to the tree.

Rebecca went along with it. She knew he was avoiding her questions, but she also knew he probably had his reasons and wouldn't press him. There were many questions she wanted to ask Curtis, chief among them being how he had gotten off Drobix alive.

But she knew now that he was some kind of artificial life form and that he had used his unique ability, right before her very eyes, to bring Lal back from oblivion. That earned him is privacy, Rebecca decided. But she couldn't help thinking, as he held her hand that she was in the presence of someone special. A person who's destiny was not that of an ordinary man. Curtis was in some way very much like her father, Benjamin Sisko. He was an important figure in the Bajoran religion, the Emissary to the Prophets. Curtis's purpose was not yet known, but somehow Rebecca knew it was greatness.

Previously…

_Several levels below, near the bottom of the Star Fleet complex located inside of the Naissance, was one of many power stations that proved energy to the massive complex. It was used by the maintenance crews, but was mainly monitored by redundant computer systems. Jennifer Sisko sought its solitude out to avoid being seen with her Ferengi contact; Kilo. She was waiting when finally Kilo arrived._

Kilo reached out his hand and handed Jennifer a small data-rod.

"It took some digging," Kilo said, "but I found information about Kasidy Sisko that you will find most interesting."

"I hope I do," Jennifer said. "Will it be enough to drive her away from my husband?"

"Let's just say," Kilo said with a smile, "she will not want the info on that rod to come out, if she values her freedom. Now; when can I expect payment?"

Suddenly, stepping up from behind Kilo was Kaleb Sisko, Jennifer's son. He put his hands on both sides of the Ferengi's head, and then twisted it, snapping Kilo's neck and killing him instantly.

""Did we really have to do that mother?" Kaleb asked. "Did we really have to kill him?"

Suddenly, Jennifer slapped her son across the face as hard as she could; the slap echoing through the chamber.

"Just get rid of the body," Jennifer told her son with maniacal anger voice.

_Kaleb knew his mother was mentally unstable, but he loved her all the same. And just as swiftly as the maniacal part of her had appeared; it was replaced by the sweetness of the other side._

"Kaleb," Jennifer said with a broad smile, "don't forget we are having dinner with your father tonight. He will be so happy to see you again. I know for a fact he loves you and Jake far more than he loves that bitch daughter of his; Rebecca and his whore wife; Don't you agree?" she asked in a giddy manner.  


_Suddenly her face turned stone cold, and she continued walking away, leaving Kaleb alone in the near darkness so as to dispose of the dead Ferengi's body._

The Present…(three days later)

There were several diners and restaurants located inside the Naissance Star Fleet complex. Kasidy made her way inside one of the more popular establishments; Bella's. She had been invited by Jennifer to join her for lunch. Kasidy had thought about declining, feeling uneasy being around Ben's first wife. She told Ben about the request and he told her there was no harm in going; so there she was. Kasidy smiled as she saw Jennifer at one of the secluded tables waving at her. Kasidy made her way over to the table and sat down.

Jennifer was wearing a stunning red dress that complimented her curves quite well. Kasidy sat down just as the waiter poured her some wine.

"It De'vjan," Jennifer said, referring to the wine. "It's always been one of my favorites."

"Yes," Kasidy said, as she sipped some of the wine. "Thank you for the invite to lunch," Kasidy added.

"Tell me the truth," Jennifer said with a smile, "you didn't really want to come. I would understand if you didn't."

Kasidy smiled back and nodded her head.

"Well, to tell you the truth Jennifer, I was nervous about coming," Kasidy admitted. "But I can't see why we can't get along. You have two wonder children with Ben, we have Rebecca. I guess we are one large extended family." She saw a datapad sitting on the table next to Jennifer's wine glass. "What's the datapad for?"

"Oh that," Jennifer said as she picked it up. "Just to let you know," Jennifer added in a friendly tone, "I chose this table for its privacy," Jennifer said to Kasidy as she handed the datapad. "Go ahead activate it."

Kasidy, unsure of where all of this was headed, activated the datapad. Within seconds, images began to stream across the screen of the device. The images showed a much younger Kasidy and two men, one of them Bajoran, engaged in very sexual lewd acts and every combination the threesome would allow…and then the exchange of credits given by the two men to Kasidy. As it turned out, in her past, Kasidy had once been a prostitute.

"Where did you get this," a very visibly shaken Kasidy demanded of Jennifer.

"That isn't all of it is it? A week after your romp with those two men," Jennifer said, ignoring Kasidy's question, "the Bajoran was found dead. As it turns out, the other man was a friend of yours who would frequent bars in hopes of finding interested men, like the Bajoran, to," Jennifer smiled deviously, "share you in bed. Both men would appear to be paying you, but it was all just a scam to get the other man's credits. But, as I said, the Bajoran ended up dead and your friend was convicted for the murder."

"I was exonerated from any involvement with the Bajoran's death," Kasidy countered. "Those records were sealed and I went on with my life."

"No," Jennifer said snapped back, "you went on to steal my husband you slut. I am willing to bet that Ben has no idea of this sorted past of yours. And from what I know, there is more to tell."

"So what is this," Kasidy asked. "Are you trying to blackmail me to leave Ben so you can have him back?"

"To put it simply," Jennifer said, as she calmly sipped some wine, "yes. But not just you; I also want you to take your bitch daughter with you."

"And if I don't?" Kasidy asked.

Jennifer glared at Kasidy, as sure hatred fired from her eyes. Jennifer reached for the datapad and pressed a button and then another image appeared on the screen causing Kasidy to gasp at what she saw. Kasidy's hands began to tremble because she knew what had to be done.

"You have forty-eight hours," Jennifer said softly. "If you and your daughter are not gone by that time," she took the datapad back, "I will show Ben this. It will ruin your life and your daughter's life as well. And don't think for one reason that I won't follow through on my threat. Do you understand?"

Kasidy stood up and looked down at Jennifer, who remained seated.

"I do," Kasidy said after a moment. "We will be gone by tomorrow."

And then Kasidy strode away, wanting to put as much distance between her and Jennifer as possible. After Kasidy had been gone for a few moments, Jennifer's son, Kaleb, entered the diner and came over and sat down with his mother.

"How did it go," Kaleb asked.

"She got the message," Jennifer said, with a wry smile. "Now; I want you to keep an eye on them; Kasidy and Rebecca. Make sure they are making plans to leave."

"What are going to be doing?" Kaleb asked.

"Oh, didn't you know," Jennifer smiled back at her son. "I have been invited to a special dinner in honor of Locutus. He is arriving as we speak, and I so much want to see him again."

Kaleb nodded his head, and then left and exited the diner. Alone again, Jennifer poured another glass of wine and sat back and enjoyed the sweet taste of victory.

Continued…


	323. The Next Step

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Next Step…**

**The Naissance Dysonsphere**

The USS Jillette, a Nova class starship, left its parking orbit position high above the Star Fleet complex inside the Naissance Dysonsphere upon dropping of its important passengers; and then headed for the exit thoroughfare which was located ten million miles away which would lead it back into open space.

Admiral Janeway, Admiral Sisko and an honor guard welcomed Secretary of Federation Defense Jy'lor Paream as well as Admiral Jean-Luc Picard, Commodore William T Riker, Commander Beverly Crusher, Professor Geordie Laforge and Dr. Walter Bishop. The group were taken straight to a secured briefing room where Ensign Lal was already waiting, sitting at the long briefing table, as well was Dr. Ian Maddox and Ensign Curtis Daystrom.

"Please fill us in Admiral Janeway," Secretary Paream said from where he sat at the long briefing room table. "Your report initially stated that Ensign Lal had been destroyed by wildlife inside this sphere. Perhaps you can…"

"Before Admiral Janeway gives us her report," Admiral Picard interjected, not wanting to let Lal's continued "living" to go un-noticed, "I just want to say that it is good to see you have survived the attack Lal."

"Yes I agree; it really is good to see you again Lal." Laforge added with a smile of his own.

"Thank you Uncle Geordie," Lal said with a soft voice. She looked over at Riker and Bev Crusher and the both nodded at her as well.

The emotional attachment the former crew of the Enterprise had toward the offspring of Data was deep and pure.

"Thank you Admiral," Lal said with a smile. "But I have these two men to thank," Lal said as she looked to Dr. Maddox and Ensign Curtis Daystrom."

Paream nodded at Picard, understanding the need to interject, and then he shifted his gaze back to Admiral Janeway.

"As you are well aware," Janeway began to explain, "Dr. Ian Maddox has relocated his work to this facility due to its isolated location at the Naissance Dysonsphere. His work with Ensign Curtis Daystrom is extremely confidential in nature which why the two of them are here."

"I am unfamiliar with Dr. Maddox's work," Commodore Riker said.

"As am I," Picard stated coolly.

"Jean-Luc," Sec. Paream said, "you've only been reinstated to active duty very recently, and as for you," Paream aimed toward Riker, "you didn't have the authorization."

"So just what is Dr. Maddox's work," Laforge asked. "And if it is as secretive as Admiral Janeway has stated, then why am I and Dr. Bishop even here?"

"I'll tell you why," Bishop replied, before anyone else could. "This man," Bishop said as he looked at Maddox with contempt on his face, "has been borrowing from the work that I have been pioneering for years and he is obviously here begging for me to help."

"Please," Dr. Maddox said with a smile. "You've been borrowing your techniques from Soong far longer than I have."

"But unlike you," Walter Bishop countered, "I actually tutored underneath Soong."

Maddox was about to respond, but Sec Paream cut him off.

"Enough," Paream stated calmly.

"I agree," Picard added to Janeway. "You said that Lal had been destroyed and yet here she is; how?"

"For that," Admiral Janeway replied with a smile, "Dr. Maddox will explain better."

Admiral Janeway went over and sat down at the table.

"And trust me," Admiral Ben Sisko added, as he looked over at Picard and Riker, who sat next to each other, "it's a doozie."

Dr. Ian Maddox stood up and walked over to the podium which Janeway had just vacated.

"As I'm sure you all pretty much could gather from my exchange with Walter Bishop," Maddox explained, "Advances in android and or artificial technology encompasses a wide swath of scientists from all across the galaxy. From Noonien Soong to Roger Corby to S'taln of Romulas, and others," Maddox said, "many can lay claim to advances. But all that changed about seven years ago when my friend here," he turned and looked over at Curtis Daystrom, "walked out of the Sahara desert back on Earth."

The others at the table all looked over at Curtis.

"Are you saying he is yet another android species," Beverly Crusher asked.

"Actually," Maddox replied, "he is far different. Where a Soong or Corby-type android, or others, use the conventional constructs of an android, with either skin like surfaces or bio-organic skin or other augmentations; that isn't what we have here. Curtis Daystrom truly is an artificial-organic life form. His skin, blood, meaning his blood cells at macro-level, hair, teeth...you name it. All of them are artificially generated at the sub-atomic level."

"I get the impression," Picard said, "that we are coming into this at the middle point. With all due respect," Picard said as he stared directly at Curtis Daystrom and then back at Paream, "who or what is he? And how did he simply just walk out of the Sahara desert and catch your attention?"

"V'gr," Admiral Sisko stated softly with his deep voice.

Picard and Riker exchanged worried glances, and then turned back to Sisko.

"All cadets," Picard stated simply, "learn very early on about the threat the returning Voyager-6 probe imposed on Earth." He was about to continue when…

"Wait; I get it," Beverly Crusher interjected, "the V'gr probe, in the form of the Deltan Ilya, was just like Ensign Daystrom; every function of her body was perfectly replicated; even down to the sub-atomic level."

"That's right," Laforge said, slightly excited, from where he was sitting, next to Walter Bishop, "I have seen those scans of Ilya. No one, not even Soong, or even Data when he created Lal, could even come close to what V'gr was able to do."

Bishop scoffed at Geordie's remark.

"Actually my boy," Bishop said, "Belly and I were able to do the same with a toe of a bullfrog."

"I know, I read about it and it was quite impressive," Dr. Maddox said to Walter. "But this is far beyond what you and Bell were able to do. This is on a human level; a miracle one could say."

"Again," Picard stated, "how did he just appear on Earth? And are you saying that you believe he was created by V'gr as well?"

Maddox was about to speak when suddenly…

"Sir," Curtis said to Picard, "unfortunately my memory only starts at the point that I was found wandering out of the desert. I wish I could answer these questions as to who or what I am, but for now'; I can't."

"And so," Maddox continued, "the Daystrom institute assigned me to continue observing him and hopefully find the answers out. And then Lal had her deadly encounter with the T-Rex."

"I'm still confused," Commodore Riker said. "You do mean to infer that he repaired Lal. I mean, with all due respect to Ensign Lal, the construction or repair of androids is nothing new."

"Which is why," Janeway said from where she was sitting, "you need to see this."

At that moment, the wall monitor behind Maddox was activated. Images streamed across the screen. They showed show Lal was rushed into the operating room, literally torn in half by the crushing jaws of the T-Rex. And then the images showed Curtis Daystrom standing next to Lal's gurney. He reached out and placed his hands in her hands. And then they all watched as Curtis's body began to glow, becoming bright, nearly too bright to watch. And then the light of Curtis's body suddenly engulfed the smashed pieces of Lal.

The monitor stopped and then Maddox looked at the others.

"Commodore Riker," Maddox said to Riker, "just so that there is no confusion I will just come right out and say it. Lal is no longer a Soong-type android," Maddox said with a giddy smile. "You actually say she has been reborn."

Geordie stood up and went over to Lal, who was now standing as well. He looked at her and then held her hands. His smile became broader as he realized the notch in her head that was usually there, to allow access to her positronic-brain. Geordie looked back to Picard and shook his head. He then looked directly at Lal.

"Are you human," Geordie asked his late friend's offspring.

"No," Lal replied, and then she smiled. "I am an android."

Picard looked over at Paream.

"While this is all very engrossing," Picard said to Secretary of Defense Paream, "If Lal no longer has a positronic-brain to synch with Data's cloned brain on the USS HAUCH, then how does this help with our mission?."

"Jean-Luc's right," Beverly added, as she too glanced over at Sec. Paream. "If we can't continue into the Highland Expanse, then Section-31 may go through with its threats."

"I hope this is where you have that miracle you told us about," Riker said with a smile aimed at Janeway.

The monitor became active again, and then an image was shown of the galaxy. The spiral shaped galaxy was sliced into its customary four pie sliced segments. A white arching line was seen making its way across the galaxy and into the area designated the Highland Expanse.

"That," Admiral Sisko said to the others, "is the estimated course that V'gr took into this part of the galaxy. It's based on recently unclassified Klingon tactical reports from that time. As you can clearly see, V'gr passed through what we call the Highland Expanse."

Picard looked over at Curtis Daystrom, understanding where it was all leading to.

"Then perhaps," Picard said, "if Ensign Curtis Daystrom has some way to join us on this quest…"

"I may finally," Curtis said with a broad smile, "go home."

Continues…


	324. Thorn of the Rose

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Thorn of the Rose**

**The Naissance…**

Kasidy Yates was scurrying about the quarters she shared with her husband Ben Sisko as she hastily packed up a few of her belongings. She was worried; worried that Jennifer Sisko, Ben's first wife, would reveal aspects of Kasidy's life that were embarrassing and could possibly wreck her marriage to Ben. Jennifer would only keep the past buried if Kasidy agreed to leave, and for now, Kasidy would do just that.

Rebecca Sisko, Ben and Kasidy's daughter, stood by and helplessly watched as her mother packed up the duffle back of items she would be taking. Kasidy had not told her daughter the truth as to why she was leaving, instead claiming that a family emergency had brought her departure on.

"Why do you have to leave," Rebecca asked.

"It's just as I told you," Kasidy told her daughter. "Your Aunt Josephine is ill, and I've got to go look after her for a while."

"Then I'm coming too," Rebecca came back with.

"You just can't leave your posting," Kasidy shot back as she continued to pack.

"Dad can pull some strings," Rebecca replied. "I'll go back now."

"No you will not," Kasidy said as she stopped packing and came over to her daughter. "You will stay here and continue your career, and look after your father; do you understand me?"

"Mama," Rebecca said as tears came down from her face, "how long will you be gone."

Kasidy smiled at her daughter as she used her fingers and dried Rebecca's tears.

"Not long," Kasidy lied.

At that moment, the doors to the quarters swooshed open and Admiral Ben Sisko strode in; it was clear he had been in a hurry.

"What's this I hear that you're leaving," Ben Sisko demanded of his wife.

Kasidy looked at her daughter; realizing it was she who had informed Ben of her imminent departure.

"I'm sorry Mama," Rebecca pleaded, "Daddy had a right to know you were going."

"What is going on here," Ben Sisko asked his wife. "Why are you leaving?"

Kasidy explained to Ben the same lie she had told her daughter; that Josephine, Kasidy's older sister, had become ill and that she, Kasidy, was going to go tend to her for a while.

"What about her husband Jacob," Ben inquired, "why can't he take care of her?"

"Oh Ben, please," Kasidy replied. "Jacob is part of a survey team in the Gamma-Quadrant and he isn't expected to be back in four more months. And their son, Landon, is too far away to help either. So you see; I'm the only one available."

"I'm going with you," Ben finally said.

"That's what I told her," Rebecca added.

"You can't go," Ben told Rebecca. "You've got your duties here aboard the Naissance."

"You're an Admiral, dad," Rebecca countered with, "if anyone should stay here; then it should be you."

"She has you there," Kasidy said with a laugh. "But no," she continued to stay. "I don't want any of you to come. I can take of this by myself."

"Now wait a moment," Ben said to that. "I told Kate that my coming back to Star Fleet was only temporary until she came back from that ordeal with the Borg cube. Well," Ben continued to say, "She is back now. Why don't I resign my commission and go with you, and we'll bring Josephine back with us to Timus. I may no longer be the mayor anymore, but we still have our house there; and you know how quiet it is."

Kasidy shook her head.

"They need you here," Kasidy told Ben. "Picard is here; Riker is here, as well as the Secretary of Defense. Whatever they have you working on must be really big."

"It has something to do with Curtis," Rebecca said to her mother.

"That is classified information, cadet Sisko," Ben said to his daughter. "But you're right," Ben said to his wife. "I do need to stay until this situation blows over. I'll let you go, but I want you back as soon as you can."

Ben kissed his wife.

"Now go," Kasidy said, as she shushed him away, "get back to that meeting with Kate and the others. I'll be back before you know it. I'm going to take the Xhosa's shuttle, so I don't have to worry about booking passage."

"Good idea," Ben said. "When you get back I'll make some of that baked Halibut you like so much."

Kasidy smiled and then waved at her husband as he left to go back to the meeting with Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream and the others.

For another thirty minutes, Rebecca helped her mother pack and soon watched as her mother beamed away to the Xhosa shuttlecraft which was in high orbit of the Star Fleet complex.

Two hours later word was received at the Naissance that wreckage from the shuttle Kasidy left on was found by the USS Donner. Apparently it had exploded due to some sort of mechanical incident…

Kasidy Sisko was dead!..._or was she_


	325. SPECIAL NEWS!

**Star Trek: Exodus…**

This story centers on a family that must survive a Federation civil war that takes place twenty-years after the events of Nemesis and The Galaxy Window! Follow Zeb MaCahan as he tries to lead his family away from a war torn Earth to a new life in the vastness of space!

Look for STAR TREK: EXODUS in either the Next Generation or How The West Was Won catagories!


	326. Flames from the Abyss

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Flames from the Abyss**

**Previously…**

_Chakotay had returned to Earth after having lived with the Voth for many years. He decided to visit the Native American lands in what used to be parts of New Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming. But while visiting an Echlo, a vision quest alcove generally in the form of a Tepee, Chakotay made contact with the legendary Satangkai's spirit; a bald eagle. Satangkai, the former chief of all Native Americans, warned Chakotay that Jim Kirk's child, Mathew, who also lived with the Native Americans, was in mortal danger and that Chakotay was tasked with saving him…_

**Our story continues…**

The Colorado River rolled through the country side, pushed on by the nearby mountain range. The roaring sound of the rapids was soothing to Chakotay as he rode his horse toward the village which was dotted with several Tepees. There were large trees, and thick foliage, and a nice cool breeze that Chakotay breathed in deeply. He looked atop one of the trees and saw a bald eagle. Was it the same one which he had first followed on his quest to find Kirk's children; he didn't know. But something told him that the spirit of Satangkai lived in every bald eagle.

One of the Tepees was slightly larger than the others, which usually denoted that it was the Chief's Tepee. His name was Limanu, and Chakotay had never met him before. But Chakotay had heard stories; stories about how Limanu had arranged to kill Jim Kirk, because as it turned out, Jim Kirk had dishonored Limanu's father over a century earlier on a far away world (The events of The Paradise Syndrome). But the two, Kirk and Limanu, became friends and, with the dying wish of Satangkai, Limanu became the new Chief of the Native American people.

Although the spirit of Satangkai did not provide specifics, when Chakotay had been touched by it earlier, it still gave off the impression that Limanu had been compromised in some way.

Chakotay brought his horse to the larger Tepee and dismounted the animal. The Tepee opened and a little boy, who appeared to be a human/Bajoran hybrid, came running out with such energy it caused Chakotay to smile. Chakotay looked up at the bald eagle, which remained on the tree, and somehow, someway, the former First Officer of Voyager knew that he had found Kirk's son.

A man stepped out of the Tepee. Chakotay had never met Limanu, but he could tell it was him.

"I am Chakotay," Chakotay said with a smile.

"Your name is known very well among our people," Limanu said with pride. "It is good to see that you have come home."

"Thank you," Chakotay came back with. "I wish to make my abode here; here among you and my brothers and sisters." But it was really so that he could keep an eye on the child; Mathew.

"Yes, you will," Limanu said. "We will revel in the stories you will tell us about the worlds you have visited."

Chakotay engaged in small talk with Limanu, and others who had gathered, but all the while he kept a watchful eye on Mathew, who was now playing with the other children. Chakotay had never met Jim Kirk, and would make it a point to do so. How it was that children of mixed human/Bajoran heritage came to live among the Native Americans was a story worth hearing; someday. But right now, under the watchful gaze of the bald eagle, Chakotay knew his place; protecting the child from an eminent threat or die trying.

Gamma Trianguli VI

The Federation science team that was studying the strange green crystals which had been growing on the surface of the planet ever since Vaal had been destroyed by the Enterprise was also studying the crystals to see what if any effect was left over from the burst of energy that came from the Bajoran wormhole thousands of light years away.

_(An event that savvy readers will recall happened many-many issues ago, involving Kirk's son, Mathew (an adult version from an alternate timeline, and who was as powerful as a God) and the powerful beings inside the wormhole)._

The science team was doing their usual morning routines when the Jem'Hadar attack began. The warriors from the Gamma-Quadrant had come to abduct the crystals, and had beamed down from their massive ship in orbit of the planet. The Jem'Hadar suffered no casualties as they were trained warriors and the scientists were, well, just scientists. The Jem'Hadar collected up as many of the green crystals that they could and they returned to the ship, which then sped away.

Keevan-9, the Vorta in command of the Jem'Hadar battle cruiser, which now traveled under the protection of a cloaking device, smiled at the collection of crystals which the Jem'Hadar brought to his command center.

"Very good," Keevan-9 said to them as, one by one, the warriors placed the crystals on the table.

After the crystals had all been presented, the Jem'Hadar soldiers left; all but one. He was the First and his name was Imak'Ulvay.

"Were all the scientists killed?" Keevan-9 asked, not once taking his eyes off the crystals; which pulsed with green energy.

"As you ordered," Imak replied, though it was clear from his voice that he found the killing pitiful. "They did not need to be killed."

"Yes they did," Keevan-9 said, as he finally looked up at Imak. "They needed to be because I wanted it. Besides, you and the others are warriors and are bred to kill."

"Killing defenseless scientists, one of them a pregnant female, is not what we trained for, especially when they are not trained warriors," Imak said.

"Are you questioning my authority? The Founder might find your disobedience a sign that you are not worthy of being First." Keevan-9 said.

"The Founder is as renegade as we are," First said. "Perhaps it is we who should question the Founder."

"It is a shame that you say those words," Keevan-9 said, with a smug look on his face…which suddenly morphed away until a Founder stood before Imak.

"You are the Founder; the renegade?" Imak asked in stunned shock.

The Founder morphed his left arm into a blade and without hesitation, he dove it into the mid-section of Imak.

"The name is Laas," Laas said with anger as he watched the life drain from Imak's eyes.

(What's this reader? Didn't Laas die at the hands of Azami, the Imeyah super changeling many issues ago? Apparently not)

Laas morphed back into the shape of Keevan-9. The only task left to them was getting the crystals to Earth to be used in conjunction with the Iconian Gateway beneath Kirk's land. And then, if everything went according to plan, an army of Jem'Hadar and Shadow creatures would pour through the gateway and cast Earth down into the flames of the abyss; at last!

**Previously…**

**The Naissance**

Jennifer Sisko had made her move, and had a secret meeting with Kasidy at an Italian café inside the food court of the Federation complex inside the Naissance.

Somehow Jennifer had come in possession of highly detailed information, including holograms, which proved that many years ago, before her days as freighter captain, Kasidy had once been a pleasure giver (prostitute). And during that time she had become involved, preferably, in a murder of one of her customers. Jennifer threatened to reveal Kasidy's past unless Kasidy left Ben; never to return. Kasidy did as instructed, and packed her things and left, telling Ben that she was leaving to care for an ill sister of hers.

Two hours after she left the Naissance, word was received that wreckage from the shuttle Kasidy left on was found by the USS Donner. Apparently it had exploded due to some sort of mechanical incident…

Kasidy Sisko was dead...or..._was she?_

**(Moments before the shuttle exploded...in deep space, not far from the Naissance..)**

Kasidy was an expert pilot, and also a not so bad engineer thanks to hanging around Miles Obrien for all that time. She sat at the main controls of the shuttle and tweaked an energy flow buffer here, and a containment field there. Finally it was time and she snatched up her quickly packed duffle bag. She took an old style communicator out of her pocket and flipped it open.

"Ready," she said into the device.

Instantly she dissolved away, and just in the nick of time. Because twenty seconds later the shuttle exploded into zillions of bits and pieces.

Kasidy now found herself aboard another ship. It was no larger than the shuttle she had just destroyed. She turned around and was greeted by the sight of her good friend; Kira Nerys,

"Thank you for doing this; for helping me," Kasidy said as she placed her duffle bag on the ground.

"Don't say another word about it," Kira said with a broad smile, "I'm just glad you felt you could come to me. It's been so long since we've seen each other."

"I know, but when all of this happened, and I couldn't turn to Ben for help, I could only think of one person; you." Kasidy said with total respect.

"Well, you listen to me," Kira said, as she came over to Kasidy. "We're going to find whoever it was she went to in order to find that information. And for that, I have enlisted Quark. So the first place we're going to is that little planet of yours; Timus."

"Just as long as no one sees me," Kasidy said, as she began to unpack. "I'm supposed to be dead; remember?"

"Don't worry," Kira said, as she sat down at the main controls. "I hope we find this dirt bag that decided to dig up your past." Kira said with anger. "It's been a long time, a very long time, since I was able take out my anger with my hands so it will seem like old times. You and Benjamin deserve to be left alone, and I'm going to do my best to see that you are."

"Will Quark help us?" Kasidy asked.

"Quark owes me a few favors, and," Kira said, "if I need to, I can always try a little oomax on him; that always works. But, we better get going. I detected a Star Fleet vessel not far from here, and they may have detected your shuttle's destruction."

And with that, Kira piloted her private shuttle into warp; destination being the planet Timus.

_**(Be sure to check out my new story "STAR TREK: EXODUS" which follows the exploits of family trying to escape the depths of a Federation civil war...starring Zeb MaCahan!)**_

Continued…


	327. On The Wire

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW  
ON THE WIRE**

* * *

**Star Fleet Headquarters;**

**San Francisco**

Commander Randolph Donnelly entered the Star Fleet Complex as he always did, with a fresh cup of coffee in one hand, and a briefcase in the others. He waved at the various admin workers who manned computers in the main office that he was in charge of; or at least, that's what his day job appeared to be.

He was actually a covert agent charged by a secret division of Star Fleet, on orders supposedly from the President of the Federation himself, to hunt down anyone who existed presently due to the influence of a time anomaly, and eliminate them. However, all of that was about to change.

Commander Donnelly entered his office, and before he could react, a fist landed hard against his jaw, causing him to drop his coffee as he fell to the floor. He looked up at the man who threw the fist; and the man introduced himself.

"Kirk," James Kirk said, "James T. Usually I don't sucker punch a man, but that's for Commander Montgomery Scott and all the others aboard the Enterprise you killed."

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Donnelly said as he began to stand up. "You've crossed the line Kirk. I'll destroy you!"

But before he could stand up all the way, another fist landed on Donnelly's jaw, and this one was thrown by a man he knew personally; agent Ryan Tolbert. Donnelly fell to the ground again and this time he was forcibly brought up to his feet by Kirk and Tolbert, each of whom had grabbed one of his arms. Donnelly, still staggered, stared over at his desk and at the bald man who sat behind it; Commander Hank Algren.

"Hello there Randy," Algren said. "Your reign of terror is over."

"I don't think so," Donnelly said, as a trickle of blood came down from the side of his mouth. "I have powerful connections."

"Perhaps," Algren said, as he stood up and came to where Donnelly was standing, in the clutches of Kirk and Tolbert. "But we have proof of your actions, and the attempts to kill those like Jim Kirk by using coercion against men like Ryan Tolbert, or enticing others like the Cardassian, Garak, to do the dirty deed."

"None of which is provable," Donnelly said with a smile.

"Let me show you something," Hank Algren said as he activated the monitor on the wall. "I know that you were receiving your orders from higher up, but I could never figure out who it was. I was able to trim down the list of suspects to these three Star Fleet officers," images showing the three Admirals appeared on the screen. "So, I had to go about setting up a net and hope that I could snare the one who was shielding your crime."

"Hah," Donnelly said with a smile, "even if one of them were my superior office, do you really think they'd admit anything to you? I suggest that the three of you," he looked at Kirk, Tolbert, and then shifted his gaze back to Algren, "should stop while you're ahead, leave this office, and get as far away as you can before it's too late."

"I suggest you watch the screen," Algren said with a fiendish smile.

The footage on the screen continued to play and showed a Tellarite Admiral, Th'orall, in his office when suddenly the door to the office swished open and Commander Randolph Donnelly came in. The two began to discuss Donnelly's actions, and how he had personally killed Montgomery Scott, and that sending Garak aboard the duplicate Enterprise to unwittingly destroy it was successful. The footage ended, and Hank Algren looked back to Commander Donnelly, who was still in the clutches of Kirk and Tolbert.

"Do you take me for a fool? That conversation never took place," Donnelly said. "What we just watched was most likely a holographic creation."

Algren laughed, and then reactivated the screen.

The scene between Admiral Th'orall and Donnelly continued as Federation Security officers, as well as Commander Hank Algren entered the office. And then, right before their very eyes, the Tellarite began to change shape into that of Prime Minister Odo, who then looked up at the hidden camera, and smiled for what he knew would be his future audience; the real Commander Randolph Donnelly.

And then, suddenly, Donnelly thrust his arm away from Tolbert, and then punched Kirk.

"There's nowhere to run," Commander Algren said as he pulled out a phaser.

"Who said anything about running," Donnelly said as he suddenly reached into his mouth pressed on one of his back molars.

Suddenly Donnelly's body began to spasm and he fell to the ground; dead. Tolbert went over and placed his fingers on the underside of Donnelly's neck to be sure.

"He's gone," Tolbert said. He then reached out his hand and helped Kirk up.

"Who cares; what about your wife and daughter?" Kirk asked Tolbert. "I thought this jerk was holding them captive."

"My men found them," Algren said to Kirk. "They are already on their way here to Earth as we speak. I told Ryan about an hour ago."

"I want to thank you personally," Ryan Tolbert said to Algren. "This could have gone all wrong, and I could have lost them both for good."

"I want to thank you for risking everything," Algren said to Tolbert. "You are one the agency's best agents and I'm glad we have men and women like you who are willing to risk it all."

"I'm happy too," Kirk said with a smile to Tolbert. "Just like Commander Algren just said, if it weren't for your diligence then my friends, Spock and McCoy, as well as myself, would have been caught up in Donnelly's insane web of death."

"Well," Tolbert said to Kirk, and then to Algren, with a smile, "with all due respect, sir, I hope you don't mind if I officially announce my resignation from the Federation Security Bureau."

Ryan Tolbert took out his credentials from his pocket as well as his specially issued hand phaser, and placed them on the desk.

"I'll take these but," Algren said as he gathered up the items, "If you change your mind, then you know where to find me." Algren turned to Kirk and offered his hand. "It has been an honor meeting you Jim Kirk."

Kirk shook Hank Algren's hand, and smiled.

Algren left the room, leaving Kirk and Tolbert alone.

"Somehow," Kirk said, "after all I know you've been through, "I still can't see you settling down in a pedestrian life."

Tolbert laughed.

"I believe many thought that once of you," Tolbert said with humor in his voice.

"You've got a point," Kirk said. "Look; I've got to get back to my ranch and see if S'vath and Spock have figured out what happened with Lenora."

"Well, if you don't mind," Tolbert said, "even though I am a civilian now, I'd still like to see what I can do to help. My wife and daughter won't be here for another week."

"Great," Kirk said.

And then the two men walked out of the office that had been Commander Donnelly's until about ten minutes earlier.

* * *

**Kirk's ranch in Riverside Iowa;**

Kirk and Tolbert materialized inside of Kirk's house, and Tolbert began to talk with Amanda and S'vath as to what she had seen at the park. Meanwhile, Kirk joined Garak and Prime Minister Odo who were appearing to leave.

"Where are you headed?" Kirk asked Garak.

"You may find this hard to believe, friend Kirk," Garak said with a smile, "but I am part of a Cardassian motorcycle club that performs for charities throughout Federation and beyond. We just so happen to have a gig in a nearby system; and Prime Minister Odo is offering to take me there on his way back to the Gamma-Quadrant."

Kirk looked to Odo.

"Prime Minister," Kirk said, "I had hoped we'd get to talk some more. I know so very little about the Gamma-Quadrant, and your people, I was hoping to learn more."

"Perhaps another time," Odo said."I really need to get back to the Great-Link; I've been gone far too long. I hope that in your future travels, that both you and Spock will visit us my world the Gamma-Quadrant. However, before I go, I want to tell you something."

Odo leaned closer to Kirk and whispered into his ear.

"I see," Kirk said to Odo, with a perplexed look on his face. "In any event," Kirk suddenly said to Odo and Garak, "thank you for all your help and take care."

And then he watched as Odo and Garak were beamed way and up to the Founder transport vessel in orbit of Earth.

On the other side of the room, Kirk could see Ryan Tolbert speaking with Amanda, S'vath, Lenora and Spock. Kirk was beginning to like the former Federation Agent, Ryan Tolbert, more and more. Even with his wife and child recently freed from the clutches of Commander Donnelly, Tolbert was still willing to lend a hand; the mark of a good friend!

Kirk walked over to where McCoy was sitting on a couch, next to Corvana. They were in some sort of disagreement.

"What seems to be the issue," Kirk asked as he sat across from them on the other couch.

"I was just telling her that, with Spock's help, I've made arrangements for her to get back into school." McCoy said to Kirk. "The life of a con-woman isn't in the cards for her any longer."

"If Colt was here, he'd disagree," Corvana said.

"But he's not, I am. And a little girl your age doesn't need to be doing anything else but getting an education.

"I keep telling him that my mom and dad are dead," Corvana countered with, "and I can do what I want. And besides," Corvana said to McCoy, "you are pretty much my dad now anyway and I don't want to go to some stupid school if I can't see you again. You're all I have left."

"Bones," Kirk said to McCoy. "There are schools here in Iowa. I mean, we have really haven't had time to discuss what you want to do. In many ways, you are in the same boat I am. Let her go to school here, and live here, so she can have some resemblance of a family."

"I guess so," McCoy said. "I still have to come to grips with my future. This is all new to me; you know. And look at you," McCoy said with a laugh, "Spock was telling me earlier that you're some kind of hybrid yourself. That you are actually the essence of two Jim Kirk's from different points of time; is that even possible?"

"Yeah," Corvana said, "what is that all about?"

"Well, it's a long story," Kirk said.

Suddenly the doorbell rang, and Kirk stood up to answer it.

Kirk walked over to the door and smiled at seeing who was standing in his doorstep.

"Susan," Kirk said with a broad smile. "Please come in."

"Jim," Susan said, with a stern look on her face, "I'm not alone."

She stepped aside and standing behind her was her brother: Collin Moore.

"Greetings Kirk," Moore said, with a slight arrogant tone to his voice. "You and I have something very important to discuss…"

At that instant, a dozen Jem'Hadar soldiers materialized inside of Kirk's house, causing Amanda and Elizabeth (Spock's wife) to scream. There was a slight scuffle, but eventually the Jem'Hadar soldiers rounded up everyone in the house into the living room.

"What is the meaning of this," Kirk demanded of Collin Moore, who stood before them with the Jem'Hadar standing to either side of him; their weapons aimed at Kirk and the others.

"For obvious reasons," Collin Moore said to Kirk, "we had to wait until the Founder was gone. But suffice to say, we will deal with him later."

"What possible connection," Spock said, standing next to his son S'vath, "could there between you and these Jem'Hadar soldiers, Prime Minister Odo and James Kirk?"

"A fair question," Collin replied to Spock, "and the answer is simple; not much at all, at this point in time. However," Collin Moore said, as he shifted his gaze to Kirk, "what brings my friends and I here is you Jim Kirk."

"Look," Kirk said to Collin Moore. "While I know very little about the Dominion War, if you have an issue with me, then please let my guests go, and I'll do anything you wish."

Suddenly walking in through the opened door was a humanoid with very large ears. It was clear from Kirk's reaction he had no idea what race the person was from. Amanda could see the confusion on Kirk's face.

"Jim; he's a Vorta," Amanda said to Kirk, softly.

"A horta," Kirk asked back to Amanda.

"No Jim," Susan Moore interjected, standing next to Kirk. "He's a Vorta. And he's evil. Do as he says, for your sake and all our sakes."

"What is your connection in all of this," Kirk asked Susan.

But before she could respond, Keevan-9, with a very smug smirk on his face, came over to Kirk and stood before him.

"Funny," Keevan-9 said, with a very snooty tone to his voice, "you don't strike me as a legend. Then again, everything in this part of the galaxy seems to be overrated."

His cold eyes gave Kirk a dismissive glare.

"Why are you here?" Kirk simply asked.

"First off, Jim Kirk, my name is Keevan-9," Keevan-9 said, "And I am here because in a very short amount of time, this planet will come under my domain."

"Wait a moment," Collin Moore said, unexpectedly. "It was agreed that I would …"

Keevan-9 snapped a finger, and then a Jem'Hadar thrust a weapon into Collin Moore's gut, and then blood spilled out; and Collin fell to the ground dead.

Kirk and the others were about to counter, but the soldiers aimed their weapons and them, causing Kirk and the others to back down; not wanting to get S'vath's children killed in what could have been a useless attack.

"A moment ago," Keevan-9 said to Kirk, "you told him," he looked down at Collin's dead body, "that you would do anything if I let your friends go. So that you understand that I am in control, I would like to make you a counter offer."

Suddenly Keevan-9 reached out and snatched Corvana's hand and pulled her next to him.

"Let me go, you creep," Corvana yelled, struggling against Keevan-9's superior grip.

"Let her go," Leonard McCoy demanded. "She has nothing to do with any of this."

Keevan-9 looked to another Jem'Hadar and then the Jem'Hadar took out a bladed weapon and placed it at Corvana's throat.

"Listen to me Kirk, because that one's life depends on it," Keevan-9 said with his smug voice.

Kirk nodded his head in agreement. Keevan-9 was holding a device, and then he pressed a button on it. And just a second later, two more Jem'Hadar shimmered into view, right next to Keevan-9. But even more important was what one of the just arrived Jem'Hadar warriors was holding; a child. And Jim Kirk, and most of the others, recognized the child as well. It was Mathew Kirk; Jim Kirk's nearly four year old son Mathew

Continued


	328. The Shadow of Your Smile

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Shadow of Your Smile**

**Jim Kirk's ranch house**

**Riverside **

_Kirk and the others were about to counter, but the soldiers aimed their weapons and them, causing Kirk and the others to back down; not wanting to get S'vath's children killed in what could have been a useless attack._

_"A moment ago," Keevan-9 said to Kirk, "you told him," he looked down at Collin's dead body, "that you would do anything if I let your friends go. So that you understand that I am in control, I would like to make you a counter offer."_

_Suddenly Keevan-9 reached out and snatched Corvana's hand and pulled her next to him._

_"Let me go, you creep," Corvana yelled, struggling against Keevan-9's superior grip._

_"Let her go," Leonard McCoy demanded. "She has nothing to do with any of this."_

_Keevan-9 looked to another Jem'Hadar and then the Jem'Hadar took out a bladed weapon and placed it at Corvana's throat._

_"Listen to me Kirk, because that one's life depends on it," Keevan-9 said with his smug voice._

_Kirk nodded his head in agreement. Keevan-9 was holding a device, and then he pressed a button on it. And just a second later, two more Jem'Hadar shimmered into view, right next to Keevan-9. But even more important was what one of the just arrived Jem'Hadar warriors was holding; a child. And Jim Kirk, and most of the others, recognized the child as well. It was Mathew Kirk; Jim Kirk's nearly four year old._

"It looks like I have, how do you humans say it," Keevan-9 asked with a smug smile, "all the dice."

"All the cards," Kirk corrected him.

"Unless you want your child to be killed before your very eyes, you will do as I demand; do you understand."

"Jim," Ryan Tolbert said, "we can fight them."

Jim Kirk surveyed the trained Jem'Hadar warriors, as well as his friends, and gathered children, and realized that a fight would be a lost cause. But then he looked back at Keevan-9.

"You have never played poker then, I assume," Kirk asked Keevan-9, referring to the Vorta's butchered comment about having all the "cards".

"No, I haven't," Keevan-9 replied, "I find games of chance rather droll."

"That is a shame," Kirk said, "because the game you referred to is all about the card. Meaning," Kirk added with a smile, "you don't have all the cards after all."

"You pathetic human," Keevan-9 said back at Kirk, "I have read about your Federation, and you Jim Kirk, one of its so called legends. Here you are standing before me, without any possible way of coming out of this on top, and yet you seem to suffer from delusions that you will."

"You must not have read carefully," Spock said, as he stood next to Kirk. "Jim Kirk has faced such odds, and has beaten them before."

"Well, Vulcan," Keevan-9 said to Spock, "It would appear as if his luck has finally run out."

Keevan-9 looked over to one of the Jem'Hadar solder.

"One more thing," Kirk said, before Keevan-9 spoke his next word, "Eeebeck't, thot'got omak."

At that instant, all of the Jem'Hadar soldiers aimed their guns at Keevan-9's head, causing Keevan-9's expression to change from one of smug accomplishment to a scowled anger.

"What is the meaning of this," Keevan-9 demanded of the Jem'Hadar soldiers, as the one holding Kirk's child handed the child to Leonard McCoy.

"Oh, one more thing," Kirk said, as Keevan-9 turned back toward him.

Kirk was about to punch Keevan'9, but Corvana stopped him.

"Let me do this one," Corvana said, as she used all of her might punched Keevan'9 with an uppercut to his jaw, landing him on the ground.

At that instant, several Transporter signals shimmered into view and several Star Fleet security officers appeared, as well as Odo and Admiral Matt Jefferies. Keevan-9 was forced to his feet, and faced Odo. Keevan-9's face now had the expression of defeat.

"I should have known," Keevan-9 said to Odo, leader of the Founders, "the override."

"Obviously," Odo said to Keevan-9. "After your ship attacked the science team on Gamma Trianguli VI and took the crystals, the science team's last distress signal was detected by a nearby Gorn cargo vessel." Odo explained. "Although the stolen cloaking device hid your ship quite well, Star Fleet was still able to track you're the ship due to the unique nature of the crystals."

"We were tracking your progress the entire way," Admiral Jefferies said with a smile.

"And so, before I left," Odo added. "I whispered to Kirk the override code for this generation of Jem'Hadar warriors."

"Fascinating," Spock said, "so from the moment of your departure, Kirk was in possession of the code the entire time."

Anger was on Susan Moore's face as she came over to Kirk.

"You let them kill my brother; why," Susan demanded.

"I didn't know they were going to kill him," Kirk replied.

"You are a traitor to your own kind, and to the Jem'Hadar bread to protect you." Keevan-9 said to Odo.

"Take him away," Odo said to the Admiral's security detail.

"I don't understand," Amanda said, as she came over to Kirk and the others. "Why go through the trouble of all of this, including killing Lenora?" (Who Kirk brought back to life last issue).

"That is somewhat more complicated to explain," Odo replied. "After Keevan-9s attack on the science team at Gamma Trianguli VI, I demanded answers myself. I found out that fifty thousand ago there was a war, a galactic war, and that Kirk's son," Odo motioned toward Mathew, "had become a God like creature in that time."

"Yes," Spock said to Odo. "We are aware of that fact. In fact, as it turns out, several of us were back there fighting in that war; notably myself, Montgomery Scott and Hikaru Sulu."

"What you did not know at that time," Odo said to Spock, was that an invasion force was awaiting on Earth to enter an Iconian Gateway so as to come into this point of time to take over Earth, at the behest of this renegade Vorta. His successor, Keevan-10, is back there in that time, right now, fifty-thousand years ago, waiting to come through that gateway with an invading force of Shadow demons."

"What are Shadow demons," Ryan Tolbert asked.

"Pure evil," Odo explained. "Apparently they were major combatants during the war I spoke of, which happened fifty-thousand years ago. They had agreed to help Keevan-10 conquer the Earth of this time, in case they had been on the losing side of the war fifty-thousand years ago, which of course, and they did."

"So what now," S'vath asked, with a slight tone of anger in his voice. "Many of those people killed on Gamma Trianguli VI were my friends," S'vath added.(S'vath had once been a mission commander on Gamma Trianguli VI.)

Kirk motioned over to Mathew, who Leonard McCoy was still holding.

"And what does any of this have to do with my son," Kirk added.

"Jim Kirk, this next part may sound hard to believe," Odo said to Kirk, "but somewhere, buried beneath your property, is an Iconian Gateway."

"What the heck are you talking about?" Kirk asked.

"Obviously," Spock said, deducing the reason. "Jim," Spock said to Kirk, "Keevan-10 no doubt had knowledge as to who you were, and," Spock said, motioning over to Mathew, "what he may become one day."

"Correct," Odo said. "And so they buried the Gateway here, fifty-thousand years ago. The invasion force planned to activated back in their time, with the help of the adult version of your son, who was by then an entity obsessed with ruling the universe, and exit it here in our time. But to make sure that it was the proper time to do so, they constructed the device so that it could only be opened with the DNA of Mathew Kirk. Keevan-9 was going to kill your child, and then use his blood to open the Gateway on both ends."

Anger was on Kirk's face.

"I want this put to a stop now," Kirk said. He looked over to McCoy. "Bones, could you create DNA sequence to perhaps trick this Gateway device to open up on our end."

"Jim," Admiral Jefferies said, "we don't want that. Didn't you here Prime Minister Odo? There is an invasion force waiting to come through from the other side."

"I know, I heard," Kirk said. "But from what I know now, this is the second time that Earth's survival has been threatened by these events that happened fifty-thousand years ago. I think it is time to put a stop to it once and for all."

"I agree," Spock added. "From what Prime Minister Odo had just told us, Mathew's older-self, the one that intended to rule the galaxy fifty-thousand years ago; is present on Earth and ready to lead the invasion along with the Shadow Demons. Why not make a presumptive attack."

"Spock," McCoy said, "I never thought I would hear you suggest using a violent act to stop another."

"Well, I do," Kirk said to McCoy. "If it saves him," Kirk said, referring to Mathew, who McCoy was still holding.

"Alright," Admiral Jefferies said.

As the Admiral made arrangements, Kirk and the others left his Ranch House. The citizens of Riverside Iowa were all evacuated as well, because of the unknown aspects of counter attacking the invading force from fifty-thousand years ago. The evacuation took nearly three hours, but it was done without incident. And in that time, Admiral Jefferies had been able to muster up a small fleet of ten Defiant-class starship, Also in that time, several hundred tons of ground, meaning dirt, rock and other elements, had been removed from an area of Kirk's land, exposing the ancient Gateway.

Kirk and his friends were gathered at an observation post some five miles from Kirk's ranch. One of those gathered was Susan Moore.

"You knew of this, didn't you," Kirk said to Susan.

"I knew of the Gateway, yes," Susan said to Kirk. "But I didn't know what they had planned to do to your son."

"Why even help them?" Kirk demanded. "Your brother was into this up to his neck."

"Collin found out that I had a child," Susan explained. "He threatened to hurt me and my child unless I helped him get access to the Gateway."

"By getting at it through me," Kirk said, as he shook his head."He hoped by making me fall in love with you he'd eventually have access to my land."

"Jim," Susan said to Kirk, "I am so sorry."

As the fleet of Defiant-class vessels began to gather above Kirk's property, two Transporter signals shimmered on the platform. Limanu and Chakotay appeared. Kirk and smiled at the sight of the two men.

"What is your connection in all of this?" Kirk asked Limanu. "I knew you had to be involved the moment I saw Mathew with the Jem'Hadar. Oh, and before you answer; how is my little girl…Dahme?"

"She's fine," Chakotay said with a smile. "And as to how we became involved," Chakotay said, as both he and Limanu wished to keep Satangkai's involvement low key, "let us just say that the Jem'Hadar were holding Limanu's wife and child hostage and were forcing him to assist them, but we stopped them. We were also contacted by Star Fleet as to the possible threat the renegade Jem'Hadar vessel posed to Mathew, and we made contact with Odo. The child's life was never endanger because the Jem'Hadar that beamed into your house, and who was holding Mathew, was part of Odo's honor guard; not one of Keevan-9's troops."

Kirk nodded his head.

"You saved my son," Kirk said to Limanu.

"I was a coward," Limanu said back to Kirk. "I let them use me, and they almost killed your son."

"You had no choice," Kirk said to Limanu. "And, in the end, it all worked out. And although the two of you are not saying as much, somehow I believe Mathew's older brother, Satangkai, is keeping an eye on him."

Limanu and Chakotay smiled.

"Perhaps," Limanu said, "there is more of Kirok still in you than you lead on."

Kirk only smiled.

Ryan Tolbert came over to Kirk.

"Jim," Tolbert said. "The attack is about to start."

"Do they think the Gateway can be opened," Kirk asked Tolbert.

"Spock is on board the lead ship," McCoy, who was next to Tolbert, said to Kirk. "And you and I both know that if anyone can work miracles with computers and simulated DNA; it's him."

Jim Kirk, Ryan Tolbert, Leonard McCoy, Limanu, Chakotay, Corvana, Elizabeth and Elizabeth all stood on the observation platform and watched from afar as the small fleet of Defiant-class starships prepared to launch a counter attack against the Shadow Demons that waited on the other side, on Earth, fifty-thousand years ago.

* * *

Spock stood beside Admiral Matt Jefferies, who sat in the command chair of the on the bridge of the Ridgecrest, the lead ship in the armada. Admiral Jefferies pushed a button on his command chair, which opened direct communications with the other ship.

"Alright, everyone listen up," Admiral Jefferies said to the other commanders, "target your volleys of Quantum-torpedoes to fire and enter the apex of the gateway the moment it opens. A slight hesitation on our part could allow those Shadow Demons through to our side, and we don't want that."

Jefferies nodded to Spock who keyed in the final command to the Gateway's computers. Once receiving the fake DNA data, the Gateway shot a beam of hypertime particles into the atmosphere above Kirk's ranch house; and at that moment, all of the ships fired their Quantum-torpedoes.

* * *

Fifty thousand years ago…

Dozens of shadows demons streamed down through Earth's orbit as a giant human, nearly fifty feet in height, stood next to the Iconian Gateway on the Earth's surface.

His name was Meh'Tahq (an adult version of Kirk's child Mathew, who had become infused with great power). Meh'Tahq shot a beam of energy from his eyes at the Gateway; somehow knowing fifty-thousand years into the future, the Gateway there was opening as well. A beam of hypertime particles streamed out of the Gateway, and created an atmospheric disturbance. The Gateway was opening a tunnel through time, and into the future. It was the tunnel in which the Shadow Demons would traverse and exit on the other end of time, so as to destroy Earth. But as the Shadow Demons dove toward the apex of the disturbance, several dozen streaks of light, Quantum-torpedoes, streaked out from the apex and obliterated the Shadow Demons, the explosions engulfing the fifty-foot human named Meh'Tahq; utterly destroying him. And upon his death, the Gateway exploded…

* * *

Kirk and the others watched as the Gateway began to glow brightly, and then it faded from view and was gone. Everyone cheered, as did the crews aboard the dozen starships which had fired the blasts. It was finally over…

* * *

Several hours later…

Kirk's ranch house was the scene of a great party. All of his friends, their families, as well as his children, Mathew and Dahme, were gathered. The threat to the "out of time" civilians, such as Kirk, McCoy and others like them, was over as was the threat from the Jem'Hadar and their convoluted attempt to destroy Earth with an invading Shadow Demon from Earth's ancient past. There we all kinds of food, including Bajoran dishes made my Prime Minister Odo, and competing Cardassian dishes made by Garak. It was a happy time…one to enjoy.

Jim Kirk was speaking with Admiral Matt Jefferies when he noticed that McCoy was in a modern day Star Fleet uniform. He walked over to his friend, who was standing with Spock.

"What is this," Kirk asked McCoy. "Are you going somewhere?"

"Well," McCoy said, smiling, "it appears as if my services are already needed. Remember that device I used to animate Spock's body when we went looking for his brain."

Kirk grimaced as the memory came to him.

"Don't remind me," Kirk said with a laugh. "Have you ever heard of the expression jumping the shark?"

"No," McCoy replied, "however, it appears as if your Admiral friend, Picard, needs some information about it. So Spock and I are heading to the Naissance within the hour to see what it's all about."

"And they won't take me," Corvana said, as she joined them. "Why can't I go with you?"

"Because little girl," McCoy said to her, "you need to get your butt back into school."

"A logical suggestion," Spock added.

"School sucks," Corvana said.

"I know," Kirk agreed. "But, they're right. Galloping around the stars is for game for the," he paused, knowing the rest of the phrase needed to be changed, immediately, "the educated."

"Bullshit," Corvana said, softly.

"A colorful metaphor," Spock said to her. "I have never been able to fully understand when and when not to use them."

"Well, I would come with you two but," Kirk said, as he looked over at Amanda, with her two kids, and then down at Corvana, "Someone has to stay here and mind the store."

"Then we better get to going Spock," McCoy said to his Vulcan friend.

"Bones, before you go," Kirk said. "That space bike of yours that you have parked in my barn," Kirk said with wide eyes, "can I take it for a spin."

McCoy smiled.

"Sure, go ahead. In fact," McCoy added, "she's yours Jim. Somehow, flying around on that thing, doesn't seem becoming of me."

"A very logical conclusion," Spock added.

And then McCoy tapped the com badge on his chest, and then he and Spock were beamed away.

* * *

Two hours later, after all his guests had left, Kirk stood alone on the balcony of his ranch house. His children, Dahme and Mathew, had already beamed back to the Native Lands with Chakotay and Limanu. As he downed his last swig of beer, Kirk noticed movement in the near distance. It was a large bird, and at first he thought it was an owl; but it was in fact a large bald eagle. The bird squawked loudly and then, just as it banked by the balcony, Kirk caught a glimpse of the bird's eye. He smiled as image of his son, Satangkai, came into his mind. And then the massive eagle banked left, and headed west. His two younger children, Mathew and Dahme, would always be safe and now Kirk knew why.

**Next time; The Galaxy Window opens!**


	329. Civil War!

The Galaxy Window will be on hiatus for a week or so. But please, if you can, try reading my new story called STAR TREK: EXODUS which takes place 35 years after the events of THE GALAXY WINDOW; a sequel if you will to a story that I am still writing...I know, kind of strange...but it is about a family fleeing from Earth due to a Federation civil war!

Star Trek: Exodus...look for it here on Fan Fiction


	330. Take Us There

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW  
TAKE US THERE (part one)**

**Star Fleet Command, San Francisco…twenty-five stories below the main structure.**

**The science laboratory of Dr. Walter Bishop**

An interesting mix of people sat around the large briefing table, and they all listened intently to what newly reinstated Admiral Jean-Luc Picard was explaining to them. The gathered listeners included Commodore William Riker as well as Professor Geordie Laforge, Beverly Crusher, Walter Bishop, Curtis Daystrom, Lal, Ian Maddox, Leonard McCoy and former Vulcan Ambassador Spock. At the far end of the table sat Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream. With his hour long mission briefing over, Picard asked if there were any questions. Doctor McCoy, who had earlier been reinstated at the rank of Commander, raised his hand.

"Yes Doctor McCoy," Picard said to McCoy. "What is your question?"

"Oh, it's not really a question, yet," McCoy responded.

Whereas all the others around the table had data pads in their hands, with the data points from Picard's summary displayed on their screens, McCoy had chosen to use a simple piece of paper and a pen. He had scribbled notes on the paper, and read it as he went on.

"I just want to see if I got this straight." McCoy said. McCoy reviewed what Picard has just said. But where it had taken Picard an hour, McCoy's version was somewhat shorter.

"Sometime back, after your first Enterprise was destroyed (GENERATIONS) you," McCoy said to Picard, "as well as Commodore Riker, Commander Crusher and Professor Laforge, " McCoy nodded at all three of them, "as well as your Klingon friend, who is now deceased, along with an Android, who was her father and has since been destroyed," McCoy said as he looked over a Lal, "were all blackmailed by some whacko Federation agent (Sloan) to participate in some sort of out of body mission. Clones of the four of you, as well as Worf, the Klingon, as well as an android duplicate of her father," McCoy again looked over a Lal, "were all sent toward a mysterious area of space aboard a vessel, the USS HAUCK, with the hope that someday, and that someday is now, technology would become available that would allow control of those clones by those of you here, and you would remotely explore this strange area of space called the Highland Expanse."

"That's right," Picard said, from the podium he still stood by.

"I'm not finished," McCoy said, with sarcasm in his voice, "this was all precipitated by an encounter that happened between one of your starship, the USS HIGHLAND, which this strange area of space is named after, and a vessel referred to by you as a Borg sphere. A landing party, including the captain of the Highland, was sent over to the abandoned Borg sphere in hope of finding out what happened. Then, without warning, the sphere became active, and after destroying the USS HIGHLAND, the sphere warped toward this mysterious area of space that your doppelgangers are just about to arrive at."

"That about sums it up," Picard said back to McCoy. But he could see that McCoy wasn't quite finished. "I suppose now you have a question."

"Yes," McCoy said, as he put his sheet of paper with scribbled notes back down on the table. "With all due respect, Admiral Picard; what does any of this have to do with me or Spock?"

"I' m afraid that is where I come in," Walter Bishop said from where he sat opposite of McCoy on the other side of the table. "While over the years I was able to create an inter-dimensional tunnel that will allow us to have instant communication with the USS HAUCK, I was still unable to come up with a solution with the matter of Picard and the others here that would allow them to have control of their clones there."

Spock suddenly knew the answer as to why he and McCoy were part of the strange mission.

"Sigma Draconis VI," Spock suddenly said.

McCoy knew exactly what his friend was referring to. Spock's brain had been abducted and taken to that world so that it could save the world's inhabitants by becoming the controlling factor on that world (Spock's Brain). Upon arriving at the world, McCoy had hastily constructed a device with Scotty's help that would allow McCoy to control Spock's body; via a remote control device. A slight expression of anger came over McCoy's face.

"The technology I used to create that device was destroyed," McCoy said. "I didn't want it be abused f or obvious reasons."

"Unfortunately, even by that time," Picard replied, "Section-31 had programs installed on Starships that overrode data dumps and saved the data via backdoor programs."

"I had read about your exploits," Walter Bishop continued to say.

"I find this quite amazing," Dr. Ian Maddox said. "You're telling us that Picard and the others will be able to control their clones, via this technology of McCoy's, even at this great of a distance?"

"Yes," Bishop replied with a smile.

"Thus the need for McCoy and me," Spock added.

"Precisely," Bishop said. "I need McCoy to monitor the device, and I could think of no one more suitable to assist him than you." Bishop said to Spock.

Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream could see that from the expression on McCoy's face; McCoy wasn't about to help.

"Commander McCoy," Paream said to McCoy, "I see the reluctance in your eyes. I hope you understand that Sloan's blackmail pressure is still active today. Even though he is dead," Paream explained, "unknown persons are carrying out the threats he made toward Picard and his crew. So unless we carry out the mission Sloan sent them to do, to explore the Highland Expanse, very terrible things are going to happen."

"Sir," McCoy said to Paream, "I understand the gravity of the situation. However, Dr. Bishop here seems to have everything under control quite well. From what I gather, he has reconstructed the technology we used all those decades ago, and has done so very efficiently. So again I ask; why are we needed?" McCoy asked, referring to himself and Spock.

"Because," Dr. Bishop said with a smile, "I'm going on the mission."

"How is that possible?" Professor Laforge asked. "You don't have a clone on that ship."

"You are quite correct," Bishop said to Laforge, "I do not have a clone there. However, Worf, the Klingon, does. I will be using a Neurotonic Pynathium Semi-conductor that will allow my brain to control his inter-phase device here, in the chamber. I will, in essence, be controlling his clone's body just as you control yours, Picard his, Riker's his and the lovely Beverly Crusher hers'."

"What about Data," Riker asked. "Is that why Lal is here?" Riker asked Picard.

"No," Picard replied. "Her positronic-brain is not an exact duplicate's as Data's, as we all know," Picard said to Riker, Crusher and Laforge.

"Which is why," Ian Maddox cut in with, "Curtis will be controlling Lore's construct."

"That's right," Laforge said, with worry in his voice. "That isn't a clone of Data on that ship; its Lore's construct."

"Not to worry," Bishop said to Laforge, "Lore was totally deactivated. Curtis will be in total control. The unique nature of Curtis's abilities will allow him to control Lore's construct."

"And as for Mr. Daystrom," Picard said to the others. "We know for a fact he was constructed with the same technology that was used to create the Ilya android probe during your Enterprise's encounter with the V'ger phenomenon." Picard said to Spock. "Recently released Klingon data from that time suggests that the V'ger cloud entered the far side of the Klingon Empire, and came from the direction of the Highland Expanse. We felt it would be logical to send him in the hopes that whatever is found there, he might be able to communicate with it. Granted; it's a long shot, but one worth taking."

"I don't recall an incident with a V'ger cloud," McCoy said to Spock.

"Nor would you," Spock said to McCoy. "It happened after the duplication of the Enterprise following the events with the Tholian-web. You were trapped in subspace when it happened."

"All of this, the cloning and sending Lore's construct," Picard went on to say, "had to be done because no ship has ever entered the Highland expanse and returned. Over the centuries, several attempts have been made by space faring civilizations from that part of the galaxy, including the Voth and Vaadwaur, as well as the Borg, and none were successful. Sloan believed that a ship could penetrate the area of that space, and that a cloned crew would then be controlled by their counter-parts. "

"His rational," Bishop added, "was that perhaps that area of space has, as a defensive measure, some sort of effect that disrupts all rational thought; be it human or artificial."

"And he really believed the clones would survive that effect?" Professor Laforge asked.

"And to top it all off," Riker said to Spock and McCoy, "all memories of our having been cloned were erased from our minds; until such time technology had evolved to a point where we could remotely explore the Highland Expanse. We only just recently found out about all this as well."

"And if we don't start by 0700 tomorrow morning," Picard added, "Sloan's threats are going to be realized."

"Can we see the control room?" McCoy asked.

Moments later, having left the briefing room, the group entered the sophisticated lab of Dr. Walter Bishop. At the heart of the lab were six stasis containers. Five of them contained brains; exact duplicate clones of the brains inside of the clones of Picard, Riker, Crusher, Worf and Laforge on the USS HAUCK. The sixth chamber contained a duplicate postronic-matrix of the late Data's brain.

"This is quite fascinating," Spock said. "I suppose that the four of you," Spock looked over at Picard, Riker, Laforge and Crusher, "will enter the stasis fields belonging to your counter-parts. Dr. Bishop will enter Worf's and Curtis Daystrom will enter Data's."

"Yes," Bishop replied. "And while our minds are phased with those on the USS HAUCK, that is when I will require yourself and McCoy to monitor the main control device," Bishop motioned toward a computer platform, "which is based exactly on the technology created by him and your dead comrade; Montgomery Scott."

"One question," McCoy said to Bishop. "You said that you had created an inter-dimensional tunnel of some sort that will allow a constant signal from here to control what is happening there in pretty much an instant manner."

"Yes," Bishop said, "that is quite right."

McCoy's expression became one of concern.

"What if that signal is lost; meaning, what if contact is cut off?" McCoy asked

Before Bishop could reply; Lal did in a matter of fact tone.

"The clones would all die, and," she said looking at the stasis chambers, "it is quite possible the trauma of such an event would destroy the minds of anyone in phase."

"Meaning," Beverly Crusher said softly, "we'll be vegetables."

Picard had no response because; it was quite clear what Beverly had just said was totally true.

Continued...


	331. Dealer Takes AllPart One

**Previously…  
**_  
Several levels below, near the bottom of the Star Fleet complex located inside of the Naissance, was one of many power stations that proved energy to the massive complex. It was used by the maintenance crews, but was mainly monitored by redundant computer systems. Jennifer Sisko sought its solitude out to avoid being seen with her Ferengi contact; Kilo. She was waiting when finally Kilo arrived._

Kilo reached out his hand and handed Jennifer a small data-rod.

"It took some digging," Kilo said, "but I found information about Kasidy Sisko that you will find most interesting."

"I hope I do," Jennifer said. "Will it be enough to drive her away from my husband?"

"Let's just say," Kilo said with a smile, "she will not want the info on that rod to come out, if she values her freedom. Now; when can I expect payment?"

Suddenly, stepping up from behind Kilo was Kaleb Sisko, Jennifer's son. He put his hands on both sides of the Ferengi's head, and then twisted it, snapping Kilo's neck and killing him instantly.

"Get rid of the body," Jennifer told her son with maniacal anger voice.

Kaleb knew his mother was mentally unstable, but he loved her all the same. And just as swiftly as the maniacal part of her had appeared; it was replaced by the sweetness of the other side.

"Kaleb," Jennifer said with a broad smile, "don't forget we are having dinner with your father tonight. He will be so happy to see you again. I know for a fact he loves you and Jake far more than he loves that bitch daughter of his; Rebecca and his whore wife; Don't you agree?" she asked in a giddy manner.

**(three days later)**

_There were several diners and restaurants located inside the Naissance Star Fleet complex. Kasidy made her way inside one of the more popular establishments; Bella's. She had been invited by Jennifer to join her for lunch. Kasidy had thought about declining, feeling uneasy being around Ben's first wife. She told Ben about the request and he told her there was no harm in going; so there she was. Kasidy smiled as she saw Jennifer at one of the secluded tables waving at her. Kasidy made her way over to the table and sat down._

Jennifer was wearing a stunning red dress that complimented her curves quite well. Kasidy sat down just as the waiter poured her some wine.

"It's called De'vjan," Jennifer said, referring to the wine. "It's always been one of my favorites."

"Yes," Kasidy said, as she sipped some of the wine. "Thank you for the invite to lunch," Kasidy added.

"Tell me the truth," Jennifer said with a smile, "you didn't really want to come. I would understand if you didn't."

Jennifer handed Kasidy a data-pad.

"_You should look at that," Jennifer told Kasidy._

Kasidy, unsure of where all of this was headed, activated the datapad. Within seconds, images began to stream across the screen of the device. The images showed a much younger Kasidy and two men, one of them Bajoran, engaged in very sexual lewd acts and every combination the threesome would allow…and then the exchange of credits given by the two men to Kasidy. As it turned out, in her past, Kasidy had once been a prostitute.

_"That isn't all of it is it?" Jennifer asked. " A week after your romp with those two men," Jennifer said, "the Bajoran was found dead. As it turns out, the other man was a friend of yours who would frequent bars in hopes of finding interested men, like the Bajoran, to," Jennifer smiled deviously, "share you in bed. Both men would appear to be paying you, but it was all just a scam to get the other man's credits. But, as I said, the Bajoran ended up dead and your friend was convicted for the murder."_

"I was exonerated from any involvement with the Bajoran's death," Kasidy countered. "Those records were sealed and I went on with my life."

"You have forty-eight hours," Jennifer said softly. "If you are not gone by that time," she took the datapad back, "I will show Ben this."

_And then Kasidy stood up and strode away, wanting to put as much distance between her and Jennifer as possible. _

**LATER…**

_Kasidy Yates was scurrying about the quarters she shared with her husband Ben Sisko as she hastily packed up a few of her belongings. She was worried; worried that Jennifer Sisko, Ben's first wife, would reveal aspects of Kasidy's life that were embarrassing and could possibly wreck her marriage to Ben. Jennifer would only keep the past buried if Kasidy agreed to leave, and for now, Kasidy would do just that._

Rebecca Sisko, Ben and Kasidy's daughter, stood by and helplessly watched as her mother packed up the duffle back of items she would be taking. Kasidy had not told her daughter the truth as to why she was leaving, instead claiming that a family emergency had brought her departure on.

"Why do you have to leave," Rebecca asked.

"It's just as I told you," Kasidy told her daughter. "Your Aunt Josephine is ill, and I've got to go look after her for a while."

"Mama," Rebecca said as tears came down from her face, "how long will you be gone."

At that moment, the doors to the quarters swooshed open and Admiral Ben Sisko strode in; it was clear he had been in a hurry.

"What's this I hear that you're leaving," Ben Sisko demanded of his wife.

Kasidy explained to Ben the same lie she had told her daughter; that Josephine, Kasidy's older sister, had become ill and that she, Kasidy, was going to go tend to her for a while.

"What about her husband Jacob," Ben inquired, "why can't he take care of her?"

"Oh Ben, please," Kasidy replied. "Jacob is part of a survey team in the Gamma-Quadrant and he isn't expected to be back for another four months. And their son, Lucas, is too far away to help either. So you see; I'm the only one available."

Kasidy smiled and then kissed her husband, and then told both him and Rebecca that she loved them; and then she left.

_Two hours later word was received at the Naissance that wreckage from the shuttle Kasidy left on was found by the USS Donner. Apparently it had exploded due to some sort of mechanical incident…_

Kasidy Sisko was dead...or...was she?

**OUR STORY CONTINUES…**

**Deep space…not to far from the Naissance**

(Moments before the shuttle containing Kasidy exploded exploded)

Kasidy was an expert pilot, and also a not so bad engineer thanks to hanging around Miles Obrien for all that time. She sat at the main controls of the shuttle and tweaked an energy flow buffer here, and a containment field there. Finally it was time and she snatched up her quickly packed duffle bag. She took an old style communicator out of her pocket and flipped it open.

"Ready," she said into the device.

Instantly she dissolved away, and just in the nick of time. Because twenty seconds later the shuttle exploded into zillions of bits and pieces.

Kasidy now found herself aboard another ship. It was no larger than the shuttle she had just destroyed. She turned around and was greeted by the sight of her good friend; Kira Nerys,

"Thank you for doing this; for helping me," Kasidy said as she placed her duffle bag on the ground.

"Don't say another word about it," Kira said with a broad smile, "I'm just glad you felt you could come to me. It's been so long since we've seen each other."

"I know, but when all of this happened, and I couldn't turn to Ben for help, I could only think of one person; you." Kasidy said with total respect.

"Well, you listen to me," Kira said, as she came over to Kasidy. "We're going to find whoever it was she went to in order to find that information. And for that, I have enlisted Quark. So the first place we're going to is that little planet of yours; Timus."

"Just as long as no one sees me," Kasidy said, as she began to unpack. "I'm supposed to be dead; remember?"

"Don't worry," Kira said, as she sat down at the main controls. "I hope we find this dirt bag that decided to dig up your past." Kira said with anger. "It's been a long time, a very long time, since I was able take out my anger with my hands so it will seem like old times. You and Benjamin deserve to be left alone, and I'm going to do my best to see that you are."

"Will Quark help us?" Kasidy asked.

"Quark owes me a few favors, and," Kira said, "if I need to, I can always try a little oomax on him; that always works. But, we better get going. I detected a Star Fleet vessel not far from here, and they may have detected your shuttle's destruction."

And with that, Kira piloted her private shuttle into warp.

As Kasidy unpacked her things, she noticed a child, who appeared to be barely three months old, sleeping on one of the beds.

"Kira," Kasidy said, upon seeing the child, "there's baby in one of the beds. Who does it belong to?" Kasidy asked.

"Actually," Kira said, "she's my daughter. Her name is Miriah."

"I didn't know you had a child; why didn't you tell anyone; why didn't you tell Ben?" Kasidy asked as she smiled down at the sleeping baby.

"I kind of wanted to keep this too myself," Kira told her friend.

"So that's why we haven't seen much of you for the past year," Kasidy concluded. "Well, girl, it's your life," Kasidy said to Kira, "and I respect your decision. But, can I ask," Kasidy said with curiosity in her voice, "who is the baby's father?"

Kira smiled.

"He's human," Kira replied, "and we happened to meet last year on the J'nia. It's a recreation world a couple of systems away from Bajor."

"Yes, I remember you telling me about going to that world," Kasidy said, as she sat down on the bed and looked at the baby, who was stunningly cute. "Wasn't it some sort of cliff diving expedition?"

"That's right," Kira said with a smile. "When I first met Jim Kirk, he told me how much he liked mountain climbing; that it eased his stress."

Kasidy rolled her eyes upon hearing Kirk's name.

"Please don't tell me this is yet another child of Jim Kirk," Kasidy said.

"No," Kira laughed, "it isn't Kirk's child. But I did meet a man there, and well, one thing led to another and…"

"Does this man even know that has a child?" Kasidy asked.

"No," Kira said softly. "That night we shared together, he told me he had no ambition to ever settle down. He mainly did scouting work for the Federation, though he wasn't in Starfleet. And when I found out I was pregnant, I just decided to keep the child and raise her on my own."

"What's his name?" Kasidy asked.

"Zeb Macahan," Kira said with her pleasant voice. "But, enough about me and my child," Kira said to Kasidy, "let's talk about what we're going to do to expose Jennifer for what she is."

Kasidy decided to honor her friends wish, and change the subject. But she recognized the last name; MaCahan. She knew that Leonard McCoy had used the alias of Colt MaCahan for quite some time. Was there a connection?

The two long time friends discussed strategy, as Kira piloted the craft toward their destination; Timus.

(an older version of ZEB MACAHAN is the star of STAR TREK:EXODUS...and so is his and Kira's daughter..so stay tuned)

Continued…


	332. The Future Is Coming

STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW…

Coming soon….

Kasidy, Kira, Quark and new-comer Zeb MaCahan will do all that they can to prove that Jennifer Sisko is out of her mind. Also; Picard, Riker, Crusher, Laforge, Curtis Daystrom and Walter Bishop (in Worf's body) finally arrive inside the Highland Expanse; and area of space many have entered; but none have returned. And…just when you think that isn't crazy enough; Jim Kirk sees what seems to be a ghost from his past; EDITH KEELER!

And don't forget to give STAR TREK: EXODUS a try. It's a new sprawling epic that is a sequel to STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW, but takes place nearly 40 years later. The Federation is in the grasp of its own Civil War. EXODUS follows one family's effort to survive. Danger lurks at every twist and turn…and fun too! So…join the fun and go where no STAR TREK STORY has ever gone before!

You can find STAR TREK: EXODUS in the "STAR TREK: ORIGINAL SERIES" section...

Rob


	333. Oasis

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW****  
OASIS**

* * *

**Star Fleet Command; **

**A secret science lab several stories beneath the main building….**

It was just like old times; but different. Spock and Leonard McCoy were in a laboratory, monitoring six stasis chambers that contained Admiral Picard and the rest of his unique crew. It was like old times because of the many hours Spock and McCoy had shared overseeing various other situations in labs much like the one they were in now. McCoy would be tinkering with the settings on the equipment, Spock diligently watching everything like a hawk, making sure McCoy didn't go too far with his adjustments, or vice versa. And while they may have bickered all those times, and even a few times in this current situation, the fact was; they were the perfect team.

Picard and the others were inside the chambers, phased with special a special device, constructed by both Walter Bishop, Spock and Leonard McCoy, which would allow Picard and his crew to control their cloned bodies, which were aboard a starship in the far off Highland Expanse. All of this was part of a clandestine mission arranged by deceased agent of Section-31; Commander Luther Sloan nearly two decades earlier. Spock and McCoy were tasked with maintaining the chambers.

"Spock," McCoy said, as he looked walked over and looked at the settings on Picard's stasis chamber. "The L-45 levels on Picard's D-system monitor might be a little on the high side."

Spock came over and took a look, and nodded in agreement. McCoy reached out and pressed new commands into the control panel.

Although Spock and McCoy were reunited, again, it was somewhat different because of where they were in their lives.

Spock had lived life, to the present point of time, pretty much in a straight line. For McCoy, who had not aged since the Tholian Web incident, his life had taken a most interesting twist in time.

For over a hundred and twenty years, this Leonard McCoy had been trapped aboard a duplicate Enterprise which had been created after escaping the Tholian Web. Unfortunately the rest of the crew of that Enterprise had been purposely destroyed by Commander Randolph Donnelly, who had used the Cardassian named Garak as an inter-dimensional bomb of sort. Garak had survived, thanks to the help of the Spock aboard the duplicate Enterprise; but in the end, that Enterprise was destroyed and only McCoy had survived.

Two young lab techs came into the control room to spell McCoy and Spock. The two long time friends made their way out of the lab and into a nearby lounge where there were a collection of tables and food replicators. McCoy got himself some chicken noodle soup, and Spock got his customary tea. They sat with each other at one of the tables.

"From what I can tell," McCoy said to Spock, "Admiral Picard and the others seem to be doing quite well, considering they are controlling their clones bodies which are nearly half a galaxy away."

"Yes," Spock replied. "So it would seem."

"What do you think Spock; what is inside the Highland Expanse?" McCoy asked.

"As you know," Spock went on to say, "I am not one who likes to guess. However, I am quite confident that whatever Picard and the others find it will be most…"

And then McCoy and Spock said that one word that Spock favored over all others…they said it in unison.

"Fascinating…"

Spock arched an eyebrow causing McCoy to smile.

Although Spock and McCoy were together, it was slightly different than before. This version of Leonard McCoy, trapped on that duplicate Enterprise for so many decades, didn't experience the same past that unfolded after the incident with the USS Defiant and the Tholians. This McCoy never experiences Kirk's illogical choice of accepting promotion to the admiralty. Nor did he experience V'ger, Khan, George and Gracie and all the other times that came.

"Spock," McCoy said, as he saw this Vulcan in deep thought, "How did I," McCoy grasped for the words, "die? What was the other me like after all that time?"

"Your other self, as you refer to him," Spock explained, "lived a long life. You will be satisfied to know that he and I engaged in many debates over those many years."

"Did he win any?" McCoy asked with a laugh.

"There were occasions," Spock replied. "However, after Jim died ("Generations"), the time that the other McCoy and I shared seemed to decline. I suppose we both felt guilty, in our own ways, for not being there on the Enterprise-B when Jim was lost to us."

"Guilt," McCoy said, with a prodding sound in his voice, "is a human trait."

"Yes," Spock said to the young McCoy. "Over the many decades I have come to terms with my human condition. And, strange as this may sound, it has much to do with the fact that for a short time, my Katra, my living spirit, was enshrined in the essence of Leonard McCoy."

McCoy, who had a spoon full of chicken noodle soup, let the soup fall back into the bowl upon hearing what Spock had just said.

"Would you mind repeating what you just said?" McCoy asked.

Spock spent the next several moments telling McCoy the story of the wrath of Khan and Spock's subsequent death and the events that followed thereafter.

As McCoy listened to Spock's story, he couldn't help but feel saddened. It was clear to him that his other self, the McCoy who had experienced the events Spock was now telling him, had lived a wonderful life chalk full of wonderful tales. He envied the other McCoy and wished he could possess the memories of times he never experienced.

* * *

**EARTH…**

**Riverside Iowa**

There was a Farmer's Market in the town of Riverside. While it was true that most people use replicators to make food with, Jim Kirk wasn't having it. He preferred to eat real food; meaning food grown on farms. And yes, even in the time of advance Star Ships, there were still farms on Earth.

The Farmer's Market was a collection of tents that were setup on a large field about a mile from Kirk's ranch house. A dirt path wound its way through the maze of tents, and Kirk took the opportunity to walk the mile to the market and back whenever he could. His house was also home to Amanda and S'vath and their two children; so anytime Kirk had a chance for peace and quiet, even if it meant such a walk, he leaped at it as fast as he could.

Farmers from throughout the area sold their goods inside the various tents. Kirk was happy to see that many, like him, preferred the freshness of real food. There were even a few aliens sprinkled in; Bajorans, Telannise, as well as alien races Kirk didn't even come close to recognizing.

Kirk made his way over to one of the tables where a 3 foot tall Tellarite was selling mangos. How a Tellarite ended up on Earth selling mangos was interesting upon itself, but, Kirk didn't mind. And besides, the mangos smelt delicious. Kirk was holding one of the fruits.

"Hey," the Tellarite barked, eyeing Kirk, "are you going to by the fruit or not?"

Kirk nodded and picked up four more of the round fruit and gave the Tellarite a few credits. Anyone who said capitalism was extinct on Earth hadn't been to a Farmer's Market. Kirk gathered up the fruit and headed out of the tent.

About a half an hour later, Kirk had a bag of various fruit, and was holding a stick of cotton candy. He was quite sure that had McCoy been there, the stick of cotton candy would be gone and in its place would be a large zucchini instead.

Kirk had not come to the Farmer's Market alone; he had come with Corvana. Corvana was the young teenage girl that McCoy had befriended when he believed himself to be a space faring smuggler named Colt MaCahan. After having arrived at the market, Corvana had gone straight to the holo-arcade. It was a tent stocked full of the latest hologames targeted at the young. Kirk had given her a fair amount of credits to spend there; and why not? Her classes at the school McCoy and Spock had registered her at were going to start in a few days; meaning she'd be gone most of the time. The girl was like a firecracker alright, but Kirk was going to miss her youthfulness when she was away at school.

Jim Kirk was nibbling on his cotton candy when, up ahead, he saw something that caught his eye; or more to the point; a person. At first when he saw her, he didn't think anything of it. The woman was wearing a nice fitting summer dress, and a nice flowing flowery hat. She looked like a painting from out of the past. But as Kirk concentrated on face, he couldn't help but think he had seen her before. And then, as his mind concentrated even more, Kirk stopped in his tracks. Although she had aged about twenty years since he had last seen her, back in the late 1930s, Kirk recognized her at last; it was Edith Keeler!

* * *

**Across the Galaxy…inside the Highland Expanse**

The USS Hauck made its way through space. It had been on autopilot for many years, and had successfully crossed the dark vast area of space that separated the expanse from the rest of the galaxy The Hauck's auto-piloted trek was about to end because inside its main cargo hold were seven stasis chambers (not six); and they were about open up. Lore's body construct was in the far chamber. Near to Lore's chamber, and in a row, were six others which contained; Worf, Geordi Laforge, Dr. Beverly Crusher, Commander Riker, Captain Picard and…next to Picard's chamber, the seventh member of the crew; Commander Luther Sloan.

_Continued…_


	334. Time Has No Meaning

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**TIME HAS NO MEANING**

**Previously…**

**EARTH…**

Riverside Iowa

_There was a Farmer's Market in the town of Riverside. While it was true that most people used replicators to make food with, Jim Kirk wasn't having it. He preferred to eat real food; meaning food grown on farms. And yes, even in the time of advance Star Ships, there were still farms on Earth. Kirk had gone to the Farmer's Market to sample the fresh food, and to mingle with the people of Riverside Iowa._

About a half an hour of touring the various tables with food displayed upon them, Kirk had a bag of various fruit, and was holding a stick of cotton candy. He was quite sure that had McCoy been there, the stick of cotton candy would be gone and in its place would be a large zucchini on a stick. But that would be no fun. He was nibbling on his cotton candy when, up ahead, he saw something that caught his eye; or more to the point; a person. Although she had aged about twenty years since he had last seen her, back in the late 1930s, Kirk recognized her at last; it was Edith Keeler!

**The Next day at Jim Kirk's ranch house…**

Morning came, and Jim Kirk had awakened at the break of dawn. He got dressed and went downstairs to pleasantly find Amanda, S'vath's wife, already up and making breakfast.

"Why are up you so early?" Kirk asked as he came into the kitchen.

Amanda was making pancakes; which smelled very good to Kirk.

"Lenora woke me," Amanda replied said. "Ever since you showed her your collection of those ancient cartoons, she's been getting up early every morning since then, as you told her you had done when you were her age, to watch them."

Kirk looked around the corner into the den. Sure enough, on the large holographic-display unit, a cartoon was playing. Kirk smiled as he watched the Road Runner eat some bird seed as Wile E Coyote was doing his usual scheming.

Amanda handed Jim a cup of coffee as she passed by with a plate of pancakes, which she sat down on the coffee table that Lenora was sitting at in the den. Lenora waved at Jim and went back to watching the cartoon. Kirk waved back.

"So what are you doing up so early," Amanda asked Kirk, as she came back to the kitchen.

"As soon as I finish this great cup of coffee, I'm heading down to that Farmer's Market," Kirk replied.

"To find that woman you thought you saw and told me about last night?" Amanda asked, "The one named Edith? And anyway; isn't the marker closed today?"

"Yeah, it's closed. But she was there," Kirk replied, with a slight tone of yearning in his voice. "How that can even be possible; I don't know. But I've got to go back and see if I can find her. By the time I had caught up to where she was yesterday, in the crowd, she was gone."

"Maybe you should think about waiting for S'vath," Amanda suggested. "I'm sure he'd love to get out of the house to look into this with you."

"I'm sure he would," Kirk said. "But I kind of want to do this on my own, if you don't mind," Kirk said, as he placed the cup down.

"Promise me you will be careful," Amanda said back to Kirk.

Kirk kissed her on the cheek.

"See you later," he said to her as he snatched up the last two pancakes off the frying pan and headed toward the door.

"You really shouldn't be eating those," Amanda said to his back.

"I know," he said back to her as he stuffed the first one into his mouth and headed out the door.

Kirk made his way down the path that connected his property to the main road that went by. In the near distance he could see the long abandoned shipyards he had spent his young aged gazing at; lost in day dreams. The walk wasn't really that long, to the Farmer's Market, and sure, he could have simply beamed over from his house, but he favored the walk, if not for the exercise then for the justification for eating the pancakes.

Soon he arrived at the large field where the market was held. There were rows and rows of tents that were now empty because the market was closed for the day. The wind was slightly blowing, and was the only sound he could hear, as it kissed his ears as went. There were five main rows of tents, and as he made it to the fourth row, and at the other end, he saw someone standing there; in a dress. It was her!

"Edith," Kirk called out, "as that you."

Edith smiled and waved at Jim, and then she walked out of view. Kirk quickened his pace to a near run as he headed to the end of the row of tents, the wind becoming more forceful as he did.

Back at Jim Kirk's house, S'vath came downstairs, having been awaked by the smell of fresh coffee and pancakes. He was pleased to his wife, Amanda, and their two children, Lenora and Sarek, enjoying the exploits of Daffy Duck. He poured some coffee and went into the living room to join his family.

"Oh, hi honey," Amanda said, as they kissed.

S'vath sat behind her, as she sat on the floor with the kids next to her. With the kids engrossed at what was happening on the screen, Amanda slid her left hand up the inside of S'vath's robe, and found his manhood and gently caressed it.

S'vath grinned at her as she looked back.

"This coffee is great, but where are my pancakes?" S'vath asked.

"We ran out of the fresh batter Jim brought back from the Market yesterday," Amanda replied, "and you won't touch the replicated crap. As for the two pancakes I made for you this morning," Amanda added, "Jim ate them before he left."

"Jim left?" S'vath asked. "Where did he go?"

"Oh yeah," Amanda said, as she went back to watching the cartoon, "while you were helping Corvana with her studies last night, Jim told me that he saw some woman from his past at the market yesterday. He went back there today to see if she was there."

"A woman from his past," S'vath asked. "How old was she? What was her name?"

"He didn't say much about her," Amanda answered, "but her name was Edith Keeler."

S'vath set the coffee down, and became worried.

"Did you say Edith Keeler?" S'vath asked as he stood up and looked down at his wife, who remained seated by the coffee table.

"Yeah; why do you look worried?" Amanda asked.

"Honey," S'vath said, "Edith Keeler lived four-hundred years ago, and," S'vath paused, "she died in an automobile accident. And Jim thinks he saw her at the Farmer's Market yesterday?"

'Yes; he thought he saw her," Amanda replied, with worry in her voice. "Why is she so important to Jim?"

"As you know," S'vath told his wife, "My father (Spock) and Jim had many exciting adventures, a few of which involved time-travel. Apparently, in one of those adventures, Leonard McCoy, while 400 years in the past, prevented the death of Edith Keeler which created an alternate timeline that changed Earth's history. In order to correct the timeline, my father and Jim went back into the past to stop McCoy. Jim met, and eventually fell in love with Edith Keeler. And in a moment where selfishness desires would normally take hold, Kirk allowed Edith to be run down by a car; and in so doing, repaired the timeline and all was as before."

"That's a sad story," young Lenora said to her father.

"Then if she died," Amanda said to S'vath, "who did he see at the market yesterday."

S'vath headed back upstairs to change his clothes.

"That's what I'm going to find out," he said as he made his way up the stairs.

In mere moments, S'vath returned downstairs and went over to the Transporter pad in the other room. Amanda was ready to beam him over.

"I have the coordinates set," Amanda told her husband. "Honey; I'm sorry I didn't tell you last night."

"It isn't your fault," S'vath told his wife."

Amanda nodded her head and then activated the Transporter machine; S'vath shimmered away.

S'vath found himself standing near the massive collection of tents. He had brought a Tricorder and was scanning the area. Finally he detected the life signs of one; a human male. He made his way through the collection of tents, toward the rear of the market where the merry-go-round was. It was situated on the other side of a bridge.

On the other side of the bridge, Jim Kirk had followed Edith. She was standing outside the entrance that led into the holographic merry-go-round.

"Edith," Jim said as he walked up to the woman he had only known for a couple weeks, but had loved for a lifetime. "How can it be? How can you be here?"

"Jim Kirk," Edith said, as she placed her hand on his cheek, "you of all people must know that immortality can take on many different forms."

Kirk put his hands on her shoulders.

"Edith," Kirk said, as he looked into her eyes, "I have never stopped loving you."

"Nor I you," she said with a smile. "I knew from the moment we met in my basement that you were the man I would love past eternity. Now," she said as she opened the door to the merry-go-round, "come with me my dear. Eternity can wait no longer."

As S'vath came over the bridge, he saw Kirk and a woman entering the holographic construct that, inside, was a merry-go-round.

"Jim," S'vath called out to his friend, "wait!"

S'vath watched as Kirk turned to face him. Kirk waved his hands, as if waving goodbye, and then went inside the merry-go-round construct, Edith waved at S'vath as well, and closed the door behind her.

Kirk sat down on a one of the merry-go-round horses, and Edith sat down on the one next to his. The merry-go-round began to move, slowly, in a circular motion. The horses the two lovers were on slowly went up and down as they looked at each other.

"I don't understand any of this," Kirk said, as he looked at the bright lights of the merry-go-round.

"You will…soon," Edith said with a warm smile.

And then, up ahead, Jim saw someone else standing to the side of the merry-go-round; but it wasn't S'vath. It was a woman, a woman that Kirk's memory at first could not place, and then, suddenly, he recognized her as the merry-go-round stopped.

"Guinan," Kirk asked….

S'vath opened the door to the holographic merry-go-round; it was empty inside; Jim Kirk was gone.

(What has happened to James T Kirk? What are Edith and Guinan doing there? Find out the answers on an upcoming issue of the new story called "STAR TREK: EXODUS" which takes place 35 years or so after the events of "Star Trek: The Galaxy Window".)


	335. Dealer Take All Part two

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Dealer Take All- PART TWO**

**The planet Timus…**

**Quarks Hotel/Bar**

The dual suns of Timus were rising in the east. They were still hidden by the mountains in the distance, but their orange glows were already spilling over in to the valley. The town of Summit Grove would soon awake with the normal activity of a mining colony.

Quark made his way down the dirt path. His hotel/bar was the center hub of activity on the world, which meant that every hour his establishment was open the more profit it made. In fact, as he made his way down the town's simple dirt path, he could already see nearly twenty patrons ready to enter the establishment the moment he opened the door. He made his way up the small ramp of stairs and to the main entrance. He unlocked the doors and let the small group of patrons in. One of them was a scruffy looking nerf-herder.

"How long until the Dabo-girls get here," the human asked Quark.

"They'll be here in about fifteen minutes," Quark said with a smile. "Now you go right in there to the bar, and I'll be there in a moment."

The human burped, and did as he was told. Did Quark feel guilty that the man was already drunk as it was and was in no shape to drink more? No; he wasn't. Besides, if the man didn't get his spirits from Quark's, he'd go to liquor store down the street.

* * *

A half hour later, the Dabo-girls had arrived and so had many more patrons. It was the second Friday of the month which meant the local miners were getting paid, and tourist were no doubt arriving at the space-port in orbit of Timus. Private space-ships were not allowed to land on Timus; they had to find parking inside the massive space-port and then were ferried down to the visitor center. Summit Grove was the only major town on the entire planet, which made it a bottleneck of business, which pleased Quark to no end.

Quark made sure his bartender was up to speed, and his waiters were all deployed to the various points of the bar. He also made sure that room rates for his hotel were raised 12 percent. Quark always raised the rates on Friday, and then lowered them on Sunday. Satisfied everything was running smoothly, Quark finally had time to head to his office on the lower level. He opened the door and was pleasantly surprised to see who was waiting for him.

"Kira Nerys," Quark said, as he reached up and caressed the back of his earlobe.

"You did get my coded signal, didn't you?" Kira asked.

Quark nodded as he came into his office and sat down at his desk.

"Yes I did," Quark replied. "And I have to admit; I was surprised. Though, to be honest," Quark added, "I never thought you really retired. I knew there had to be something else going on."

"Actually," Kira said, "I am retired. For reasons I don't wish to go into, I've decided to live a normal life outside of Bajoran politics and Star Fleet." (Her personal reason was so that she could raise her infant child.) Kira decided to change the subject back to why she had come to Timus. "Were you able to find the information I asked about?"

Quark nodded his head.

"What I don't understand is this," Quark replied. "Why do you want to go through such lengths, and pay me so much latinum I might add, to find out if anyone was trying to dig up information on Kasidy if she's already dead? And from what I know, her ship blew up due to mechanical flaw and not due to foul play."

Kira took a device out from her pant pocket and pressed a button on it. Suddenly there was a transporter shimmering effect and Kasidy Sisko appeared out of the nothingness.

"I might have guessed," Quark said as a grin spread across his face. "I suppose if your husband can come back to life, you can too."

"It isn't like that," Kasidy said to Quark, "I staged my death."

"Alright," Quark said to Kasidy and Kira, "What is really going on here? In fact, I'll take 50% off my price just to know what it is."

Kasidy went on to tell Quark about Jennifer Sisko's game of blackmail. Jennifer had found out about Kasidy's past; more specifically, when she was a prostitute and had been involved in a murder and cover-up. Although Kasidy was cleared of any wrong doing, she didn't want Ben and their daughter, Rebecca, to know about the truth so Kasidy staged her death to find out how Kasidy came into possession of the information in the first place and to show Ben that Jennifer would do anything to make him hers again.

"You know," Quark said to Kasidy upon hearing the story, "I could use a new Dabo-girl." Quark saw the anger in Kira's eyes, and then raised his hands in self defense, "I was only kidding."

"You better be," Kira demanded.

"Did you bring the information I asked for?" Quark asked.

Kasidy took out a data-rod and handed it to the Ferengi.

"That is the manifest," Jennifer said. "There were thirty-seven Ferengi at the Naissance Dysonsphere over the period time you asked for."

"You know," Quark said, as he studied the rod, "you do realize that by even suggesting it was a Ferengi who broke the law and got the information for Jennifer Sisko, you are feeding into the typical stereotypes that I thought the Federation had moved beyond. Would you blame if I was insulted?"

"Perhaps," Kira said, "but if you needed information like this, who would you go to?"

"Exactly my point," Quark said with a smile. "And of course, I would pay handsomely as you are now."

Quark slipped the rod into his computer and began looking at the faces of the thirty-seven Ferengi who were at the Naissance at the times in question. Finally he stopped on the image of one Ferengi in particular.

"Do you know him?" Kira asked.

"His name is Kilo," Quark said, after studying the face of the Ferengi on the screen. "If there was a Ferengi on the Naissance who had access to Federation encrypted files, it would be him."

"What is illegal data streaming?" Kasidy asked.

"Personal data," Quark explained, "including criminal records; are highly encrypted," Quark explained to Kasidy. "And as you said, your name was cleared in the murder case involving that Vedek, and your record would have been altered and the corrected information buried. In order for someone to bypass regulations, they would have had to have access to the library on Darious-VI. And Kilo, who had connections in the Orion Syndicate, would be a perfect person to hire."

"So how do we prove it was him and," Kira added, "trace it back to Jennifer?"

"You will have to go to Darious-VI and hack into the system, and then," Quark continued, "know where to look in the stream."

"Darious-VI is one of the Federation's most secured sites," Kira warned. "There's no way we could get pat those security protocols."

"As I see it," Quark said, "you need three more people to help you. Someone to get you to the system, someone to bypass security and someone to hack the system and get the proof you need."

"And let me guess," Kira said with a smirk on her face, "you've already hired them to help us at a moderate price."

"Actually," a voice said from behind Kira, "we're doing it for free."

Kira turned to see Zeb MaCahan, the father of her daughter (of which he didn't know.) Standing to the left of Zeb was Nog and to the right of Zeb was Garak.

"Garak," Kira said with a chuckle.

"Of course," Garak said with his usual warm smile. "I will have you know Nerys that when I was in the Obsidian Order, I set the record the amount of times I hacked into the Federation data-stream on Darious-VI."

"What about you," Kira said to Nog. "I know you're no longer in Star Fleet, but this could get you into serious trouble."

"If Captain Sisko is in trouble," Nog said, "I want to help. And don't forget," Nog added, "Jim Kirk has asked for my help a couple times to circumvent regulations as well; so I think I've earned some respect."

"And yes," Zeb said, as he smiled down at his former lover, Kira, "I am the only one with a ship that is equipped to get you into that system undetected."

Kira looked into Zeb's eyes, and wanted to tell him about the daughter he didn't know he had. But she couldn't; not now and perhaps not ever. Kasidy looked over at Quark.

"So how much do I owe you," Kasidy asked Quark.

"Good question," Kira said before Quark could reply. "These three may be helping us for free, but I know you too well."

Quark shook his head.

"Perhaps not as well as you think," Quark said to Kira. "I am doing all the leg work for free because," Quark said to Kasidy, "well; because that do-gooder husband of yours helped me out of a couple regulation jams so I guess I owe him one or two favors."

"Thank you," Kasidy said softly.

"Don't thank me yet," Quark said. "And get out of here before I change my mind."

* * *

Moments later, Quark was standing outside his hotel/bar. He watched as the transport ship carrying the rag-tag team lifted off and headed to the space-port where Zeb's ship was parked. Would everything work out as planned; Quark doubted it…and he was right!

Continued…


	336. We're Here

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**We're Here…**

**Across the Galaxy…inside the Highland Expanse**

The USS Hauck made its way through space. It had been on autopilot for many years, nearly two decades in fact, and had successfully crossed the dark vast area of space that separated the Highland Expanse from the rest of the galaxy The Hauck's auto-piloted trek was about to end because inside its main cargo hold were seven stasis chambers (not six); and they were about open up. Lore's body construct was in the far chamber. Near to Lore's chamber, and in a row, were six others which contained; Worf, Geordie Laforge, Dr. Beverly Crusher, Commander Riker, Captain Picard and…next to Picard's chamber, the seventh member of the crew; Commander Luther Sloan.

* * *

_The tunnel was long, very long. Far ahead, and just the size of a pin prick, there was a stream of light beckoning him to run toward it and so he did. For him, Jean-Luc Picard, who was an accomplished marathon runner, pacing himself on a long run wasn't a new challenge; it was in fact a practiced skill that he had applied to his life in other areas. Whether it was his Star Fleet career, or his personal life, it made no difference. And even though the stream of light seemed to be ever so far away; Picard kept a slow trot knowing that, eventually, he would get there even if the eons of time that seemed to pass past his eyes pressed upon his mind as if he had placed his face against the cold chill of piece of glass. But then…all of a sudden, the pen prick of light began to expand…it became larger as if it were a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. And deciding that he wanted to exist with more than a ray of light as his only companion, Picard dove through the light…and then he opened his eyes._

* * *

Picard opened his eyes and saw the pleasant face of Beverly Crusher staring down at him. And as lovely as he knew her to be, she looked especially lovely now. Her face seemed younger and fresher, and her smile was broader.

"Hello there," Crusher said to Picard. "Just stay still Jean-Luc," she added.

Picard could tell that he was on some sort of med-bed, which itself was inside of what appeared to be some sort of cargo bay; and then it hit him.

"We're on the USS Hauck," Picard said softly.

Picard struggled to sit up in his med-bed, so Dr. Crusher assisted him. He looked about and saw several other med-beds which were still inside of self contained chambers.

"Mine activated first," Crusher told Picard. "It was probably programmed that way so I could monitor the other chambers before reviving them. I've only been up and about for about fifteen minutes myself."

Picard looked at his own hands, and saw that they were not as worn as he knew them to be; and why would they be? He had to remind himself that although he maintained all of his memories, his mind was now inside a clone of his own body; a clone that was sixteen years younger than his real body. He looked over Crusher.

"Yeah," she said with a smile, "I know what you're thinking," she said as she caressed her cheek. "All of us are now inside of bodies some sixteen years younger than our original bodies. I don't know about you," she said, as she traced her hand on her now tight abdomen area, "I like feeling younger again."

She handed Picard a hand held mirror so he could look at his own reflection. Picard slightly gasped at what he saw.

"Amazing technology," Picard said.

Picard handed the mirror back to Crusher.

"Help me stand up," Picard said as he pivoted his legs around.

"Just take it easy," Crusher said, as she let Picard place his arm around her shoulders. "You will experience dizziness at first."

Picard nodded in acknowledgement of her warning. And then, gingerly, he stepped off of the bed and stood up, one hand gripping the handgrip on the med-bed, the other arm around Crusher's shoulder. He felt his knees slightly buckle, but then he regained his strength. In a moment he was able to stand on his own.

"How are the others," Picard asked.

"I'll show you," Crusher said.

First they stood next to the chamber containing Riker.

"He looks so peaceful," Crusher said. "It's almost a shame to wake him."

"Well, if I know Will Riker," Picard said with a smile, "once he realizes he's sixteen-years younger, he'll eat like it too."

Next they stood next to Geordie Laforge's med-bed.

"He was still wearing his visor back when this clone was created," Crusher told Picard, as she motioned to the device that was in a container next to Laforge's med-bed.

"Do you think he'll be able to adjust to wearing the visor again?" Picard asked.

"I think so," Crusher said. "It may take a little while, but we'll see."

Next they stood next to Deanna Troi's med-bed. Unlike the others, she had a peaceful smile on her face .

"That is so like Deanna," Crusher said to Picard. "Your face was in its perpetual frowning state, before I woke you up, but look at her; so peaceful."

Then they moved on to Worf's chamber. The real Worf, the proud Klingon who had served with Picard with distinction, had been killed during a terrorist attack on Deep Space Nine. (**issue #26**).

"I still can't believe that our Worf is dead," Crusher said softly.

"He was the most honorable person I ever had the chance of knowing," Picard said in reply. "Is there any way to tell yet if Dr. Bishop's mind was successfully transferred into this Worf's brain?"

"I won't really know for sure until I bring him around," Crusher said.

Then they stepped over to the special container containing the android construct of Lore.

"Lore," Picard said with forbearing in his voice. "Even though I know he and Data were exact in their physical appearance, at times it seemed as if I could just since Lore's deviance just by staring at him."

"But just as with Dr. Bishop's mind inside of Worf's clone," Crusher explained, "I cannot be certain if Curtis Daystrom android's matrix was downloaded successfully into Lore's positronic-matrix until I activate him as well."

"Just to be safe," Picard said to Crusher, "don't bring either one of them around until Geordie and Will are awake," Picard instructed. Then he saw the final chamber and the person inside of it. He had never met Commander Sloan, the devious Section-31 who was behind the extortion that brought them all to the Highland Expanse in the first place. "I wasn't aware there would be a clone of him here as well."

"Something tells me," Crusher said after a moment, "no one knew except for him."

"Perhaps you're right," Picard said as he stared down at the face of the slumbering Sloan, "Just hold off on bringing him around until…"

Suddenly Picard and Crusher were startled as Sloan's chamber activated itself, and the chamber's container slid open all by itself. Sloan opened his eyes, and then looked up at Picard and Crusher who were staring down at him in shock.

"We're here," Sloan said as a broad smile spread across his face.

Continued…


	337. The Numbers Game

**STAR TREK: EXODUS**

**The Numbers Game**

The Darious star system…

A sleek black vessel came out of warp just outside the Darious star system. The ship belonged to Zeb MaCahan, who was chomping on the butt of a cigar as he pivoted his chair around and faced the small passenger cabin behind him. He stared directly at Kira, who sat next to Kasidy.

"Well," Zeb said to Kira, "I got you here. As to how long we can evade the three ships that guard the parameter of this system depends on how long this little mission of yours takes sweetie."

Garak, who sat with Nog on the other chair, could detect that there was some sort of history between Zeb and Kira. He observed the tension with a macabre curiosity.

"Thank you," Kira said. She looked over at Garak and Nog. "As I said earlier, it will be the three of us going down there to Darious-IV to find the proof that Jennifer paid her Ferengi informant, Kilo, to get the information she used to blackmail Kasidy. Do you have your gear ready?"

Nog reached down and picked up a duffle bag and placed it on the table before him. He took out two sleek devices. Garak picked one of them up, and nodded his head.

"If these devices work as advertized," Garak said to Kira, "we will have no problem."

"Zeb," Kasidy said to MaCahan, "will you be able to get us close enough to the planet so Kira, Garak and Nog can beam down?"

Zeb inhaled a big puff from his cigar, and nodded his head.

"Oh, don't worry," Zeb said, as a wall of thin smoke came from his mouth, "I can get them down there, and I can get them off the planet, so long as they don't trip any of the security alerts."

"I hope so," Garak said to Zeb. "Or all of us face at least fifteen years at a Federation penal colony."

"That doesn't sound appealing," Nog said upon hearing Garak's warning. Nog was worried.

"Nog," Kira said with a smile, "I've read about your exploits with James Kirk over the past few years. You're better at this kind of adventurous stuff than you lead on."

"And besides," Garak added, as he looked over at Nog, "After all those times Odo hounded you on the viewing platform; I never pictured you as a Sheriff deputy anyway," Garak said, eluding to Nog's recent position on Timus.

Kasidy looked at Zeb.

"Well, I guess you have your answer," Kasidy said. "But before we do this," she said to the others, "I want to thank you again for risking your lives and, as Garak just pointed out, your freedom. I couldn't have asked for better friends."

They all nodded their heads as Zeb pivoted back around, and began the daunting task of eluding roving starship patrols. But it was made easy by that fact that MaCahan's ship had a unique hull which defied sensor detection. His ship also had an illegal cloaking device, which Zeb activated…

* * *

**Star Fleet Command;**

A secret science lab several stories beneath the main building…

Spock and Dr. Leonard McCoy and Dr. Ian Maddox monitored the stasis chambers that contained, Picard, Crusher, Riker, Walter Bishop, Geordi Laforge and the android Curtis Daystrom.

Ian Maddox was one of the most, if not the most, experts on android technology, and had been instrumental in the discovery of the Curtis Daystrom. That was the designation given to the android that mysteriously walked out of the Sahara Desert, and possessed the same construct as the Ilya android which the Enterprise had encountered during the V'ger scare over a century earlier.

After making their routine rounds, and verifying that the stasis chambers were operating properly, Spock, McCoy and Dr. Maddox met up and sat at a small table which was situated above the main lab. A pot of coffee was there, and McCoy held a cup and watched as Maddox poured him some coffee.

"So let me get this straight," Dr. Maddox said to McCoy, "you're not the same Dr. McCoy who studied the Ilya android on the Enterprise all those decades ago, and who's notes most of the observations we have on that probe are based."

"That's right," McCoy said. "I was inter-dimensionally trapped at that time," McCoy said, proud he sounded somewhat scientific with those words. "However, I have studied the information that came from the other McCoy's observations and them quite, "McCoy looked over at Spock, as if asking permission to use the next word, "fascinating."

"Yes, Ilya was indeed incredible. And now we have Curtis," Dr. Maddox said.

"You studied the Ilya probe as I recall," Maddox said to Spock.

"That is correct," Spock said. "I find it quite fascinating that the android you refer to as Curtis Daystrom seems to have been built from that same technology that created Ilya."

Maddox nodded his head in agreement.

"How did it end up on Earth?" McCoy asked.

"If you don't mind," Maddox said to McCoy, "I like to refer to Curtis as he, or him, rather than it."

"I'm sorry," McCoy said, bowing his head in acknowledgement. "I did not mean any offense."

"Of course not," Maddox said. "Even though our society has seen the great accomplishments of artificial life forms like Curtis, Lal or her father Data, it will take many more years to accept them as typical."

"A logical assumption," Spock said. "Has Curtis given any indication as to where he came from and how he got to be on Earth?"

Maddox shook his head.

"No," he replied. "His memories had been removed."

"And Picard felt safe enough to let mysteries like that go unresolved before taking Curtis on a mission with him?" McCoy asked.

"We all have aspects of our lives we keep secret," Ian Maddox said with a smile. "Why do you expect more from an android?"

McCoy was about to counter Dr. Maddox's last statement, but before he could, Lal came into the lab and walked over to the table.

"Mister Spock," Lal said, "we are receiving an emergency signal from your son; S'vath. It has something to do with James T Kirk."

Both Spock and McCoy stood up and followed Lal out of the lab. She led them into a room with a table and a computer screen mounted on the wall next to it. Spock and McCoy sat down at the table, as did Lal. S'vath's came into view on the screen.

"Son," Spock said, "it is agreeable to see you again so soon."

"Thank you father," S'vath said, as his wife, Amanda, sat next to him. "Jim is missing."

"What do you mean he's missing?" McCoy asked?

"Let him explain," Spock urged McCoy.

S'vath shook his head, and tried to do just that.

"Jim visited a local farmer's market yesterday," S'vath said, "and apparently saw someone he recognized from his past. He told Amanda where he was going, and then he left early this morning to go back and try to find this mysterious person; a woman."

"Did he say who this woman was?" McCoy asked.

"Yes," Amanda said, with worry on her face. "He said her name was," Amanda paused, "Edith Keeler."

Spock arched an eyebrow; where as a look of doubt came over McCoy's face.

"That can't possibly be true," McCoy stated flatly. "Things like that just don't happen."

"I must point out," Lal said to McCoy, "you're being here, and Jim Kirk's presence as well in this time period, would seem to defy that statement."

"You are quite right," Spock said to Lal.

"Thank you," Lal said, with her pleasant voice.

"You are welcome," Spock said back to her.

"What are we going to do?" McCoy demanded of Spock. "We've got to search."

"Listen to me," S'vath said, "I got to the farmers market just in time to see Jim with this woman, Edith Keeler. He was too far ahead of me, and when he went inside what should have been a holodeck-merry-go-round, when I got there; they were both gone. I've had Star Fleet security here going over every inch of this place; there's still no sign where they went."

There was silence for a moment, and then finally McCoy spoke.

"Well, Spock," McCoy said, "what are we going to do?"

Spock looked to his friend, McCoy, and then back to S'vath.

"We will do nothing, for now," Spock replied. "All of us at this table are well aware of the strange events that have surrounded Jim Kirk ever since he first showed up on Bajor and saved Benjamin Sisko's daughter. It is quite clear, that for whatever reason, Jim Kirk's path is not as," Spock searched for the right term, "linear as our paths."

McCoy had to nod his head in agreement. Although he, McCoy, had only recently arrived in the present time, he had taken time to read about Jim Kirk's adventurous life since arriving in this time just a few years back. In fact, the Jim Kirk who had just gone missing was the fusing of two Jim Kirks from two different time periods. Spock was right, McCoy thought to himself. Jim's destiny was not like that of an ordinary person; and that suited McCoy just fine.

Spock said goodbye to his son, S'vath, and then both he and McCoy went back to the lab to monitor Picard's stasis and those of his team.

…but about 40 years in the future (and in the pages of Star Trek: Exodus), Jim Kirk's path was about be walked upon again…

Next time…Picard VS Section 31's Commander Sloan!


	338. He Is Alive

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**He's Alive!**

* * *

**Across the Galaxy…inside the Highland Expanse**

_The USS Hauck made its way through space. It had been on autopilot for many years, nearly two decades in fact, and had successfully crossed the dark vast area of space that separated the Highland Expanse from the rest of the galaxy The Hauck's auto-piloted trek was about to end because inside its main cargo hold were seven stasis chambers (not six); and they were about open up. Lore's body construct was in the far chamber. Near to Lore's chamber, and in a row, were six others which contained; Worf, Geordie Laforge, Dr. Beverly Crusher, Commander Riker, Captain Picard and…next to Picard's chamber, the seventh member of the crew; Commander Luther Sloan._

_Picard opened his eyes and saw the pleasant face of Beverly Crusher staring down at him._

_"So we made it; we're on the USS Hauck," Picard said softly._

_Picard struggled to sit up in his med-bed._

_"Mine activated first," Crusher told Picard. "It was probably programmed that way so I could monitor the other chambers before reviving them. I've only been up and about for about fifteen minutes myself."_

_She handed Picard a hand held mirror so he could look at his own reflection. Picard slightly gasped at what he saw; his being so young._

_"Amazing technology," Picard said."How are the others," he asked._

_"I'll show you," Crusher said. "As well as a mystery I've found."_

_The chambers containing Riker, Laforge and Troi were still operating, as were the ones containing Worf and Lore. If all went according to plan, Worf's body would be controlled by Dr. Walter Bishop and Lore's android construct would be controlled the android known as Curtis Daystrom._

_Then Crusher brought Picard over to one more chamber and the person inside of it. Though they had never met, Picard recognized Commander Sloan, the devious Section-31 who was behind the extortion that brought them all to the Highland Expanse in the first place. "I wasn't aware there would be a clone of him here as well."_

_Suddenly Picard and Crusher were startled as Sloan's chamber activated itself, and the chamber's container slid open all by itself. Sloan opened his eyes, and then looked up at Picard and Crusher who were staring down at him in shock._

_"We're here," Sloan said as a broad smile spread across his face._

**Continued…**

"I must say," Picard said in a bitter tone to Sloan, "we are quite surprised to find you among us."

Commander Sloan sat up, and smiled at Picard.

"I would have been a fool to leave this mission entirely in the hands of a typical rank and file Star Fleet officer; no offense intended Captain Picard," Sloan said. "How much time has passed?"

"Its Admiral Picard now and it's been over twenty years," Picard said. "And, unfortunately, your plan worked. Our memories of your extortion measures against us twenty-years ago were erased back then, and only recently brought to surface when the USS Hauck approached the barrier known as the Highland Expanse."

"Twenty-years," Sloan repeated, "wow. Well," Sloan said, as he noticed the other chambers were yet to be fully activated, "I suggest we get on with it."

"Before we do so," Picard stated in a cool manner, "let me update you on some important details. First off; Worf and Data have been lost to us in the intervening years. Worf's mind and body will be under the control of Dr. Walter Bishop."

"Ahh," Sloan said, "the old coot is still alive."

"Yes," Picard replied, "and Lore's android construct is controlled by an android designated as Curtis Daystrom."

"Interesting name," Sloan said to Picard. And then he looked to Beverly Crusher. "So, Dr. Crusher, how am I doing?"

Crusher looked at the medical readings displayed on the panel above Sloan's chamber.

"Other than a lower level of oxygen in your blood," Crusher replied, "which we will all have to deal with in the short term, you're okay. But I want you to know Commander Sloan that I hate you and what you stand for. Threatening to kill our loved ones unless we helped you; how can you be allowed to even wear that uniform?"

Sloan smiled at Crusher.

"I assure you, Dr. Crusher," Sloan said, with a matter of fact tone, "that I have the survival of the Federation as my number-one priority. And to that end, I will do anything or sacrifice anyone to pursue that goal."

"Commander Sloan;" Picard said, after a moment, "myself, as well as Dr. Crusher, Laforge, Troi, Riker, and the bodies of Worf and Lore, are being controlled by either our doppelgangers or others back in the Alpha-Quadrant via a subway conduit created by Dr. Bishop's technology. Since you died many years ago…"

"Thank God," Crusher added.

"…how is it," Picard continued, "that your body is being manipulated?"

Sloan chuckled at Crusher's crude comment and then smiled at Picard.

"I would rather keep that information to myself, Admiral Picard," Sloan said back to Picard.

"Perhaps," Picard said, "but for the safety of the rest of our team, and the mission, I believe we should know who we all really are; including you."

Sloan pivoted out of his chamber and stood up. He looked directly back at Picard.

"Fair enough; when the time comes, Admiral, I will reveal the answer to your question," Sloan said. "But don't forget this simple fact; those threats I made to get you to come along are still alive and well, even twenty-years later." Sloan looked over at the other chambers. "I suggest you awake your crew, Admiral. We will have a mission briefing in exactly one hour; don't be late."

And with that, Sloan turned around and left the cargo area.

"He sure is a pompous son of a…" Crusher began to say.

"Beverly," Picard said, cutting her off, "let's just play along with him for now. Revive the others so we can have the mission briefing."

Picard watched as Dr. Beverly Crusher went over to the other chambers and began to reactivate them. He agreed with her, as he looked back at the exit to the cargo area; Sloan was indeed a very interesting person. But Picard couldn't help but wonder if they were dealing with Sloan since he had died years ago during the Dominion War. And if it wasn't Sloan inside that body; then who was it?

* * *

Back in the Alpha-Quadrant, at an undisclosed location, there was a darkened room. And in that darkened room was a chamber…and in the chamber was the person who controlled Commander Sloan's body in the Highland Expanse….

Continued…


	339. The Numbers Game (Part two)

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Numbers Game (part two)**

It had been sometime since Kira had last worn her uniform; but it was a must. The first part of the plan was to get a presence inside the main complex on the planet Darious. The complex contained a web of computers and networks that maintained most of the Federation's communication records. A web of subspace frequencies fanned out from Darious, as an equally large and unseen web of incoming transmissions crisscrossed the network as well.

Kira stepped out of the changing room on Zeb's small ship.

"Well," Kira asked the others, which included Kasidy, Nog, Garak and an obviously intrigued Zeb, "how do I look."

Zeb had a tooth-pick sticking out of his mouth, and he used the opportunity to let his eyes wander up and down Kira's clothed body.

"You still got it girl," Zeb said with a smile.

The others could sense the sexual tension between the two, but skipped beyond it.

Nog was holding a small cylinder shaped device.

"Umm," Nog said, as he stared at the area of Kira's uniform which contained her ample breasts, "We need to put this somewhere inside your uniform."

"Want some help with that?" Zeb asked.

"No," Kira said, with a tinge of irritation in her voice, as she stared back at Zeb. Then she looked down at Nog; his eyes at the level of her breasts. "Where does it have to go?"

"Umm," the visibly embarrassed Nog continued to say, "it…really doesn't matter."

Kira snatched the device from the Ferengi and stepped back into the changing room.

"We're lucky this is a Federation world," Garak finally said, having witnessed the odd situation. "Trust me, had this been a Cardassian world, they would find that device no matter where she may put it."

"I don't doubt it," Kasidy said.

Kira stepped out; the cylinder object was no longer in her hand.

"Where did you put it?" Zeb asked as he raised his eyebrows in a playful manner.

"Use your imagination," Kira said with a smirk.

"Do you think this plan will really work?" Kasidy asked Garak and Kira.

"We have to hope it will," Kira said. "I will go down there in my official capacity." Kira told Kasidy. "Being that I was once part of the Bajoran government, it should help."

"And then," Nog interjected, "the device will be activated.

"What will it do?" Kasidy asked.

"It's Cardassian technology," Garak explained. "It has programs which will act as a worm and will find the communiqués that Kilo, the Ferengi whom Jennifer was working with, and relay them to us. The trick is that Kira needs to get to the fourth floor, which is highly secured. If she can't get to that level, all of this will be for nothing."

"Are you sure the signals that device will transmit won't be tracked," Zeb asked. "We'll be sitting ducks on this ship behind a cloaking device."

"Eventually," Garak replied, "they will be detected. Hopefully by that point we will have the proof we need to show that Jennifer paid for the information."

"Which is what this is all about," Kira said. "So let's get it started."

Zeb sat down in his pilot's chair and prepared the ship. The ship was outfitted with holo-emitters which would provide an artificial outer-appearance of a Bajoran transport vessel. He pressed a button and the holo-emitters were activated as the ship approached the Darious system. And almost if on cue, a communication signal was sent to Zeb's ship from Darious. Zeb looked back at Kira, who sat in a chair that resembled the kind of chair which would be seen on the Bajoran transport vessel. Kira nodded at Zeb, who winked back at her as he pressed the switch which activated the communication platform.

The face of a blue skinned Andorian came on the screen. Zeb was too busy to see the face of the Andorian, due to prepping the ship. And if had, Zeb would have known that something wasn't right.

"This is Federation outpost Darious, I am administrator Shian" the Andorian said, "identify your selves."

"Kira," Kira replied, "I am here on behalf of the Bajoran council."

"Yes," Shian said, "we received the message from your government to survey our communication network. Please follow these coordinates I am providing, and I will meet with you upon your arrival."

And then the screen went blank.

"Whew," Kasidy said who, as with the others, hid out of view of the viewing screen. "I was nervous just watching."

"Quark came through," Garak said. "He was able to send the request that Administrator Shian mentioned; so far so good."

* * *

Moments later, Zeb piloted the ship, which on the outside appeared to be a Bajoran shuttle, and landed it at the given coordinates. Kira prepared to leave the shuttle.

"Don't do anything rash," Kasidy said. "Just get in there and get out."

Kira looked over at Garak and Nog.

"How long do we have until the sensors detect the transmissions from the device?" Kira asked.

Garak thought for a moment, and then he replied.

"Ten minutes, tops," Garak said.

Nog nodded in agreement.

"So don't activate it until you are on the fourth floor," Nog reminded Kira.

"If I can get up there," Kira said.

"I wish I could go with you," Kasidy said to Kira. "This is all for me, and I wish I could do more than be a cheerleader."

Kira smiled at her friend, and then she pressed a button and walked out the door. As she made her way down the ramp, the blue skinned Andorian, Shian, came out of the main complex. Zeb, who stared out a viewing port, saw the Andorian and then a look of worry came over Zeb's face. Kasidy saw the look on Zeb's face.

"What's wrong?" Kasidy asked.

"That Andorian is no administrator," Zeb told her. "His name is Triat, and he's a ruthless thug who works for the Orion Syndicate."

"Are you sure," Garak asked.

"I'm sure," Zeb said.

"What's he doing here?" Nog asked in a worried tone.

Zeb looked back out the viewing port, and then back at Kasidy, Nog and Garak.

"I don't think we're the only ones here trying to run a scam," Zeb said.

"What does that mean?" Nog asked in a nervous manner.

"Complications," Garak said.

Continued….


	340. Until Now

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Until Now**

(For the next two issues I will be recapping important developments of the Galaxy Window where it concerns Picard and his team that are exploring the Highland Expanse. Consider it a refresher course as that plot will take front and center very soon)

Previously;

Admiral Picard and Commodore Riker were summoned to Star Fleet Headquarters to a meeting with Secretary of Federation defense; Jy'lor Paream. After Picard and Riker were welcomed into a secure briefing room, Secretary Paream told them a most interesting story; and it all began with a large map of the galaxy displayed on the main viewer.

The image zoomed in on an area of space that was deep inside the Beta-Quadrant, but also spilled over into the Delta-Quadrant. Picard nodded his head as he recognized the area of unexplored space.

"What is that area?" Riker asked.

"It is called the Highland Expanse," Picard told Riker. "It is an area of space that Star Fleet became aware of thanks to data obtained from a damage Borg sphere that the USS Highland encountered fifteen years ago."

"Well, as usual," Secretary Paream said to them both, "there is more to the story than that simple encounter. To make a long story short, I want the two of you to lead a mission to the Highland Expanse."

"Yes, I heard about that," Riker added. "As I recall, the Highland encountered the damaged sphere and was destroyed. The Highland's last transmission stated that the sphere became operational and had attacked them; they were never heard from since. So what does any of that have to do with that area of space?" Riker asked as he pointed at the map. "Even at top speed it would take a starship twenty- years just to get there."

"Twenty-five actually," Picard corrected Riker.

Paream continued. "What I am about to tell you is highly classified, and will not leave this room."

Both Picard and Riker nodded in agreement.

"Before contact with the Highland was lost, the captain of the Highland, Jacob Canary had led a landing party over to the sphere. They found data in the sphere's computer that referred to this area of space," Paream motioned to the area of the map that was denoted as the Highland Expanse. "And then, while Captain Canary and his landing party were still aboard the sphere, without warning, the sphere became active and attacked the Highland, destroying it and killing all aboard her. However; the Highland was able to send out a buoy that included the last scans taken by its sensors before its demise. The data contained in the buoy's final transmission showed that he sphere had activated its Transwarp drive, and according to the last message sent by Captain Jacob Canary, the sphere was on course for what we now call the Highland Expanse. We gave this area of space the designation Highland Expanse in honor of the sacrifice the ship's crew had made."

"Alright," Riker said after a moment. "What is so special about this area of space, other than the fact it actually encompasses an area of space that stretches from the Beta-Quadrant over to the Delta-Quadrant, and is twenty-five years away from us."

"The buoy's communication, which included the sphere's data, was only partially recovered at the time, due to imperfections in the data collection," Secretary Paream explained. "However, recent technological advances, as well with the assistance of Annika Hansen and Dr. Walter Bishop, we have been able to recover the lost data. According to the recovered data, the Borg avoided the Highland Expanse like the plague. Star Fleet wants to know why. And with the Borg threat seemingly neutralized, thanks to the Voth, we want to launch a mission, real hands on mission, to discover the mystery as to what is inside that expanse."

Picard smiled at Secretary Paream.

"While that sounds like a very tempting mission," Picard stated, "twenty-five years, and really fifty years if you think about how long it would take to return, would seem to disqualify me by virtue of my age."

"Me too," Riker added.

Secretary Paream smiled back at the two men.

"Yes, on the surface, the time factor involved would seem to preclude sending a crew there," Paream agreed. "However, what if I told you that both of you could be there in," Paream paused for affect, "two hours."

"How is that possible?" Picard quickly came back with.

"It is possible because," Paream thought for a moment, and then he continued, "technically; you're both already there."

Picard and Riker looked over at each other, and then back to Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream.

"Would you repeat that?" Riker asked.

Picard and Riker looked over at each other, and then back to Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream.

"Would you repeat that?" Riker asked.

Secretary Jy'lor Paream smiled and stood up. He walked over to the screen and touched an area that was near the Highland Expanse. A small white dot suddenly had a circle around it.

"This is a starship that is approaching the expanse," Paream explained. "It was launched from Starbase 147 approximately fifteen years ago."

"I have never heard of such a launch," Picard said with a soft voice.

"Obviously the launch of the ship was classified," Paream told the two. "We didn't want the Romulans tagging along, so we went through great measures to make sure they didn't know about it."

"I thought you said it would take a ship from here twenty-five years to get to the Highland Expanse," Riker said. "According to that map, that ship will be there in weeks if not days. What happened to the other ten years?"

"While that is a good question," Picard said to Riker, "I'd like to know more about what you said a moment ago. You seemed to imply that we, Riker and I, are already aboard that ship."

"And you are," Paream replied, "as well as Commander Beverly Crusher, Professor Geordie Leforge, and," Paream paused, "Lt. Commander's Worf and Data."

"This is lunacy," Picard said with a laugh. "It's obvious that Commodore Riker and I are still in this room; and on top of that, Lt. Commander's Worf and Data are dead."

"Technically you are right, they are dead," Paream said. "However, the crew aboard that ship isn't conventional. You see, Jean-Luc, ships have entered the Highland Expanse before. They weren't Federation, but it appears as if several Delta and Beta Quadrant empires have tried, as have the Borg. And according to top-secret information told to us by Chancellor Martok, even the Klingons tried a century ago. Ships go in; but they never come out."

"But you seem to think that our ship, the one that the Admiral and I are already on and is about to arrive there, will enter it and succeed and return; why?" Riker asked.

Jy'lor Paream headed for the door to his office.

"Come with me gentlemen," Paream said back to them. "I have something to show you."

Picard and Riker shared a weary glance; they had no idea what was happening…and they both had a worried look on their face.

They exited the Secretary's office and walked down a long corridor.

The three men entered a Turbo-lift which took them down several levels. The doors opened and the exited the lift.

"What is this place?" Picard asked.

"One of those levels you're not supposed to know about, Admiral," Paream said with a slight smile.

Picard and Riker shared yet another apprehensive glance.

After entering three more guarded entrances, Secretary Jy'lor Paream stopped just sort of going through the next door.

"I should warn the two of you," Secretary Paream said to Picard and Riker, "that what you are about to see may seem out of the ordinary. However, I will explain everything after that point so that you can understand better."

Picard and Riker simply nodded their heads, and then Secretary Paream spoke a command so as to open the door.

"Secretary Jy'lor Paream," he said, "Code 3167367-RF."

And then the door slid opened. Jy'lor stepped through first, and then Picard and finally Riker.

The two former Enterprise officers surveyed the room and what they saw induced Picard to say just two words.

"Oh my…"

What they saw amazed them. It was a medical lab of some sort. An interesting man was inside the lab; he wore a white lab coat, strange goggles, and instead of boots or shoes, he wore sandals. He also had a strange item of food sticking out of his mouth; red liquorish.

"That's a cow," Riker said, with a wide smile, to Secretary of Defense Jy'lor Paream, "a dairy cow I believe."

"Dr. Walter Bishop I believe," Riker said with a knowing smile, having read about Bishop in the past.

" I recall my history," Picard said, as he stared at Bishop, clad in his lab coat, goggles and holding a bucket, "you were involved with questionable medical practices on children decades ago. Dr. Beverly Crusher told me about you long ago sir; I despised your name thereafter."

"Yes," Walter Bishop admitted with a soft voice. "But I assure you, and your friend there, that I am not that man any longer. I'm sure you will see that I am no longer involved with questionable medical practices; on children at least."

Picard shook his head, and then he looked at Secretary Paream.

"What is the purpose of all this?" Picard asked in a nearly demanding tone of voice.

"Dr. Bishop," Paream said, "can you show these gentlemen why they are here?"

"Certainly," Bishop replied.

Dr. Walter Bishop pressed a button and the door on what was essentially just a large shelf slid open and revealed a very intriguing sight; brains. There were six of them, and not all of them were human. Four of the six were obviously human, but the other two were different. One of the other two was definitely organic, and slightly larger than the four human brains. The sixth brains resembled the construct what was inside of Data's head. But there was no mystery as to who the brains belonged to.

Each of the six brains was contained inside of its own stasis field, and was levitating inside of it. But, more specifically, there were six different computer devices operating one of each of the brains, and they were labeled as following; PICARD-RIKER-B CRUSHER-WORF-DATA-LA FORGE.

"Mr. Secretary," Picard said in a disgusted tone, "what is the meaning of this. I will assume that these are what they appear to be, but how did they get into Star Fleet's possession?"

Before Secretary Paream could respond, Riker cut in.

"Even if you managed to get these replicas of our brains," Riker stated, "how did you get these two," Riker said as he pointed at Data's and Worf's stasis fields. "Data died during the ordeal with Shinzon, and Worf died in an explosion on Deep Space Nine (earlier plotline of this story)."

Paream smiled at the two men.

"Lots of questions, and as I said earlier gentlemen, right before we entered this lab, I would explain after you saw all of this," Paream explained

"Does this have anything to do with the ship approaching the Highland Expanse?" Picard asked.

"Yes," Walter answered before Paream could. "It has everything to do with that ship," Walter continued. And then he looked directly at Paream. "Stop pussyfooting around and just tell them; or I will."

"Is this to say that he," Picard said, referring to Walter Bishop, "is somehow involved with this?"

"Yes, I am afraid so," Paream said.

"Great," Riker said, with a look of anger on his face…

The two Star Fleet officers followed Paream into a conference room which was located area above the main lab floor. He motioned for Picard and Riker to sit, as he, Paream, sat at the head of the table.

"I will do my best, but what I am about to tell you happened during my predecessor's tenure." Paream began to explain. "As you know, the events surrounding the Highland's disappearance occurred during the time between the 1701-D's destruction and your assuming command of the 1701-E."

"Alright," Riker said, "but we were not involved with the Highland in any capacity."

"You are correct," Paream replied, "at least, that is what you recall."

"You want us to believe," Picard interjected, "that we allowed ourselves to be part of this nightmarish scenario? That we let you make cloned copies of our brains so that we could be part of some cloak and dagger fool's errand?" Picard shook his head. "I want you to put a stop to this right now."

"Admiral Picard," Paream said, after a moment had passed. "You did not enter this mission voluntarily at all. At that time, fifteen years ago, you were coerced into it, as were the others, by Section-31. In the here and now, that division has been permanently shutdown. But back then it was a very powerful wing of Star Fleet security. They had their hands into everything at the time, and even long before, in the name of Federation security. You both know that they were responsible for the virus that nearly destroyed the Founders. Even closer to home," Paream motioned to Riker, "they used coercion to make Thomas Riker steal the Defiant so as to gain knowledge about the Obsidian Order's intentions."

"What did they do to us," Riker asked; even his jovial mood from before had soured.

"Apparently, about a year or so after the NCC-1701-D's destruction," Paream said, "the two of you, as well as the android Data, and Klingon Worf, and fellow humans Beverly Crusher and Geordi La Forge, all got together on Starbase-147. You had gone there for a conference concerning the tactical threat the Borg posed to Earth and other worlds in the Federation. It was there at Starbase-147 when Commander Sloan, Section-31's most active operative at the time, approached you and used his subtle coercion techniques to get the DNA samples, as well as an exact copy of Data's positronic-Construct."

"What possible information did he have," Picard came back with, "that would make us capitulate so easily?"

"In your case," Paream replied softly, "as well as Beverly Crusher's, he had come into possession of your son; Wesley Crusher."

Riker looked over at Picard with a look of disbelief about the news he had just learned; Wesley was Picard's son. Before Riker could say anything, Paream continued.

"In your case, Commodore Riker," Paream went on to say, "if you will recall, your wife became very ill around that time after having been bit by a rare insect while the two of you visited Risa."

"That's right," Riker said. "She nearly died but a rare anti-toxin was found." Riker paused and snapped his fingers. "We were lucky."

"No, it wasn't just luck. The anti-toxin was always in Section-31's possession," Paream said. "As it turns out, so was the insect that bit her in the first place."

"So you're telling me the insect bite wasn't just a deadly accident," Riker said, with anger growing in his voice.

Picard cut in.

"So, one by one," Picard began to deduce, "this Commander Sloan found a weakness for all of us and exploited it so that we would take part in a mission that wouldn't take place for twenty-five years."

"Except it's only been fifteen years," Riker said.

"That's only because," Paream said, "the ship was able to cut ten years off of its travel time due to the discovery of another stable wormhole while on the way. The ship, the USS Hauck, is due to arrive at the expanse in three days."

"So our DNA was used to create these cloned brains," Picard went on to deduce. "So I assume that the rest of our bodies are on that ship. But even if that is the case, then what makes you think we will want to have any part of this, considering our involvement 15 years was against our will in the first place?"

Secretary Paream pressed a button and activated a monitor. The face of Commander Sloan appeared on the screen.

"My name is Commander Sloan," Sloan began to say. "I realize that by the time the USS Hauck reaches the Highland Expanse, I might well be dead."

"And he is," Paream injected quickly.

"I admit to using less than ethical means to get the crew I have assembled," Sloan went on to say. "However, the facts are these; the USS Highland's destruction has set into motion a string of events that, for the Federation's survival, we must investigate. As I make this recording, the cloned bodies of Picard, Riker, Crusher, La Forge and Worf have been placed aboard the ship, as well as the android Lore's body with an exact copy of Data's positronic-Construct.

I can only hope that these individuals are still alive and operational when the Hauck reaches the Expanse. I have set into motion several protocols that will assure completion of the mission even if I am no longer alive when the mission is engaged. If any attempt is made to stop or interfere with the mission's goal, exploring the area inside the Highland Expanse, these defense protocols will initiate. Trust me; you do not want to test those protocols; they will cost many thousands of lives."

"He's bluffing," Riker added.

"I wish he wasn't," Paream came back with. "Do remember the star liner that was destroyed near the Corvalla system years ago?"

"According to reports," Picard replied, "she was destroyed by Breen vessels during the War."

"That was just a cover story," Paream said, after a moment. "That ship was destroyed by a bomb. Sloan had sent Star Fleet command a coded message warning us that an event of that magnitude would occur two days after the message was received. Every two years since that time, other events have happened with similar warnings."

"How are these warnings sent, if," Riker said, "Commander Sloan is dead?"

"For all his faults, ruthless being one of them," Paream said to Riker, "he was very capable. But we believe someone, alive in the here and now, is helping his cause. We just received a coded message, sent to us in the same manner Sloan had sent his messages, warning us that if the mission isn't completed within the next few weeks, a series of anti-matter bombs will be detonated within Romulan territory, including on their home world of Romulas."

"He's willing to risk an intergalactic war with the Romulans, just to see this mission through?" Picard asked.

"Yes," Paream stated softly. "So you see," Paream went on to say, "We need you, and the others, to finish the mission."

Continued…


	341. The Devil Is In The Details

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Devil is in The Details...**

* * *

**Across the Galaxy…inside the Highland Expanse. The USS HAUCK makes its way through space...**

The briefing of the USS Hauck was located off to the starboard side of the bridge, access to which was gained by use of two entrances. With the small crew all revived from their stasis chambers; they began to gather in the briefing room. Sitting at the head of the table was Commander Sloan. Although Picard out ranked Sloan, it was Sloan who was in command of the situation. The last two to arrive were Commander's Data and Worf.

"Let's proceed," Sloan said with a very cold tone to his voice.

Sloan knew full well why everyone else on the mission despised him. Fifteen years earlier, Picard-Riker-Beverly Crusher-La Forge, Data and Worf, were visiting a conference on Starbase 147. It was there when Sloan met them and used extortion, threats upon their respective families, and other means, to get Picard and the others to submit to DNA mapping. Their memories of the DNA mapping event were erased, with the help of a Vulcan master. The DNA information was used to create clones.

With the help of Dr. Walter Bishop, who used technology developed by Leonard McCoy and Montgomery Scott over a century earlier (_Spock's Brain_); special transmitter-receivers were installed inside the brains of the clones. Data's "body" was actually the re-assembled android frame of Lore, with an exact duplicate of Data's positronic-mind installed inside of the body's "head". The clones and Data were put aboard the USS Hauck and sent to the Highland Expanse. Fifteen years passed by, and with further help from Bishop, back in the Alpha-Quadrant, and using inter-dimensional transmitting, an almost instant connection was made between the revived clones and Data.

So, in actuality, Picard and the others were inside a laboratory in the Alpha-Quadrant controlling their clone counterparts who were aboard the USS Hauck.

As it turned out, Commander Sloan was with them as well. And just like Worf and Data, Sloan had been killed in the intervening years. Worf's clone was now being controlled by Walter Bishop. Data's positronic-brain was now being controlled by Curtis Daystrom. (_Curtis Daystrom is an artificial life form, built by the same technology that created Ilya from V'gr_.) Both Bishop and Daystrom were in the same laboratory back in the Alpha-Quadrant, along with the real Picard and his crew.

Sloan, as mentioned, had died during the Dominion War. Who was now controlling his clone, and where in the Alpha-Quadrant this person was, was unknown to Picard and the others; for now.

One by one the crew sat down in chairs arrayed around the briefing room table.

"I just want you to know, again," Beverly said to Sloan, from where she sat next to Picard, "that what you did to us was disgusting."

Sloan was looking down at his computer screen, and then looked over at Crusher.

"Oh, I don't know Doctor Crusher," Sloan said from the head of the table, "I see what I do as a buffer against the destruction of the Federation, and finding about what is inside this so called Highland Expanse; we are doing just that. I will do anything I can to see that through; can you say the same?"

La Forge chuckled.

"I don't see anything humorous in this at all," Sloan said, as he cast his gaze on La Forge, who sat on the opposite side of the table from Crusher.

"Oh trust me," La Forge said, "I find no humor in this at all either. But if we're here protecting a Federation that uses extortion against innocent family members and friends, then I wonder if it's even worth it."

"Not to mention the fact," Riker chimed in, "that you have planted anti-matter bombs on Romulas and lord knows where else to make your threat even direr."

"Again," Sloan said to Riker, and then he began to pan his gaze upon the others, "I am doing what I feel must be done, to insure that the Federation survives unknown threats."

Picard cut in.

"While we're on the topic of you," Picard said, with disdain in his voice, "just who are you?" Picard asked. "We know for fact that you died while carrying out one of your twisted schemes aboard Deep Space Nine. I suspect that, just like us, whoever is controlling your mind and the actions of your body aboard this ship, is languishing inside of some laboratory in the Alpha-Quadrant. So, again I ask; who are you?"

"Do you think I'm actually going to tell you who I really am?" Sloan asked with a fake smile. "I suggest that you, and the rest of your friends, do what I have brought us all here to do." Sloan looked over at Data and Worf. "So, Dr. Bishop," Sloan said directly to Worf, "it is good to see you again. It looks as if your efforts have succeeded. Thanks to the death of the Klingon, I can give you thanks in person. None of this would have been possible without your inventive nature."

"You're mad," Worf replied. (_Though remember dear reader; Worf is controlled by Dr. Bishop_.)

"I think it is safe to say," Sloan replied, "that you are in the role of the mad scientist here." Sloan looked over at Data. (_Remember dear reader; Data is controlled by Curtis Daystrom. Who is Curtis Daystrom…he is about to explain_). "I now know that Commander Data was destroyed several years ago. So who are you really?"

"Why should he tell you," Riker cut in, "since you're not telling us who you are?"

Sloan cast Riker a look of contempt, but then looked back at Data.

"My name is Curtis Daystrom," Data replied. "Unlike Data, who is an android, I am a true artificial life form. I am a human, with every aspect of my body, even at the sub-atomic level, a mechanical creation of perfection."

Sloan thought for a moment.

"I recall reading about a being such as you," Sloan said. "It had something to do with Jim Kirk and the V'gr incident over a hundred years or so ago."

"You refer to Ilya," Curtis Daystrom said. "While we both Ilya and I share the same technology; my creation and why I was sent to Earth, has yet to be determined."

Sloan took a deep breath.

"Interesting," Sloan said, "But we don't have time to get into the details of your unique existence. I hope you find those answers in the future. Now," Sloan said to the others as well, "let's begin the mission de-briefing and what I expect from each of you."

* * *

**At that exact instant…in the Alpha-Quadrant…**

**STAR FLEET HEADQUARTERS; EARTH.**

The bodies of Picard, Riker, La Forge, Beverly Crusher and Walter Bishop were closely monitored by a team of scientists and doctors who were in turn monitored by Spock and Dr. Leonard McCoy. Spock and McCoy were sitting in an observation platform that looked down upon the laboratory below. Joining them were Dr. Ian Maddox (_the late Bruce Maddox's equally intelligent brother_) and Lal; the android daughter of the late Commander Data. They were looking at the data points being relayed to them on the main viewing screen inside the observation platform that indicated the current state of the transmission between the two sets of teams; the real Picard and others, and their counter-parts aboard the USS Hauck as well as the physical condition of their bodies.

"It would appear," Lal said, "that the readings we are seeing are nominal."

"Excuse me, if you don't mind," McCoy said to her, "I would like to be the judge of that."

"I am only stating the obvious," Lal said to McCoy. "I did not need to offend."

"Lal," Spock said to android, "Dr. McCoy is quite renowned for his attention to detail."

"Oh be quiet," McCoy said, as he fired off an annoyed look at his very good friend.

Spock looked over at Ian Maddox.

"I trust that Curtis Daystrom's control of Data's positronic-brain is nominal as well," Spock said.

"Curtis is really amazing," Maddox said, as he looked down at the motionless body of Curtis. "I believe we will find that there isn't much that he cannot do."

"Is it true," McCoy said to Maddox, "that Curtis has a soul? Spock and I were told that he, Curtis, was destroyed on a far off planet; yet, here he is."

(_Readers will recall the events when Curtis, Rebecca Sisko, Lal and others, crash landed on a world of zombies_!)

"I was there," Lal said to McCoy. "Curtis died while saving Admiral Sisko's daughter. We thought he had perished only to find that not to be the case when we arrived back on the Naissance."

"What does she mean by that," McCoy asked.

Spock was equally curious as well.

"When Curtis is destroyed," Maddox replied, "somehow an essence of his mind, his consciousness if you will, is transmitted via a means I have not determined, and re-constitutes itself, and his body, on Earth in the Sahara Desert at an exact point we have yet to determined."

"Fascinating," Spock said. "What is your theory as to how that can be possible?"

Dr. Ian Maddox shook his head.

"I have none," Maddox said. "As of now; it is a mystery. But I do know, as well as you do," Maddox said to Spock, "that he was built with the same technology as Ilya was. How that is possible, and what further attributes may manifest with Curtis, no one can answer; for now."

"When our responsibilities are over, where they concern the USS Hauck and their mission," Spock began to say, "I would like to help you in that endeavor." Spock said to Maddox.

"I would be honored," Maddox said with a smile.

They continued to monitor the status of Picard, Riker, and the others...

* * *

**Earth…Riverside Iowa**

**The Ranch home of James T Kirk….**

Jim Kirk had been missing for over two weeks. He had disappeared inside a holographic merry-go-round, and all measures of finding the legendary star fleet officer had been exhausted. S'vath and his wife Amanda had wanted to leave Kirk's home, now that he was gone, but on urging from S'vath's father, Spock, who was Kirk's closest friend, S'vath and Amanda took the elder Vulcan's advice and decided to stay in Kirk's home on the chance that, perhaps as swiftly as he disappeared, Kirk would somehow reappear again.

(_readers…the Jim Kirk they are refering to is actually now appearing in "STAR TREK EXODUS", which is a sequel to this story but takes place 35 years in the future from these current events. Kirk is the character "The Stranger" and what he is doing there is still..well…a mystery.)_

S'vath and Amanda watched their two children, Lenora and Sarek playing in the living room of the large home. Lenora was playing with some dolls while Sarek was playing with some space-ship toys.

"I wonder where Jim went," Amanda asked, as she looked at her son laughing at his space-ship toys.

"With him; who knows," S'vath said. "It's funny," S'vath said, as he sipped tea from the mug he held in his hand, "the Jim Kirk we know now isn't the same Jim Kirk we met on Gamma Trianguli VI."

"That's right," Amanda said, as she too sipped from a mug of tea. "Well, actually, sort of he is. The Jim Kirk we knew went inside that Nexus, and his essence became merged with what Jim called an echo of an earlier version of himself which existed inside the Nexus." Amanda sighed, "I'm getting a headache just thinking about it."

Suddenly S'vath had a spasm of pain inside his mind. Amanda could see the look of pain on his face. She put his mug down on the table, as well as hers, and helped to steady her husband.

"S'vath," Amanda said, with a concerned tone to her voice. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," S'vath replied, as he massaged the temple area of his head with his fingers. "Suddenly I felt this pain inside my mind; like someone was sticking a needle inside my brain."

Amanda was about to say something, when again, S'vath became overwhelmed by pain. S'vath was able to open his eyes and, through gritted teeth and pain, he was able to utter three words.

"Get…my…father," S'vath said and then his eyes closed; and he was out cold!

Continued…next time...Chakotay returns to the canvass!


	342. The Quest

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Quest**

Earth...

A beautiful woman swam naked in a pond that several streams fed into from a surrounding cliff wall. The water was a bit cold, but she didn't mind because earlier in the day the temperature had gotten close to a hundred degrees outside. The clearness of the water also did very little to conceal her nakedness, which was fine with the man who was watching her from above the pond from a flat area of rocks. He was no pervert who happened upon the scene, he was with the woman as a friend. She was twenty years his junior, but their relationship up to that point was plutonic. His name was Chakotay, and her name was Shaola. They had gone on a nature walk three weeks earlier and found themselves in the wilderness of Colorado; exactly where they were? They didn't care.

As Chakotay watched Shaola swim in the pond below, he looked down at a holo-pic that he held in his hand; the picture of a little child. Her name had been Yudelle. She had died in a fiery crash of a transport vessel, but she had already been dying from an incurable disease. Her mother was Annika Hanson, or as Chakotay mainly remembered her as, Seven of Nine. The father of the little girl was his clone; Chakotay.

Created by the Voth, and substituted for the real Chakotay, the cloned version was the one who had returned with Voyager to Earth. He and Annika had fallen in love and had married. The cloned Chakotay never knew his true nature, and neither did anyone else. And as it turned out, in the final months during Voyager's return, the two, Seven of Nine and the cloned Chakotay, had fallen so in love that their relationship became very serious and they married.

After returning to the Alpha-Quadrant, all former members of the Maquis who had served aboard Voyager during her long voyage home, were summarily convicted for the crimes they had committed while members of the terrorist group. Cloned Chakotay was sent to prison but broke out to try and take his daughter to get treatment from the Native-American tribes centered in North America. After abducting his daughter from a Federation hospital, where she was slowly dying, his ship was forced down and Yudelle died. From that point on, cloned Chakotay snapped and became a criminal figure in the Orion Syndicate. In one last act of honor, he saved a child of Jim Kirk and died in the process.

Chakotay pressed a button and the picture of Yudelle faded and a picture of Annika Hanson appeared. Annika was truly a beautiful woman, and as Chakotay looked at the picture, he couldn't help but wonder if history would have played out the same had he returned to Earth with Voyager instead of his clone. He pressed a button and the picture of Annika faded away.

"Come down here," Shaola called out from the pond. "Are you afraid of the cold water?"

"Not at all," Chakotay replied with a smile. "I'm having fun just watching," he added.

"I bet you are, now it's my turn," she countered. "Now take off those pants of yours and get down here!"

Chakotay liked the flirting nature that he shared with Shaola. They were only friends, but it was cleary they were becoming more.

"Yes ma'am," Chakotay said with his own laugh.

The former XO of Voyager stood up and was preparing to remove his clothes, when suddenly a hawk swooped down from out of the sky and landed on a large rock which was out of the view from where Shaola was in the pond below. Chakotay stared at the bird, which in turn, looked at him as well. Feeling compelled, Chakotay walked toward the bird, and out of view from Shaola.

Chakotay stopped in his tracks when the bird vanished was replaced by a whiff of smoke. The thin cloud of smoke became more organized and then morphed into a humanoid shape which then became that of Satangkai; son of James (Kirok) Kirk. Chakotay honored the legendary chief of the Native-American state by getting down on his knees. Satangkai motioned for Chakotay to stand. Satangkai was clad in his ceremonial clothing and large flowing white bonnet of feathers.

"How can you be here," Chakotay asked the old man.

"Chakotay; I have never left," Satangkai replied.

"Your father," Chakotay said to him, "Jim Kirk; from what I hear, he is missing."

(_Events which are now being covered in STAR TREK: EXODUS_)

"My father, Kirok," Satangkai explained with his feeble voice, "His path has taken him elsewhere beyond where we stand. Fear not, for he has not passed into that which is beyond the last star in the heavens. In his place, you and Limanu (_the current chief of the Native-Americans_) must see to the care of Kirok's other two offspring."

"Which we are doing," Chakotay said with a warm smile. "His children will only know the love and warmth of our people. However, I sense that is not why you have come to me now."

Satangkai nodded in agreement and a look of concern came over his face.

"The Hi'nakah are returning," Satangkai said. "I believe our people, as well as everyone else on this world, are in great peril."

Chakotay racked his brain, but had no memory of the Hi'nakah.

"I'm sorry," Chakotay told the old man, "I have no idea what that means. Who are the Hi'nakah?"

Satangkai's shape began to fade as he slowly morphed back into smoke. But before he was total gone, the old chief told Chakotay the answer.

"They were the ones who took my tribe off this world," Satangkai warned, "they will do the same again; however, this time they will take…everyone."

And then the hawk appeared and flew away. But in the animal's place, on the rock on which it had been perched, was a cloth of some sort. Chakotay walked over and picked up the cloth and unfurled it. On the cloth were old and faded images, with ancient writings on them. And then, as he looked closer, Chakotay realized what he was holding; a map.

As he looked at the map, Chakotay was well aware of the story of the Native-Amerians who were taken from Earth to a far off world. It was on that other world where James Kirk and the Enterprise found the long lost tribe. Could it be true that the Hi'nakah Satangkai referred to were in fact the Preservers?

-continued…next time; Kasidy and her team face danger as they try to retrieve information that will prove Jennifer Sisko isn't quite what she seems!


	343. Try To Remember

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Try To Remember**

**Earth**

**The Ranch home of James T Kirk**

Two transporter beams solidified inside the living-room of the home and standing in their places were Spock and Dr. Leonard McCoy. Spock headed over to his son, S'vath, who was stretched out on one of the couches, McCoy right behind his long time Vulcan friend. Amanda was by S'vath's side, and she looked up at McCoy who had produced a Tricorder.

Amanda was a nurse herself, but she knew that McCoy was probably one of the most knowledgeable men in Star Fleet history where it came to Vulcan anatomy, due to all the years he had spent on the USS Enterprise treating Spock.

S'vath opened his eyes, and smiled upon seeing his father.

"It is good to see you my son," Spock said to S'vath.

"It is good to see you father," S'vath said. "I thought you and Dr. McCoy were involved with some sort of top secret operation with Star Fleet," S'vath said.

"Now don't you go worrying about that, young man," McCoy answered for Spock. "In case you hadn't noticed, for us, family and friends come before duty."

S'vath smiled at McCoy, and then looked to Spock.

"Does he speak for you as well," S'vath asked.

Spock nodded his head.

"Dr. McCoy is well known for his theatrics when discussing certain matters," Spock said, as he looked over at McCoy, who was looking at the reading on the Tricorder, "however, on the subject of friends and family; his meaning is quite logical."

"How is he," Amanda asked McCoy.

"Perhaps you can explain what exactly happened," McCoy said to S'vath and Amanda, as he continued to scan S'vath.

S'vath explained how he had suffered several spasms of pain inside his mind, so severe, that he had felt dizzy and confused.

"I can find no physiological reasons to explain the spasms," McCoy said, as he read the Tricorder's display. "However," he said, as he angled the Tricorder so Spock could see one of the readings, "I am interested in the elevated levels of noradrenalin in the frontal lobes," McCoy said as he pointed at an area on S'vath's forehead.

"Yes," Spock said, nodding his head in agreement with McCoy. "That would suggest a postsynaptic response to memory suppression," Spock concluded.

"Exactly my conclusion as well," McCoy said as he closed up the modern day Tricorder and put it back into his pocket.

"Wait a moment," S'vath said, "are you saying that someone has suppressed my memories? Could it have been mother or even Sybok during that ordeal with them last year?" S'vath asked.

"I cannot be certain," Spock said.

"I can," McCoy interjected. "The area of your brain that has the elevated levels of noradrenalin pertains to recent memories. I'd say, at best, we're talking two to three months ago."

"Three months ago is when you were attacked on that prison planet and died," Amanda told S'vath. "You know; when you, Jim and Agent Ryan Tolbert went there to meet with Dr. Walter Bishop and you were attacked by a prisoner."

Suddenly, S'vath suffered another spasm of pain. Spock reached out to steady his son as McCoy whipped out the Tricorder and scanned S'vath again with it.

"Could something else have happened to him at that prison?" Amanda asked. "That is the only trauma he has suffered in recent months."

S'vath came back around.

"Perhaps a mind-meld would help," Spock said aloud.

"Are you crazy," McCoy responded loudly. "You have no idea what's happening inside his mind, and besides," McCoy added, "you're no spring chicken Spock."

Spock nodded his head. If the suppression was powerful, then it would take a powerful Vulcan mind to overcome it. And If Spock, in his advanced age, tried to remove the suppression with a mind-meld, but was overpowered by it; then it could leave both of them, both he and S'vath, vegetables.

"You are right," Spock said to McCoy. "However, there is Vulcan currently on Earth who I would trust to do this mind-meld; Tuvok."

"That son-of-a-bitch," Amanda asked. "We didn't quite get along with him if you will recall."*

*(Amanda is referring to the events that took place in the Native American lands concerning Jim Kirk-Limanu and Satangkai.)

"Perhaps," Spock said, "however, he is the best chance we have to remove the suppression inside of S'vath's mind."

Amanda looked down at S'vath, who nodded in agreement with his father.

"You all remain here," McCoy said as he stood up and tapped his communicator, "I'll see if I can get him."

As McCoy stepped away and spoke with Star Fleet control, S'vath looked up at Spock.

"Enough about me for a moment," S'vath said, "how is Elizabeth (daughter of Christopher Pike and wife of Spock)? She should be in her six month of pregnancy by now. Where is she?"

"As for her pregnancy; she is seven months, two days, fourteen hours, and several odd minutes into it and it is progressing without incident. Her doctor, McCoy, ordered her to remain on Vulcan until the day comes to have the child."

"You must be happy," Amanda said with cheer in her voice.

"This is my father you're talking about," S'vath said. "Happiness isn't part of his vocabulary."

"Actually," Spock interjected, "it is a word in my vocabulary."

"Well, then; are you?" Amanda asked with a smile.

Spock arched his eyebrow when McCoy cut in; saving him by the bell.

"Star Fleet central is relaying my message," McCoy said. "Apparently he and T'av have been living among Tibetan monks for the past several weeks."

"Well, if there's anything I remember about Tuvok; he loved his tea. I'll go make some," Amanda said, as she stood up and headed for the kitchen.

McCoy looked around the large room, which had several mementos from Jim Kirk's travels. He went over to the fireplace and picked up an item from the mantle; a tiny drinking glass. It had been given to Kirk by Baylok; the small sized captain of the First Federation vessel.

"I wonder where Jim is," McCoy said, as he turned around, holding the glass, and faced Spock.

"It is quite possible we may never know," Spock said from where he sat next to S'vath. "The science team found no useful data when they searched the area of the Farmer's Market."

"How could Edith Keeler have been there," McCoy asked, as he set the glass back down.

"I do not know," Spock said, after a moment. "However I am certain of this; Jim is alive."

"Wishful thinking Spock?" McCoy asked with a smile.

Spock could only answer with one word.

"Yes…"

* * *

Next time…Tuvok arrives and discovers evil inside of S'vath's mind…Kasidy and her team try to steal important information…and encounter the Orion Syndicate…and Picard and his team witness true terror!


	344. The Numbers Game III

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Numbers Game III**

**Previously…**

_Kasidy Yates, and her team, comprising Nog-Garak-Zeb MaCahan and Kira Nerys arrived in the Darious star system aboard MaCahan's state of the art smuggling vessel. They had come to Darious IV to retrieve transmission records that would, hopefully, prove that Jennifer Sisko was not the sweet-woman she claimed to be after recently returning from the Borg collective. Jennifer had even going so far as to blackmailing Kasidy, and threatening the life of Kasidy and Ben Sisko's daughter, Rebecca._

_Jennifer had obtained Kasidy's sealed record. And as it turns out, years before Kasidy had met Ben Sisko, she had been a pleasure giver; a prostitute. She did so due to hard luck in her life. Unfortunately, in those times, Kasidy had also been involved in a murder. Although she was cleared, and her record sealed, Jennifer threatened to reveal to Ben Sisko his wife's seedy past. Kasidy staged her death and assembled the team she was now with to get the information, and to possibly prove that Jennifer had killed to get it. Death was suspected because she had seemingly worked with a Ferengi to obtain the information, and that Ferengi was now missing._

_Darious IV was the Federation's main record keeping hub. Records of all kinds were stored on the planet's massive computer network. If there was a trail to follow it would be on Darious IV._

_The plan was to have Kira beam down to planet, with a Cardassian computer hacking device hidden on her body. She stepped out of the changing room, with the rest of the team looking at her. Where had she hid the device?_

_Kira stepped out; the cylinder object was no longer in her hand._

_"Where did you put it?" Zeb asked as he raised his eyebrows in a playful manner._

_"Use your imagination," Kira said with a smirk._

_"Do you think this plan will really work?" Kasidy asked Garak and Kira._

_"We have to hope it will," Kira said. "I will go down there in my official capacity." Kira told Kasidy. "Being that I was once part of the Bajoran government, it should help."_

_"And then," Nog interjected, "the device will be activated._

_"What will it do?" Kasidy asked._

_"It's Cardassian technology," Garak explained. "It has programs which will act as a worm and will find the communiqués that Kilo, the Ferengi whom Jennifer was working with, and relay them to us. The trick is that Kira needs to get to the fourth floor, which is highly secured. If she can't get to that level, all of this will be for nothing."_

_Zeb sat down in his pilot's chair and prepared the ship. The ship was outfitted with holo-emitters which would provide an artificial outer-appearance of a Bajoran transport vessel. And almost if on cue, a communication signal was sent to Zeb's ship from Darious. Zeb looked back at Kira, who sat in a chair that resembled the kind of chair which would be seen on the Bajoran transport vessel._

_The face of a blue skinned Andorian came on the screen. Zeb was too busy to see the face of the Andorian, due to prepping the ship. And if had, Zeb would have known that something wasn't right._

_"This is Federation outpost Darious, I am Administrator Shian" the Andorian said, "identify your selves."_

_"Kira," Kira replied, "I am here on behalf of the Bajoran council."_

_"Yes," Shian said, "we received the message from your government to survey our communication network. Please follow these coordinates I am providing, and I will meet with you upon your arrival."_

_And then the screen went blank._

_"Whew," Kasidy said who, as with the others, hid out of view of the viewing screen. "I was nervous just watching."_  
_"Quark came through," Garak said. "He was able to send the request that Administrator Shian mentioned; so far so good."_

_Moments later, Zeb piloted the ship, which on the outside appeared to be a Bajoran shuttle, and landed it at the given coordinates. Kira prepared to leave the shuttle._

_Moments later, Kira left the ship. As she made her way down the ramp, the blue skinned Andorian, Shian, came out of the main complex. Zeb, who stared out a viewing port, saw the Andorian and then a look of worry came over Zeb's face. Kasidy saw the look on Zeb's face._

_"What's wrong?" Kasidy asked._

_"That Andorian is no administrator," Zeb told her. "His name is Triat, and he's a ruthless thug who works for the Orion Syndicate."_

_"What's he doing here?" Nog asked in a worried tone._

_Zeb looked back out the viewing port, and then back at Kasidy, Nog and Garak._

_"I don't think we're the only ones here trying to run a scam," Zeb said._

_"What does that mean?" Nog asked in a nervous manner._

_"Complications," Garak said with a tone of worry in his voice as well._

**_OUR STORY CONTINUES..._**

* * *

Kira came down the boarding ramp. She was wearing an unseen audio-devise in her left ear as she approached the Andorian. Suddenly she heard Zeb's voice in her ear.

"_Listen closely; sweet buns," Zeb said to Kira, as he watched her from inside the ship, "that Andorian approaching you is an Orion Syndicate thug. Something else is going on here, but they don't need to know we know. So just continue with the plan."_

Kira came up to the Andorian.

"Administrator Shian," Kira said with a smile, "it is a pleasure to meet you. I hope my stay here won't interfere with your duties."

"Not at all," Shian replied with his own smile. "Although, I must warn you that we are in the middle of a systems upgrade, so access to some parts of this facility will be limited."

"_Bullshit," Zeb said, as he listened in on the conversation via Kira's ear piece. "He's just shoveling that crap so we can't get access to the area that he and his friends are screwing around with. Just roll with it," Zeb said to Kira._

"I'm just here," Kira said to Shian as they headed back toward the building, "to make sure that Bajor's interests are being maintained to standards we set up during the Dominion War."

"Of course," Shian said back to her. "I think we can accommodate your request quite easily."

"_Good," Zeb said to Kira, "you're doing great sweetie. The area he is taking you is probably not considered a threat to whatever he and his friends are doing. Once you get inside the building, activate the device. If Garak's sources were correct, the Bajoran section of the net is stored four floors up, well within the device's range." _

Zeb and the others watched as Kira disappeared inside the confines of the Darious IV data storage facility. Zeb looked over at Nog and Garak who were manning the consol that would monitor the progress of the Cardassian computer worm device. Two minutes went by and according to the control panel; Kira had not yet activated the device.

"Why hasn't she activated the device yet," Kasidy asked.

"Tell her to activate it," Garak said to Zeb.

"I can't," Zeb said. "They might detect the transmitter in her ear now that she's inside the building."

"Give her time," Nog said to the others. "We don't even know where she hid the device, so, it might be hidden in an area of her body that, ummmm," he became embarrassed as he said the next words, "she doesn't have easy access to."

A devious smile spread across Garak's face.

"These are the moments," Garak said, "that I am happy that I have a well developed imagination."

"I bet you do," Kasidy said, with a tone of disgust in her voice.

"Well." Zeb finally said. "There is only one thing we can do; wait and see."

Suddenly the control panel chirped; the worm had been activated. And while the others seemed relieved, Zeb couldn't help but look at the ominous data storage facility with concern in his mind. He and Kira had once been lovers, and even though their careers had gotten in the way, and the relationship didn't last, (but created a daughter he didn't know about) he still had feelings for her. And now; he was very worried about her safety.

* * *

**EARTH**

**Jim Kirk's ranch home in Riverside Iowa…**

_S'vath was overcome by what appeared to be a suppressed memory inside of his mind. After seeing him collapse, his wife, Amanda, sent for S'vath's father; Spock. Moments later, Spock and his friend, Dr. Leonard McCoy, beamed into the home and Spock immediately realized a mind-meld was the only thing that could release the memory, and make S'vath's pain go away. But McCoy would not allow it, pointing out Spock's advanced age and the power of the memory suppression. Spock reluctantly agreed, and a second option was agreed upon; another Vulcan could mind-meld with S'vath to release the memory suppression. They sent for Tuvok…_

Nearly ten minutes had passed by. And in that time, S'vath was made more comfortable on the couch he had not moved from since being overwhelmed by the suppressed memory. Amanda had made some tea, and was pouring another cup for McCoy, when finally a Transporter signal shimmered into view and Tuvok stood before them.

The ebony skinned Vulcan was wearing a ceremonial robe, and now sported short cropped beard on his face. He and Spock both held their hands up in the customary greeting symbol.

"It is good to see you, my friend," Spock said to Tuvok.

"I come to serve. T'av has remained in Tibet," Tuvok said, as he came over to the couch and looked down at S'vath.

S'vath looked up and saw Tuvok. The two had not gotten along recently, but had parted amicably enough.

"I still think you're an asshole," S'vath labored to say

"And I think you are the most illogical Vulcan I have ever met," Tuvok countered, "however, your father has requested my help and so I am here."

"Tuvok," Amanda said, in defense of her husband, "S'vath doesn't really think that. He really does respect you. His pride gets in his way at times."

S'vath looked away from his wife and Tuvok.

"I know that James T Kirk went missing on my watch, and for that, I am deeply sorry," Tuvok said to S'vath. "Thankfully, it all ended well."

"And honey," Amanda said, as S'vath nodded his head to what Tuvok said, "Jim went missing again two weeks ago under our watch, so why not blame us?"

"You both are acting illogical," Spock finally said to Tuvok and S'vath. "Trust me when I say this; Jim Kirk cannot be corralled like an animal; he will always find the means to disappear without notice."

Amanda looked over at McCoy, who nodded in agreement with Spock. McCoy was prepping his Tricorder to keep tabs on S'vath once Tuvok started the meld.

"Dr. McCoy," Amanda said, "before Tuvok begins the meld, can I ask you a question about Jim, since we're talking about his ability to disappear?"

"Of course, my dead," McCoy said, as he looked down at the instrument.

"Am I correct that once upon a time he went missing on a world where a tribe of Native-Americans lived?" Amanda asked.

"He did indeed," McCoy recalled. "We really thought we had lost him for good that time."

Amanda looked over at Spock, who shook his head in the negative; meaning, that he had not yet asked McCoy about Miramawnee and Kirk and the survival of their child.

"You just heard us talking about an event that S'vath and I, as well as Tuvok and T'av, had with the Native-Americans here on Earth recently."

"I don't know the details, but if you ask me, it sounds like Jim Kirk got himself in trouble, and you all got him out of it; I think that's one thing we all have in common," McCoy answered with a smile on his face.

"Jim Kirk only became involved," Amanda said to McCoy, "because his son was the chief of the Native Americans."

McCoy could hear the tone of Amanda's voice; accusatory was mixed in with her pleasant sounding voice.

"Alright," McCoy said, "I understand. Why does it seem you're accusing me of something in all of this?" McCoy asked, as he put the Tricorder down.

Amanda looked over at Spock, and Spock understood her conflict, so he decided to take over the conversation; and why not?

(But first…a flash back)

_The event that Amanda was slowly alluding to happened over a century earlier. During the Enterprise's third year, of its five year mission, Jim Kirk had disappeared on a world far from Earth, and for many months believed himself to be Kirok. He spend that time among Native-Americans that had been brought to that world. He married a Native-American woman named Miramawnee, and she became pregnant with his son. After being attacked by an angry mob, Kirk was severely injured and so was Miramawnee. While Kirk survived the attack, and his memory returned, Miramawnee died, as well as her unborn child; or so it was believed._

_Somehow the child, a boy named Satangkai, had survived, and eventually became the chief of the Native-American tribe that the Preservers had moved to that far away world. Eventually the alien world became a base of operations for the Jem'Hadar during the Dominion War, and the Tribe was relocated back to Earth._

_The secret of Satangkai's existence had remained hidden for over a hundred and twenty five years. But Amanda's grandmother, Christine Chapel, upon her death bed, admitted that she and McCoy had actually lied and rescued the child and left him with the Tribe all those decades ago. Amanda became aware of the information and eventually told Spock, and eventually Kirk found out. But what was never answered was why; why had McCoy saved the child and never told Kirk._

"Doctor," Spock began to say, softly, "We know that Miramawnee's child survived the attack. He was raised by the tribe and became chief, and only died recently. Jim eventually found out the truth, but by that time, Satangkai, his son, was well over a hundred and thirty years old."

"You never told Jim," Amanda said to McCoy,"why?"

As McCoy answered the sensitive question, S'vath's attention was distracted by a voice inside his own head.

"_Vulcan," the voice said, "I advise you to not delve into the memory you seek. Part of me resides there, and at this time, I do not have the strength to overtake your will and control your body. However, if you go ahead with the mind-meld, I may absorb stability, and then I will awaken. I do no wish it now because your friends would no doubt destroy you, and me, in the process."_

"Who are you," S'vath asked with his own thought.

"_You have been warned," the voice said, not answering S'vath's question. "And if you wish for your children and your wife to live," the voice began to say, "you will make sure that the memory that is hidden inside your mind does not…surface. Or…" the voice added, "I will cut your wife and child into pieces right before your eyes and the only thing you'll be able to do is watch."_

Continued…


	345. Where the Map Takes Me

**STAR TREK: The Galaxy Window**

**Where the Map Takes Me**

**Previously…**

**Earth...**

A beautiful woman swam naked in a pond and was observed Chakotay. Her name was Shaola. They had gone on a nature walk three weeks earlier and found themselves in the wilderness of Colorado; exactly where they were? They didn't care.

"Come down here and swim with me," Shaola pleaded, with a coy look on her face.

Chakotay stopped in his tracks when a bird, a bald eagle, landed before him. The bird vanished and was replaced by a whiff of smoke. The thin cloud of smoke became more organized and then morphed into a humanoid shape which then became that of Satangkai; son of James (Kirok) Kirk.

"How can you be here," Chakotay asked the old man.

"The white eagle, my son Kirok," Satangkai explained with his feeble voice, "His path has taken him elsewhere beyond where we stand. He can no longer help us, but you can. The Hi'nakah are returning," Satangkai said. "I believe our people, as well as everyone else on this world, are in great peril."

Chakotay racked his brain, but had no memory of the Hi'nakah.

"I'm sorry," Chakotay told the old man, "I have no idea what that means. Who are the Hi'nakah?"

Satangkai's shape began to fade as he slowly morphed back into smoke. But before he was total gone, the old chief told Chakotay the answer.

"They were the ones who took my tribe off this world," Satangkai warned, "they will do the same again; however, this time they will take…everyone."

And then the bald eagle appeared and flew away. But in the animal's place, on the rock on which it had been perched, was a cloth of some sort. Chakotay walked over and picked up the cloth and unfurled it. On the cloth were old and faded images, with ancient writings on them. And then, as he looked closer, Chakotay realized what he was holding; a map. Could it be true that the Hi'nakah that Satangkai referred to were in fact the _Preservers_?

-meanwhile—

In Riverside Iowa, at the ranch home of Jim Kirk, S'vath had been overcome by a hidden memory. His wife, Amanda, informed Spock who later arrived, along with Dr. Leonard McCoy. McCoy warned Spock that at his advance age, over 200 years old, Spock's mind could be damaged by a mind-meld wit h his son S'vath. Spock agreed and sent for Tuvok, who was on Earth living with Tibetan monks.

**Our story continues…**

Nearly ten minutes had passed by. And in that time, S'vath was made more comfortable on the couch he had not moved from since being overwhelmed by the suppressed memory. Amanda had made some tea, and was pouring another cup for McCoy, when finally a Transporter signal shimmered into view and Tuvok stood before them.

The ebony skinned Vulcan was wearing a ceremonial robe, and now sported a short cropped beard on his face. He and Spock both held their hands up in the customary greeting symbol.

"It is good to see you, my friend," Spock said to Tuvok.

"I come to serve. T'av has remained in Tibet," Tuvok said, as he came over to the couch and looked down at S'vath.

S'vath looked up and saw Tuvok. The two had not gotten along recently, but had parted amicably enough.

"I still think you're an asshole," S'vath labored to say

"And I think you are the most illogical Vulcan I have ever met," Tuvok countered, "however, your father has requested my help and so I am here."

As Amanda, Spock and McCoy spoke to Tuvok about S'vath's condition, a strange voice spoke inside of S'vath's mind.

"_Vulcan," the voice said, "I advise you to not delve into the memory you seek. Part of me resides there, and at this time, I do not have the strength to overtake your will and control your body. However, if you go ahead with the mind-meld, I will absorb Tuvok's stability, and then I will awaken. I do not wish it now because your friends would no doubt destroy you, and me, in the process."_

"Who are you," S'vath asked with his own thought.

"_You have been warned," the voice said, not answering S'vath's question. "And if you wish for your children and your wife to live," the voice began to say, "you will make sure that the memory that is hidden inside your mind does not…surface. Or…" the voice added, "I will cut your wife and child into pieces right before your eyes, using your very hands! And the only thing you'll be able to do is watch. I can suppress the memory, for now; just do not mind-meld with Tuvok."_

S'vath would do anything to protect his children. He sat up on the couch to the dismay of Amanda and the others.

"S'vath," Spock said to his son, "what are you doing?"

"I'm fine," S'vath said, with a smile, as he looked from Spock to Amanda. "Really I am. There's no need for any of this," S'vath said, trying to reassure them. He even reached out and picked the cup of coffee Amanda had made for him earlier and sipped from it. "Tuvok," S'vath said, "I'm sorry they sent for you but really, there's no need for a mind-meld."

At that moment they were all startled when a Transporter signal began to materialize on the other side of the large living room; it was Chakotay. As the others went over to greet the arrival of the Voyager's former first office, Amanda remained by her husband's side.

"Honey," Amanda said to S'vath, "just let him do the mind-meld. If you don't release this hidden memory, the pain inside your mind could return."

In fact, the piercing pain was still in his mind, but just not as pronounced, no doubt to the actions of whatever strange force was inside S'vath's mind.

As Amanda and S'vath remained on the couch, Spock, McCoy and Tuvok went over to greet the arrival of Chakotay.

"It is good to see you old friend," Chakotay said to Tuvok.

The two had not seen each other since Chakotay's return from years of isolation with the Voth.

"Admiral Janeway informed me of the circumstances of your return," Tuvok said, "The clone the Voth sent in your place fooled everyone; including me I might add. I am sorry that I did not realize the truth."

Chakotay smiled.

"I blame no one Tuvok," Chakotay said. "The Voth treated me well, and I hope that my being among them softened their views on mammalian life forms like us."

"I do not mean to interrupt," Spock said to Chakotay, "however, does your arrival here have to do with the welfare of Jim Kirk's children?"

"Not at all," Chakotay said with a smile, "Chief Limanu is taking great care of Kirk's two young children. Now, what I am about to say, may seem strange and out of the ordinary, but on a few occasions since my return to the native lands of my people, I have been contacted by Satangkai."

"The Native-American offspring of Jim Kirk?" Tuvok asked. "I thought he died during the confrontation between Kirk and Limanu. I remember because I was at the Tribe, as were you," Tuvok said to Spock.

"You are correct," Spock said to Tuvok, and then he looked back at Chakotay. "Please explain your statement."

"You are correct," Chakotay said to them, "Satangkai sacrificed his life to spare Jim Kirk. And in the true act of a true leader, he got the two of them, Kirk and Limanu, to set aside their differences. This had a profound effect on Limanu; and on Jim Kirk as well. But since that time, especially during the incident with the Jem'Hadar and their attempt to open the portal to the past (earlier storyline) a bald eagle has appeared to me. The first time the bald eagle appeared, it led me to where Jem'Hadar soldiers were holding Kirk's children, Mathew and Dahme, captive."

"Fascinating," Spock said. "How is it that you believe this bald eagle is Satangkai in another form?"

"Spock, it is in my people's beliefs that the essence of those who are great among us, someone such as Satangkai," Chakotay explained, "can take the form of animals so that they can give us guidance."

Spock shook his head.

"Humans in animal form; what you are asking for us to accept, Chakotay," Spock said, "is quite illogical."

A chuckle came from McCoy.

"Oh, I don't know," McCoy said from where he stood, "I read about the incident with your Katra, and how you placed it inside my doppelganger's mind all those years ago. Someone might say that is a bit hard to believe too."

"He's got you there dad," S'vath said from the couch, having heard the exchange.

Spock nodded his head in agreement with his son's statement.

"Very well," Spock said, "continue."

"Thank you," Chakotay said. "Anyway, the bald eagle visited me again and this time it left me," Chakotay reached into the pocket of his jacket and removed a faded cloth of animal skin, and handed it to Spock, "this."

Spock unfurled the animal skin and saw what appeared to be ancient lines drawn upon it, and several small pictographs, which were also faded.

"I believe it is a map," Chakotay said.

"A fair assumption," Spock said. "Why have you brought this to me?"

Chakotay turned the cloth over, and on the other side were more interesting items, but they were not pictographs, they were symbols. Spock immediately recognized the style of the writings and showed McCoy because McCoy had seen this form of symbolism as well.

"The obelisk," McCoy said with a whisper.

"Did Satangkai tell you anything about this," Tuvok asked as McCoy handed him the cloth.

"A warning," Chakotay said to Spock. "He said that the Hi'nakah, the term he used to describe the Preservers, were going to return and this time they weren't only going to relocate the Native-Americans; they were going to relocate everyone."

"Then what do you think this cloth diagram represents?" Tuvok asked as he handed it back to Chakotay.

"What do the symbols say," McCoy cut in with, speaking to Spock.

"The first assumption we've all made was that this cloth was a map to a location here, on Earth," Spock said. "It is not."

"Then what is it a map to?" Chakotay asked.

"If my reading of the symbols is correct," Spock told the others, "the place the map refers to is far from Earth; but some of us have been there."

"The planet the obelisk was on; where Jim lived with the Native-Americans?" Amanda asked, as she came over to look at the cloth.

"No," Spock said softly.

"Stop teasing us Spock," McCoy said, "where does this map lead to?"

Everyone looked at Spock and when he said his answer they were all stunned…

Continued…


	346. The Time of Our Lives

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**THE TIME OF OUR LIVES…**

**Deep inside the Highland Expanse…and area located in the Beta-Quadrant, near the center of the galaxy where no ship that has entered has ever returned. This includes Borg, Voth and many others…and now the USS HAUCK is there. The crew members are actually clones but their actions are controlled by their counterparts in the Alpha-Quadrant at Star Fleet command…all except Command Sloan…it is unclear who is controlling the late Section 31 member's body…**

**(RATED PG-13 for suggested actions…)**

_The Galaxy Window opened…_

Beverly Crusher opened her eyes, having just closed them a moment before. She had done so to confirm that what was happening was indeed happening. She was beneath a mountain of warm blankets, and next to her, and equally naked, was Jean-Luc Picard. Beverly looked over to her right, and sure enough, Jean-Luc was still next to her; and he was smiling back at her.

"Beverly…you are," Picard began to say, "the most beautiful woman in the world."

"I bet you say that to all the women," Beverly countered with a smile of her own.

"No, just you," Picard said.

"You're just saying that," Beverly said with a coy smile, "because you want to make love to me again."

Picard smiled, and nodded his head. He reached out and caressed the side of her face with his warm fingers.

"The thought had crossed my mind," he admitted, as his fingers traced crazy-eights on her cheek, "however; the statement is just as true whether or not I have another agenda in mind. What else can I say; you make me want you more and more each moment we share."

She reached across, under the blankets, and could feel just how aroused Picard was; and there was no doubt about it; he was very aroused.

"What are you waiting for," Beverly asked, as she pulled him closer.

Jean-Luc Picard did not waste a second. He shifted beneath the blankets, and crawled over on top of Beverly, and gazed into her soft eyes. He lowered his lip to hers, and they kissed. He reached up and ran his fingers through her hair as their tongues danced together inside of her mouth. She slowly spread her legs, and he began to make love to her. She placed her hands on his soft buttocks and pulled him closer and closer. She didn't want him to hold back this time. Urging him on, she whispered into his ear.

"Faster Jean-Luc," she said told him with a husky voice. "Faster…and harder," she urged as she closed her eyes; fully prepared for what that meant; and he obliged. He reached behind her head, and tugged on her hair, not hard, but not soft either. She wanted to feel his primal lust and he was doing just that; they were like to wild cats….

* * *

_…Elsewhere…_

William T Riker stared at his face in a mirror. There was a throbbing sound inside his head that he couldn't stop. It was like a low humming sound that seemed to fade at times, when tried to push it from his mind, but then came back. It never changed key, or modulated, it just stayed the same. He looked down at the sink, and there was a large carving knife. Water was loosely falling from the Fawcett, and it was mixing with the blood that was on the knife, created a red trail that swirled around the drain, disappearing out of sight. He reached down and placed his index finger on one side of the silver blade, his thumb on the other, and he then he slowly drew the knife between his fingers, blade down, forcing the rest of the blood off of the knife.

He held the knife up for closer inspection; all the blood was gone. He smiled. He smiled because there were times when nothing was more perfect than the shiny, beaconing surface of a cold blade. He stepped back and looked at his naked body in the mirror. The humming noise inside his mind became louder as tiny purple tentacles which were ach the size of a strand of hair, hundreds of them in fact, began to come out of his mouth. The wriggled their way into the open and hung half way down the front of Riker's body, but they did not fall to the ground. They were anchored to the rest of strands that reached back inside Riker's body and down to inside of his throat and all the way down inside his body. He turned and walked away from the sink. He was now in an all cemented room.

There were no chairs, no beds, just four cemented walls. The air inside the room was stale and moist. She walked toward the center of the cemented room, the tentacles that hung from his mouth, swayed gently. He could smell the pungent odor that came from the tentacles, and it almost made him gag; but he didn't. When he reached the center of the room, he looked down and saw the dismembered body of Deanna Troi. He had used the knife and it's very sharp blade to dismember his wife. Being that the room had a slight tilt to the center; the blood from her body parts was slowly flowing to a drain cover. As he looked at his dead wife's body parts, he saw two humans standing next to her face. They were each about five inches tall, and wore tuxedos. They were standing next to Deanna's face, and were balancing on their left feet. Their other legs, right legs, were stretched out and they slowly pivoted around like ballerinas.

"Stop messing around," Riker told them, as he dangled his foot above the two tiny men. "If you don't stop dancing, I will stomp my foot on the both of you, and then we'll see if your boots are made of monkey mice."

The two tiny men did as they were told and then, they did what they were supposed to do. Riker reached down and put one of his hands on Deanna's jaw, and the other on her forehead, and then he opened her mouth and watched as the two tiny men stepped into it. They both vanished into the blackness of the inside of her mouth. Riker smiled, because finally they had broken aspects in the world of oblong xylophones; which is how he liked it. He caressed Deanna's dead cheeks with his right hand as the humming grew louder. He took the knife, which he was still holding in his other right hand, and held the very tip of it just inches from her still opened, yet very dead, eyes. And then, he saw them! The tiny men had made it through her brain and were each standing inside of one Deanna's eyes. The humming suddenly stopped and then William T Riker closed his eyes…the Galaxy Window eyes closed again.

* * *

The universe chimed…and then the Galaxy Window opened its eye again…and so did the eyes of Walter Bishop and Geordie La Forge.

* * *

**In The Alpha Quadrant…at Star Fleet HQ in San Francisco;**

Several floors below Star Fleet, Dr. Leonard McCoy, who had just returned from Riverside Iowa, looked at the strange readings on the observation panels. He then walked over to the stasis chambers that contained Picard and Beverly Crusher. Their brains were still operating, and were no doubt still in control of their counterparts on the USS HAUCK in the Highland Expanse. But the internal scans of their brains were putting out reading he had never seen before. He needed Spock to rejoin him as soon as possible to make sense of it. Spock was still in Riverside Iowa dealing with the unexpected turn of events with his son, S'vath and a suppressed memory (last issue).

"Maybe I can help," a voice said from behind McCoy.

McCoy turned around to face the unexpected visitor and gasped at who he saw standing there…

"No," McCoy said, "it can't possibly be you…"

**Continued….**


	347. Tangents

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW  
Tangents**

Chakotay piloted a ship through space. He had come into possession of it while part of the Maquis, and had stored it in a shipyard which was located near one of Jupiter's moons. Luckily the owner, who had been a Maquis sympathizer, had kept the ship in his yard even long past the point Chakotay had paid him for. The ship, which was Bajoran constructed, wouldn't be mistaken for being one of the fastest ships, nor would it earn any prizes for its look, but it was dependable. Chakotay thought back to the events that had led him to re-connect with this relic from his colorful past.

Satangkai, while in the form of a red-tail hawk, had left him a map, which had been drawn on parched dry animal skin. Chakotay had originally thought the map was to a location on Earth, but all that changed when he took the map to Spock.

Chakotay found Spock at the ranch home of James T Kirk, which was located in Riverside Iowa. Spock was there caring for S'vath; his son. S'vath's mind was in mental pain; suffering from some sort surprised memory. Spock, as well as Tuvok, was trying to release the memory, when Chakotay had arrived on the scene for answers about the Map.

_FLASH BACK BEGINS_

**Inside Jim Kirk's ranch home…**

Chakotay handed Spock the map; which was a set of drawings set upon a dried out fabric made of animal skin. There were strange markings on the map, which correlated to the same kinds of markings found on an Obelisk on a distant world. It was on that world where Jim Kirk had been stranded on, and had become part of a Native-American tribe which had been brought to that world by the Preservers; an ancient space faring race of unknown origin.

Spock unfurled the animal skin and tried to make sense of what appeared to be ancient lines drawn upon it, and several small pictographs, which were also faded.

"I believe it is a map," Chakotay said.

"A fair assumption," Spock said. "Why have you brought this to me?"

Chakotay turned the cloth over, and on the other side were more interesting items, but they were not pictographs, they were symbols. Spock immediately recognized the style of the writings and showed McCoy because McCoy had seen this form of symbolism as well.

"The obelisk," McCoy said with a whisper.

"Did Satangkai tell you anything about this," Tuvok asked as McCoy handed him the cloth.

"A warning," Chakotay said to Spock. "He said that the Hi'nakah, the term he used to describe the Preservers, were going to return to Earth and this time they weren't only going to relocate the Native-Americans; they were going to relocate everyone."

"Then what do you think this cloth diagram represents?" Tuvok asked as he handed it back to Chakotay.

"What do the symbols say," McCoy cut in with, speaking to Spock.

"The first assumption we've all made was that this cloth was a map to a location here, on Earth," Spock said. "It is not."

"Then what is it a map to?" Chakotay asked.

"If my reading of the symbols is correct," Spock told the others, "the place the map refers to is far from Earth; but some of us have been there."

"The planet the obelisk was on; where Jim lived with the Native-Americans?" Amanda asked, as she came over to look at the cloth.

"No," Spock said softly.

"Stop teasing us Spock," McCoy said, "where does this map lead to?"

Spock handed the map back to Chakotay.

"I will tell you what world you need to go to," Spock told Chakotay, "however; you must go there alone Chakotay. I believe, if Satangkai were here, he would tell you that this is a path that only you can walk; for now."

"What kind of mumbo jumbo are you…" McCoy began to say, when suddenly his communicator chirped. He patted the star fleet badge he wore on his Star Fleet uniform.

"McCoy here," McCoy stated.

_"Doctor, this is Lt. Nan'ab," a female voice responded._

Lt. Nan'ab was a blue skinned hominoid from the world Ceavhkh, which had joined the Federation two decades earlier. She was McCoy's chief nurse, and was at Star Fleet monitoring the situation with Picard and his team.

"I hear you," McCoy said flatly.

_"Sir, we are detecting strange readings with Picard's team," Nan'ab reported. "You may want to see them yourself."_

"Very well," McCoy said, "I'll be there in five minutes; McCoy out."

"I shall come too," Spock said, as he prepared to accompany McCoy.

"No," McCoy countered, "you need to stay here and deal with Chakotay and then your son. I'll let you know if I need you," McCoy said. He looked at Chakotay. "I'm sure Spock is about to send you on some strange mission; it's his specialty. You take care," McCoy said to the former XO of the Voyager.

Chakotay smiled, and nodded his head; and seconds later McCoy shimmered away. Spock went over to a computer that was on a nearby table. He accessed the computer's data and soon the image of a blue and green world appeared. At that moment, Amanda, S'vath's wife, came back into the room with some more tea, which she poured into their cups.

"Chakotay," Spock said, the moment McCoy was gone. "You must go to this world."

Amanda looked at the world on the screen, and stated the obvious.

"Isn't that an image of Earth?"

"Yes it is," Chakotay said to Spock. "Is this some sort of trick?"

A chuckle came from S'vath, who was sitting on a nearby couch.

"You think my father is joking?" S'vath asked. "That isn't Earth," S'vath continued to say. "The Enterprise once visited a planet that was an exact duplicate of Earth; even down to the placement of the continents."

"I remember reading about that," Chakotay said, as he looked at Spock.

"Yes," Spock went on to say. "The inhabitants of that world attempted to stop the effects of aging, and to a degree, they were successful. The children we found there were actually hundreds of years old. However, once they reached the age of relative puberty, on that world, they died. The planet was named Miri Prime."

"And you're telling me," Chakotay said to Spock, "that I must go to this world?"

Spock nodded his head.

"Precisely," Spock replied. "We have always assumed that the Native-Americans Captain Kirk lived with, on the world where we found the Obelisk, were brought there from Earth. If I am reading these symbols correctly," Spock said, as he looked at them on the animal skin, "we were wrong; they came from Miri Prime…."

_Flashback Ends_

Chakotay made a slight course correction, and continued on his way. His destination was Miri Prime.

****

EARTH

Kirk's ranch home…

S'vath was stretched out on one of the couches as Tuvok was preparing for a mind-meld with him. Spock sat nearby, with Amanda, and observed.

"Do you think Tuvok can purge the memory causing S'vath so much pain?" Amanda asked her father-in-law Spock.

"Tuvok's mind-meld abilities are considered to that of a Vulcan Master," Spock told Amanda. "If anyone can get to the suppressed memory, it would be him."

Meanwhile… Deep inside S'vath's mind.

_"Vulcan," the voice said, "I advise you to not delve into the memory you seek. Part of me resides there, and at this time, I do not have the strength to overtake your will and control your body. However, if you go ahead with the mind-meld, I will absorb Tuvok's stability, and then I will awaken. I do not wish it now because your friends would no doubt destroy you, and me, in the process."_

"Who are you," S'vath asked with his own thoughts.

_(Author's note...this is the entity that also resides in mind of Federation Secret Agent Ryan Tolbert...)___

"You have been warned," the voice said, not answering S'vath's question. "And if you wish for your children and your wife to live," the voice began to say, "you will make sure that the memory that is hidden inside your mind does not…surface. Or…" the voice added, "I will cut your wife and child into pieces right before your eyes, using your very hands! And the only thing you'll be able to do is watch. I can suppress the memory, for now; just do not mind-meld with Tuvok."

S'vath sat up on the couch.

"We can't do this," S'vath said, with a tone of warning in his voice.

"Why not?" Amanda came back with, as she and Spock walked over to the couch.

S'vath tried to answer, by telling the about the entity inside of him. But before he could say a word, a piercing pain racked his mind, and he grabbed his head.

"It is the memory," Tuvok said, "I have to do this now."

Spock and Amanda steadied S'vath as Tuvok came over. He knelt down and reached out his right hand and put his fingers on the left side of S'vath's head.

****

LIVERPOOL

At that moment, on Earth, but in the city of Liverpool, and at the home of Federation Agent Ryan Tolbert, something else was about to happen. It was late in the evening there, and he had been sleeping next to his wife. Suddenly he opened his eyes, and looked over at her. There was only one thought in his mind; kill her…kill her now!

Continued…


	348. The Numbers Game PART 4

**STAR TREK: The Galaxy Window**

**The Numbers Game IV**

* * *

_**Previously…**_

_Kasidy Yates, and her team, comprising Nog-Garak-Zeb MaCahan and Kira Nerys arrived in the Darious star system aboard MaCahan's state of the art smuggling vessel. They had come to Darious IV to retrieve transmission records that would, hopefully, prove that Jennifer Sisko was not the sweet-woman she claimed to be after recently returning from the Borg collective. Jennifer had even going so far as to blackmailing Kasidy, and threatening the life of Kasidy and Ben Sisko's daughter, Rebecca._

_Jennifer had obtained Kasidy's sealed record. And as it turns out, years before Kasidy had met Ben Sisko, she had been a pleasure giver; a prostitute. She did so due to hard luck in her life. Unfortunately, in those times, Kasidy had also been involved in a murder. Although she was cleared, and her record sealed, Jennifer threatened to reveal to Ben Sisko his wife's seedy past. Kasidy staged her death and assembled the team she was now with to get the information, and to possibly prove that Jennifer had killed to get it. Death was suspected because she had seemingly worked with a Ferengi to obtain the information, and that Ferengi was now missing._

_Darious IV was the Federation's main record keeping hub. Records of all kinds were stored on the planet's massive computer network. If there was a trail to follow it would be on Darious IV._

_The plan was to have Kira beam down to planet, with a Cardassian computer hacking device hidden on her body. She stepped out of the changing room, with the rest of the team looking at her. Where had she hid the device?_

_Kira stepped out; the cylinder object was no longer in her hand._

_"Where did you put it?" Zeb asked as he raised his eyebrows in a playful manner._

_"Use your imagination," Kira said with a smirk._

_"Do you think this plan will really work?" Kasidy asked Garak and Kira._

_"We have to hope it will," Kira said. "I will go down there in my official capacity." Kira told Kasidy. "Being that I was once part of the Bajoran government, it should help."_

_"And then," Nog interjected, "the device will be activated._

_"What will it do?" Kasidy asked._

_"It's Cardassian technology," Garak explained. "It has programs which will act as a worm and will find the communiqués that Kilo, the Ferengi whom Jennifer was working with, and relay them to us. The trick is that Kira needs to get to the fourth floor, which is highly secured. If she can't get to that level, all of this will be for nothing."_

_Zeb sat down in his pilot's chair and prepared the ship. The ship was outfitted with holo-emitters which would provide an artificial outer-appearance of a Bajoran transport vessel. And almost if on cue, a communication signal was sent to Zeb's ship from Darious. Zeb looked back at Kira, who sat in a chair that resembled the kind of chair which would be seen on the Bajoran transport vessel._

_The face of a blue skinned Andorian came on the screen. Zeb was too busy to see the face of the Andorian, due to prepping the ship. And if had, Zeb would have known that something wasn't right._

_"This is Federation outpost Darious, I am Administrator Shian" the Andorian said, "Identify your selves."_

_"Kira," Kira replied, "I am here on behalf of the Bajoran council."_

_"Yes," Shian said, "we received the message from your government to survey our communication network. Please follow these coordinates I am providing, and I will meet with you upon your arrival."_

_And then the screen went blank._

_"Whew," Kasidy said who, as with the others, hid out of view of the viewing screen. "I was nervous just watching."_  
_"Quark came through," Garak said. "He was able to send the request that Administrator Shian mentioned; so far so good."_

_Moments later, Zeb piloted the ship, which on the outside appeared to be a Bajoran shuttle, and landed it at the given coordinates. Kira prepared to leave the shuttle._

_Moments later, Kira left the ship. As she made her way down the ramp, the blue skinned Andorian, Shian, came out of the main complex. Zeb, who stared out a viewing port, saw the Andorian and then a look of worry came over Zeb's face. Kasidy saw the look on Zeb's face._

_"What's wrong?" Kasidy asked._

_"That Andorian is no administrator," Zeb told her. "His name is Triat, and he's a ruthless thug who works for the Orion Syndicate."_

_"What's he doing here?" Nog asked in a worried tone._

_Zeb looked back out the viewing port, and then back at Kasidy, Nog and Garak._

_"I don't think we're the only ones here trying to run a scam," Zeb said._

_"What does that mean?" Nog asked in a nervous manner._

_"Complications," Garak said with a tone of worry in his voice as well._

_****  
Kira came down the boarding ramp. She was wearing an unseen audio-devise in her left ear as she approached the Andorian. Suddenly she heard Zeb's voice in her ear._

_"Listen closely; sweet buns," Zeb said to Kira, as he watched her from inside the ship, "that Andorian approaching you is an Orion Syndicate thug. Something else is going on here, but they don't need to know we know. So just continue with the plan."_

_Kira came up to the Andorian._

_"Administrator Shian," Kira said with a smile, "it is a pleasure to meet you. I hope my stay here won't interfere with your duties."_

_"Not at all," Shian replied with his own smile. "Although, I must warn you that we are in the middle of a systems upgrade, so access to some parts of this facility will be limited."_

_"Bullshit," Zeb said, as he listened in on the conversation via Kira's ear piece. "He's just shoveling that crap so we can't get access to the area that he and his friends are screwing around with. Just roll with it," Zeb said to Kira._

_"I'm just here," Kira said to Shian as they headed back toward the building, "to make sure that Bajor's interests are being maintained to standards we set up during the Dominion War."_

_"Of course," Shian said back to her. "I think we can accommodate your request quite easily."_

_"Good," Zeb said to Kira, "you're doing great sweetie. The area he is taking you is probably not considered a threat to whatever he and his friends are doing. Once you get inside the building, activate the device. If Garak's sources were correct, the Bajoran section of the net is stored four floors up, well within the device's range."_

_Zeb and the others watched as Kira disappeared inside the confines of the Darious IV data storage facility. Zeb looked over at Nog and Garak who were manning the consol that would monitor the progress of the Cardassian computer worm device. Two minutes went by and according to the control panel; Kira had not yet activated the device._

_"Why hasn't she activated the device yet," Kasidy asked._

_"Tell her to activate it," Garak said to Zeb._

_"I can't," Zeb said. "They might detect the transmitter in her ear now that she's inside the building."_

_"Give her time," Nog said to the others. "We don't even know where she hid the device, so, it might be hidden in an area of her body that, ummmm," he became embarrassed as he said the next words, "she doesn't have easy access to."_

_A devious smile spread across Garak's face._

_"These are the moments," Garak said, "that I am happy that I have a well developed imagination."_

_"I bet you do," Kasidy said, with a tone of disgust in her voice._

_"Well." Zeb finally said. "There is only one thing we can do…sit and wait!"_

_Suddenly the control panel chirped; the worm had been activated. And while the others seemed relieved, Zeb couldn't help but look at the ominous data storage facility with concern in his mind. He and Kira had once been lovers, and even though their careers had gotten in the way, and the relationship didn't last, (but created a daughter he didn't know about) he still had feelings for her. And now; he was very worried about her safety._

_Our story continues…_

* * *

Inside the seven stories high Data facility on the surface of Darious IV, Kira listened as the Administrator, an Andorian male named Shian, explained the data packages that Bajor was currently using, where it pertained to Federation protocols. But as Kira listened, she realized that Shian wasn't really explaining much, and was using jargon that was, in essence, double talk. With her years on DS9, both as the XO and overall commander, her knowledge on data information was pretty good. But Shian was talking to her as if she were a child. Kira didn't like that at all which made her suspicious.

But since she was really there stealing some data herself, via a computer worm, she really didn't care that Shian wasn't treating her with disrespect. (_Of course, she didn't know, as we do reader, that Shian isn't really a data Administrator, but an Orion Syndicate operative._)

Kira looked at the chronometer on the wall, and saw there only three seconds were left for the computer worm, which was being operated by a device hidden inside of her (_use your imagination reader_). She counted down and then, almost as if on cue, there was a massive explosion.

"What was that!?" Kira asked Shian.

But instead of answering, Shian started running toward one of the exits. Kira was about to give chase, but suddenly Zeb's voice come through her ear piece.

_"Kira," Zeb said, "No time to explain! Go out the way you came…hurry!"_

Kira wasn't a fool, and instantly she ran out the door she had entered, The moment she stepped through, and had ran twenty feet down the hallway, she was indeed shocked to find that the wall that had been there; was gone!. Zeb' ship was hovering just outside the smashed hole in the wall. She could see Zeb waving at her from the cockpit, compelling her do what she had to; to jump out from smashed ruins of the building.

* * *

Elsewhere in the Darious IV star system, two Klingon Birds of Prey sped towards Darious IV. They were part of the security force tasked with keeping the plantet's facilities protected from attacks such as the one which had just happened.

* * *

Kira stepped back and then ran as fast as she could and jumped though the massive missing gap that was a result of Zeb's trigger finger. As she flung herself out, and began to fall, she was instantly transported aboard Zeb's ship. Then, instantly, Zeb pivoted the ship upward and streaked toward the sky, engaging the cloaking device of the ship as well. Kira ran up to the cockpit. Zeb could hear Kira yelling at him from the passenger cabin. He looked back at her.

"What the heck was that all about!?" Kira demanded. "This was supposed to be a covert operation. Do you know how much troube we are in? And," she paused for a breath, "I could have been killed!"

Her eyes were flared with anger, as she stared at Zeb. Kasidy stepped between them and placed her hands on Kira's shoulders.

"Kira, we had no choice," Kasidy told her friend. "That Andorian was an Orion Syndicate agent; probably there doing what we were trying to do, stealing some information."

"So," Kira concluded, "for all the Federation will know, the Andorian or whoever he was working for, shot a hole in the building."

"Yes," Kasidy added, "Zeb did the only thing he could."

Zeb, who was smoking a fat cigar, smiled back at Kira.

"And you know me," Zeb said with a fiendish grin, "I would do anything to save those sweet buns of yours," he winked his left eye at her.

"Ummm," Nog interjected, "the data transfer was complete. We should be able to decode the messages Kasidy had with her contact if…"

Garak took over.

"…if the codes provide to me by my contact in the new Cardassian intelligence service, work."

Suddenly a panel on the main controls of the ship began to chirp. Zeb turned back to face the control panels.

"Sit tight everything one," Zeb announced suddenly, "we've got two Birds of Preys coming toward us," he added.

Kasidy came back to the cockpit, and looked at Zeb.

"Please tell me your cloaking device can with stand their scans," Kasidy stated.

"They got us down to that planet, so yeah," Zeb told her, "I think they will keep us safe here too."

* * *

Suddenly; the Bird Of Prey that was closer of the two, fired a blast.

"Oh….shit…." Zeb and Kasidy said at the same time.

_To Be Continued…_

**Be sure to check out my new story; STAR TREK WORLD. It is a "Star Trek" Horror-mystery story that will shock the heck out of you. Captain Kirk as you've never seen him before; a maniac who loves to kill people! DUE TO VIOLENT AND ADULT CONTENT: READER'S DISCRETION IS ADVISED**

**STAR TREK WORLD!**


	349. Born Again

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Born Again**

* * *

**Deep inside the Highland Expanse…and area located in the Beta-Quadrant, near the center of the galaxy where no ship that has entered has ever returned. This includes Borg, Voth and many others…and now the USS HAUCK is there. The crew members are actually clones but their actions are controlled by their counterparts in the Alpha-Quadrant at Star Fleet command…all except Command Sloan…it is unclear who is controlling the late Section 31 member's body…**

_(RATED PG-13 for suggested actions…)_

_The Galaxy Window opened…_

_Beverly Crusher opened her eyes, having just closed them a moment before. Jean-Luc was still next to her; and he was smiling back at her._

_"Beverly…you are," Picard began to say, "the most beautiful woman in the world."_

_Jean-Luc Picard did not waste a second. He shifted beneath the blankets, and crawled over on top of Beverly, and gazed into her soft eyes. He lowered his lip to hers, and they kissed. He reached up and ran his fingers through her hair as their tongues danced together inside of her mouth. She slowly spread her legs, and he began to make love to her. She placed her hands on his soft buttocks and pulled him closer and closer. She didn't want him to hold back this time. Urging him on, she whispered into his ear._

_…Elsewhere…_

_William T Riker stared at his face in a mirror and there was a large carving knife in the sink before him. Water was mixing with the blood that was on the knife. The humming noise inside his mind became louder as tiny purple tentacles which were each the size of a strand of hair, hundreds of them in fact, began to come out of his mouth._

_He left the bathroom, and when he reached the center of the room, he looked down and saw the dismembered body of Deanna Troi. As he looked at his dead wife's body parts, he saw two humans standing next to her face. They were each about five inches tall, and wore tuxedos and were dancing._

_"Stop messing around," Riker told them, as he dangled his foot above the two tiny men. "If you don't stop dancing, I will stomp my foot on the both of you, and then we'll see if your boots are made of monkey mice."_

_They both vanished into the blackness of the inside of Deanna's mouth. The tiny men had made it through her brain and were each standing inside of one Deanna's eyes. The humming suddenly stopped and then William T Riker closed his eyes…the Galaxy Window eyes closed again._

_The universe chimed…and then the Galaxy Window opened its eye again…and so did the eyes of Walter Bishop and Geordie La Forge._

_**In The Alpha Quadrant…at Star Fleet HQ in San Francisco;**_

_several floors below Star Fleet, Dr. Leonard McCoy was monitoring the stasis chambers that contained Picard and Beverly Crusher. But the internal scans of their brains were putting out reading he had never seen before. He needed Spock to rejoin him as soon as possible._

_"Maybe I can help," a voice said from behind McCoy._

_McCoy turned around to face the unexpected visitor and gasped at who he saw standing there…_

_"No," McCoy said, "it can't possibly be you…"_

**Continued….**

* * *

"It is I," William Decker said to McCoy.

"Although I am not the same Leonard McCoy you knew before," McCoy told Decker, "I have read up on Enterprise's missions. _(Readers will recall this McCoy was stranded outside of time after the events of "The Tholian Web".)_ You are Commander William Decker and I know that you and a Deltan female named Ilya were presumed missing many decades ago."

Decker raised his arms in a disarming manner. He was still wearing his out of date uniform.

"Do not be concerned," Decker told McCoy, "and as for my unexplainable appearance; I could say the same about you. However, we do not have time to discuss death and re-birth. Your friends," he motioned to the stasis chambers containing Picard's team, "are in grave danger."

McCoy chuckled.

"You won't be offended if I take the words of a dead man with a grain of salt," McCoy told Decker.

"Actually," Decker said with his own smile, "I really wouldn't care. Once again humans are playing with forces they cannot possibly understand. But now part of my essence is in danger as well."

McCoy thought for a moment, but then looked over at the stasis chamber containing Curtis Daystrom; the android that had mysteriously emerged from the Sahara Desert years ago, and was apparently built with the same technology that was used to construct the Ilya probe during the Enterprise's encounter with V'ger.

"You mean the Android," McCoy said.

Decker looked over at Curtis's stasis chamber.

"Yes," Decker replied.

McCoy found Decker's answers interesting.

"Why aren't you there in the Highland Expanse helping him instead of coming here to meddle?" McCoy asked.

Decker cocked his head slightly to the right.

"Because he isn't really there," Decker came back with, "he is really here. You have it within your power to deactivate the device that allows his body here to control the other Android's body (Lore). I am asking politely that you do just that."

McCoy knew a threat when he heard one.

"Your son," McCoy paused, "you don't mind if I call him your son."

"It is an interesting observation, and serves no purpose, but for our immediate circumstance, I will allow it," Decker said back to McCoy.

McCoy nodded at Decker's words.

"Well, whatever," McCoy said, "your son is there, with the others, trying to complete a mission. The others were all coerced to go there, and if they are not successful, anti-matter bombs will be detonated on important worlds; including Romulus and others. That would possibly trigger a galactic war, something we could all do without, if my reading of recent history is correct. If there is any part of the real Decker inside of you, being a Star Fleet officer as he is, he would understand why I won't disconnect the Daystrom android. Now, if you don't mind, I would like to help two of them that are experiencing some sort of trauma inside their minds. I need to contact Spock."

"Spock is still alive?" Decker asked.

McCoy nodded his head.

"Yes, though much older than the last time you saw him," McCoy explained.

Decker closed his eyes and then, instantly, Spock appeared by McCoy's side. Spock was about to say something, but stopped upon seeing Decker.

"Commander Decker," Spock said. "I did not expect to see you again after the events with the Voyager probe."

Decker smiled upon seeing the much older Vulcan.

"It is good to see you again Spock," Decker said. "However, McCoy needs your help to stabilize your friends. Once that is complete, we must discuss ending this mission of yours."

"Fascinating," Spock said.

McCoy pointed at the readings on the computer's screen.

"I've never seen anything quite like this," McCoy told Spock. "It's as if their minds, here, are beginning to be controlled by some feedback source."

"Agreed," Spock said.

"Then you should disconnect them; now," Decker urged. "Including my," he looked at McCoy, "son."

Spock arched an eyebrow, but McCoy spoke first.

"I just told you," McCoy said to Decker, "if they don't do whatever this man Sloan wants them to do, then we are looking at a galactic war on our hands."

"He is speaking the truth," Spock added, looking at Decker as he spoke. "However," Spock went on to say, "if there is some sort of feedback coming through the inter-dimensional communication device that Dr. Bishop created; we cannot allow this unknown force to take control of them," Spock said, as he looked at the chamber.

"Then," a female's voice said, "I will go there."

Spock and McCoy turned to see a bald woman wearing a white tunic of some sort. Spock recognized her immediately; it was Ilya.

Continued…


	350. The All Seeing

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The All Seeing…**

* * *

**STAR FLEET HEADQUARTERS; Several stories underground! **

**The Control room where Picard and his team's bodies are being monitored by McCoy and Spock…**

_McCoy turned around to face the unexpected visitor and gasped at who he saw standing there…_

_"No," McCoy said, "it can't possibly be you…"_

_"It is I," William Decker said to McCoy. "Your friends," he motioned to the stasis chambers containing Picard's team, "are in grave danger."_

_"Why aren't you there in the Highland Expanse instead of coming here to meddle?" McCoy asked._

_"He is speaking the truth," Spock said to McCoy, looking at Decker as he spoke. "There is some sort of feedback coming through the inter-dimensional communication device that Dr. Bishop created; we cannot allow this unknown force to take control of them," Spock said, as he looked at the chambers containing Picard and the others, including the android Curtis Daystrom._

_"Then," a female's voice said, "I will go there."_

_Spock and McCoy turned to see a bald woman wearing a white tunic of some sort. Spock recognized her immediately; it was Ilya._

**Continued…**

Ilya made her way toward Curtis Daystrom's stasis chamber, and without missing a beat, Spock stepped between her and the chamber. It was obvious that Spock would attempt to not let Ilya interfere.

"Step aside," Ilya said to Spock; with her cold and calculative voice, "or I will move you."

Spock immediately placed his hand on one of the buttons on the outside of the stasis chamber containing Curtis Daystrom. Spock turned and looked directly at Ilya, and Decker, who was now standing behind her.

"What are you doing," Decker demanded of Spock.

"If I should press this button," Spock told them both, "it will instantly sever the connection between Curtis Daystrom and the Lore android in the Highland Expanse."

"You don't know what doing that will accomplish," Decker said quickly.

Spock nodded in agreement.

"That is true," Spock agreed. "However it could possibly destroy them both. I did not want to resort to this action, but Dr. McCoy is quite right. If Picard and the others, including Curtis, fail in their mission; many millions of lives could be at stake in an interstellar war and I cannot allow that." And then he added, to both of them, "and we have not even settled the question as to who the two of you really are."

Decker smiled.

"You mean to say," Decker told Spock, "what happened to me after I physically joined with V'Ger?"

Spock nodded his head in agreement.

Ilya took another step toward the stasis chamber; Spock put his finger on the switch.

"You do not intend to take such action," Ilya told Spock. "It is just a ploy."

McCoy chuckled from where he stood by the main computer.

"Ma'am, didn't anyone ever tell you; Vulcans," McCoy said from where he stood, "never bluff."

Decker stepped between Ilya and Spock.

"Alright," Will Decker said to Spock, "I will tell you what you want to know. But if I persuade you to let us interfere, you will let us do so."

Spock nodded his head in approval.

"That is an acceptable resolution," Spock said to Decker, as he removed his finger from the switch on the stasis chamber. "Perhaps you can start by telling us who or what Curtis Daystrom is, and how he came to be on Earth?"

Decker turned to face Ilya. He reached out and placed a hand on each of her shoulder.

"Ilya," Decker said to bald Deltan female, "they will listen; that is all we can ask for."

Ilya stepped back, removing any intent to do anything at the moment.

Decker turned back to Spock.

"Perhaps it would be best," Decker said, "if you found your answers via a mind-meld."

"As you wish," Spock replied.

The aged Vulcan reached out with his right hand and placed it on the left side of Decker's head; his fingers spreading out like a fan.

* * *

Images of light flooded across Spock's mind. The lights were of many colors, and shapes. And then, in the center of it all, there was something. It was as if in the brilliance and multitude of the colors there was a tiny sliver of calmness. In the center of the calmness was what appeared to be a life form; a human infant. A voice began to speak, but not from just the child or the universe of shifting colors.

* * *

-What you are seeing is a representation being filtered in such a way that your primitive Vulcan mind can make sense of—

((I see a child)) Spock's thoughts relayed. ((I assume this child represents you.)

-No Spock, the child represents humanity; and the colors of light that surround the child represent the beings of pure perfect artificial intelligence that sent Voyager back to Earth. To the life forms, only life such as theirs is real; a paradox to our own belief of biological life. You were right, all those decades ago; V'Ger's knowledge, their knowledge, had grown beyond the confines of the universe where it related to the realms of artificial life. The moment I merged with the Ilya probe, humanity and the beings of light became reality. A new reality in which the duality of both co-existing created an existence that even now creates aspects of further thought where it relates to higher forms of life that I could never describe on this level—

((What about the Curtis Daystrom android; where does he fit in…)) Spock's thoughts pondered.

Spock's mind showed images of the encounter between the Enterprise and V'Ger. In a show of force, V'Ger had sent polarized weapons in orbit of Earth. Spock watched again as Kirk bluffed V'Ger into removing the energy weapons from Earth's orbit. Then a new image appeared; one of the energy weapons, unseen and undetected, had not dissipated. Instead, it had become invisible; falling to the Earth's surface, and landing in the Sahara desert.

* * *

Spock opened his eyes; the mind-meld was over. He removed his hand from Decker's head. Decker continued, speaking instead.

"Curtis," Decker said, looking at the chamber, "is, in all intents and purposes, an offspring of the beings of light, much as Ilya was; and is again now."

McCoy hadn't experienced the mind-meld, but he had a pretty good idea of what Decker was referring to.

"Those events happened over a hundred and twenty years ago," McCoy said from where he was standing, "from what I know about Curtis, he only walked out of that desert ten years ago; with no memory. Where has he been all this time?"

Ilya spoke next.

"Observing," Ilya said, coldly. "Trying to determine what you classify as biological life has any true meaning."

"A probe," McCoy concluded. "Where is his memory then?"

"Of that, I do not know. However," Decker continued, "although the duality of existence accepts the fact that biological life is possible, the hope was that, in time, Curtis, as you call him, would return to this new realm so that these further tunnels of existence, where no such life exists, could better understand it."

McCoy came over to where Decker and Spock were standing.

"That's all find and dandy," McCoy said to Decker, but then he looked over at Ilya. "But you seem to suggest that Curtis is in danger the longer his mind is in existence inside the Highland Expanse with the others."

Before Decker or Ilya could respond, Spock did.

"As I recall," Spock said to Decker, "did we not speculate, at the time, that the Voyager probe had entered a black hole; emerging on the far side of the galaxy. Was that indeed the case?"

Decker looked at Spock, and shook his head.

"We were partially correct," Decker replied. "Voyager-6 actually emerged in another part of the universe, in a cluster of galaxies where no biological life exists. Hundreds of billions of stars, and no life of any kind other than what we would refer to as artificial life."

Spock arched an eyebrow, but McCoy was not impressed.

"Again," McCoy added, "this is all very interesting; but what does this have to do with any danger?"

Decker looked over at Ilya, and then he nodded his head. The strange crystal like orb that was located beneath her throat began to glow. Suddenly the main viewing screen that was centered on one of the walls became activated. Strange images of light first appeared, but then the unmistakable image of stars appeared. And then the stars were replaced by utter darkness.

"What are we seeing?" McCoy asked.

"This," Decker replied, "is the Highland Expanse. If you look closely, you will see the USS HAUCK; the vessel Curtis and the others are on, as it makes its way deeper into this zone of your galaxy."

Sure enough; the image of a Starship could be seen…but soon it too was passed. Finally the stars returned.

"What is this place?" McCoy asked.

"This is an area of space that is beyond the starless void the Hauck is passing through. Once they get to this point, and if they are still alive, they will find…" Decker pointed at the screen… "That!"

A strange object appeared on the screen. If anything, it appeared like a giant eye surrounded by flames of energy.

"Spock," McCoy said to his Vulcan friend, "what the hell is that thing?"

Spock arched an eyebrow, and bit his lower lip; and then he replied.

"I have never seen anything quite like that before," Spock announced. He looked at Will Decker. "But you have…"

"Yes," Decker said. "That is," Decker paused, and then came right out and said it; "the Galaxy Window."

**To be Continued…**


	351. The Blood on a Butterfly

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**The Blood on a Butterfly**

* * *

**The Naissance…a Dysonsphere under the administration of Admiral Kathryn Janeway...**

**Previously…  
**

_**(The following events took place several issues ago…new material continues immediately after this brief recap)**_

_Several levels below, near the bottom of the Star Fleet complex located inside of the Naissance, was one of many power stations that proved energy to the massive complex. It was used by the maintenance crews, but was mainly monitored by redundant computer systems. Jennifer Sisko sought its solitude out to avoid being seen with her Ferengi contact; Kilo. She was waiting when finally Kilo arrived._

_Kilo reached out his hand and handed Jennifer a small data-rod._

_"It took some digging," Kilo said, "but I found information about Kasidy Sisko that you will find most interesting."_

_Suddenly, stepping up from behind Kilo was Kaleb Sisko, Jennifer's son. He put his hands on both sides of the Ferengi's head, and then twisted it, snapping Kilo's neck and killing him instantly. Jennifer watched in cold silence. Kaleb knew his mother was mentally unstable, but he loved her all the same. And just as swiftly as the maniacal part of her had appeared; it was replaced by the sweetness of the other side._

_"Kaleb," Jennifer said with a broad smile, "Your father (BEN SISKO) loves you and Jake far more than he loves that bitch daughter of his; Rebecca and his whore wife; Don't you agree?" she asked in a giddy manner._

_Suddenly her face turned stone cold, and she continued walking away, leaving Kaleb alone in the near darkness so as to dispose of the dead Ferengi's body._

_(Three days later)_

_Kasidy made her way inside one of the more popular establishments; Bella's. She had been invited by Jennifer to join her for lunch._

_Jennifer was wearing a stunning red dress that complimented her curves quite well. Kasidy sat down just as the waiter poured her some wine._

_"It's De'vjan," Jennifer said, referring to the wine. "It's always been one of my favorites."_

_"Yes," Kasidy said, as she sipped some of the wine. "Thank you for the invite to lunch," Kasidy added._

_"Tell me the truth," Jennifer said with a smile, "you didn't really want to come. I would understand if you didn't."_

_She handed Kasidy a small data-pad. The information Kilo had found was displayed on the screen._

_"Where did you get this," a very visibly shaken Kasidy demanded of Jennifer._

_"You used to be a pleasure giver; a whore. One of your Bajoran clients was found dead. As it turns out, he had shared his bed with another man who was a friend of yours. Both men would appear to be paying you, but it was all just a scam to get the other man's credits. But, as I said, the Bajoran ended up dead and your friend was convicted for the murder."_

_"I was exonerated from any involvement with the Bajoran's death," Kasidy countered. "Those records were sealed and I went on with my life."_

_"To put it simply," Jennifer said, as she calmly sipped some wine, "If you don't leave, I will let Ben know about your life as a slut."_

_Kasidy stood up and looked down at Jennifer, who remained seated._

_"I will be gone by tomorrow." Kasidy said through her tears._

_Two hours later, Kasidy had packed her things and departed the Naissance in her private shuttle. Her cover story to Ben and Rebecca was that her sister was ill. But then, several hours later, the wreckage of Kasidy's shuttle was found and she was declared dead. Of course, readers of this story know she faked her death and went on with her friends to find proof of Kilo's illegal act in obtaining Kasidy's sealed records on the Federation data world; Darious-IV_

**_Our story continues…_**

* * *

The Naissance

Wine poured out of a bottle and into a glass which was set next to a burning candle. A companion glass of the romantic liquid had already been poured. Ben Sisko watched as Jennifer placed the bottle back down on the table. She was wearing a very elegant red dress, which accented her curves just perfectly. Ben could feel desires growing for her. What he didn't know, and hadn't known, was that for the past three weeks, the glasses of wine he had shared with Jennifer were tainted with a chemical which was slowly wearing down his resolve. Jennifer dimmed the lights to the point where only the candle lit the room.

"Jennifer," Ben said with a soft voice, "I hope I am not giving you the impression that I am ready for more than being friends. Kasidy has only been dead for three weeks. I must stay true to her love…for at least a little while."

Jennifer smiled at Ben Sisko; her former husband. She had been torn from him, and their son Jake, thanks to the Borg. But now she was back, and was determined to get that time back; at all costs.

"I know," she told him. "We have all the time we need Ben. I know that you and Kasidy shared much, but you and I shared just as much. Jake has grown into wonderful man, and now we have our other son Kaleb to share our love with. I hope that, in time, you come to see that we both need you just as much as you need us."

Jennifer had been pregnant when the Borg had assimilated her after the events of Wolf-359. The Borg removed the fetus and assimilated the eventual child that came from it.

"It is hard to believe I have another son," Ben said, as he thought about Jake and Kaleb. "And I will do all that I can to make him realize that he has a father, as well as an older brother, who will love him very much."

Kasidy reached out and placed her hand on Ben's hand.

"I know that your heart will open up to Kaleb and me," Jennifer said, looking into Ben's eyes as he sipped some of his wine. "You'll see; everything will be just fine."

As she watched him drink his wine, she stared at the glass he held. Images of butterflies were etched into the glass, giving the illusion, at least to her, that Ben was drinking the flying insect's blood. It made her love him even more.

* * *

Rebecca Sisko was eating dinner on the Promenade of the Naissance. She wasn't really that hungry, and was just eating a salad with a glass of ice tea on the side. Her duties for the day (she was Admiral Kate Janeway's assistant) were done. Normally she would go home and spend time with her father. But she knew that he was spending time, and increasingly so, with Jennifer. Rebecca did not like the fact that her father was seemingly already moving on from the death of Kasidy. Rebecca, the daughter of Ben and Kasidy, knew that her father would have to go on with his life; but three weeks wasn't enough time. At that moment, Kaleb sat down at the table.

Rebecca had always felt uneasy around Kaleb. She knew it wasn't the young man's fault. His socials skills were a bit different, due to the fact that most of his life was spent as a Borg drone. When Kaleb looked at Rebecca, his eyes were cold; uncaring.

"Your father is with my mother," Kaleb said in a matter of fact tone. "They might even become intimate in time."

Rebecca drank from her glass of tea, and nodded her head as she put the glass down.

"Believe me; I know," Rebecca told him.

Kaleb could sense her irritation.

"There is a good chance," Kaleb told her with his cold voice, "that they may reinstate their relationship; now that your mother is dead."

Rebecca shook her head in disgrace.

"You really have the gall to sit there and tell me this," Rebecca said. "My mom only died three weeks ago; you could at least pretend that you care."

Kaleb leaned in closer and smiled.

"Well, the truth is, sister," he said, his eyes even colder, "I don't care. Living as a Borg drone for as long as I have, I learned that each moment in time exists; and then exists no more. You would be best served to learn that simple truth as well."

Kaleb stood up to leave, but not before Rebecca responded.

"If you miss being part of the collective; then why not leave us and go back to them?" Rebecca asked.

Kaleb thought for a moment, and then he looked down at her.

"I can't; their moment in time has passed," Kaleb said, with a soft voice.

"I know," Rebecca said; a smile growing her face.

Kaleb's face became filled with anger, and then he walked away.

* * *

Admiral Janeway was in her quarters. She had purposely lowered the temperature of the room so she could enjoy the warmth of her bed when it was time to sleep; a habit she had dsince she was a child. She was in a soft white robe, and was preparing to turn in for the night.

With all the lights lowered in her quarters, she made her way to her room; holding an old style book in her hand _(The Gathering _by the noted Bajoran author JE'spah) and a cup of coffee in the other. Janeway stretched out on top of the blankets on her bed, and opened the book to the point she had left off; straightening up the corner of the page she had folded over at the top. As she started to read the first words, her com unit chirped.

"Janeway here," she replied.

"Admiral Janeway," a female's voice replied. "It's good to hear your voice."

Janeway's jaw dropped as she recognized the voice immediately.

"Kasidy," Janeway said in shock, "is that you?"

The answer was; "Yes…"

Continued…


	352. Capable Theater

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Capable Theater**

**The Naissance**

Jennifer Sisko opened her eyes. She was still in her bed, and reached over to put her arms around Ben; but he was gone. The two had made love during the night, rediscovering the passion they shared before she had been abducted by the Borg years ago. True, most of his feelings for her were being brought on by the hallucinate compound she had purchased. But even if ninety-percent of Ben's feelings were induced by the compound, it still meant that deep inside his heart a part of him still had feelings for her..

She stretched out on the bed, and then pivoted her body and stepped out of the blankets, still nude, and reached for her robe. She rummaged through her clothes, and put some on. She had to hurry because she knew that most of the Star Fleet crew, under the command of Admiral Janeway and Admiral Ben Sisko, would be at their posts due to the arrival of the Emprenda.

The Emprenda was a Klingon D7 cruiser which was given to the Naissance science team by Martok; the Klingon Chancellor. It was commanded by Captain Jonathan Canary, and was tasked with finding endangered plants and animals throughout the known galaxy, and then bringing them to the Naissance. The rescued life forms would then be relocated on one of the 14 thousand continents that lined the inside skin of the sphere.

It was during the time of the Emprenda's arrival, which always brought excitement to the Naissance crew that Jennifer would meet with a male Yridian. He had peddled the chemical that she had been using on Ben Sisko. Jenvan was due to open his kiosk on the Promenade which was located inside the Star Fleet complex of the Naissance Dysonsphere. He had promised her a stronger mix of the compound this time around, and Jennifer was determined to get it. Of course, Jenvan didn't know that Jennifer was using it illegally to affect the mental stability of an unwilling lover; Ben Sisko.

She finished dressing and exited the bedroom and was startled at the sight of what she found waiting for her on the other side of the door; armed security officers; as well as Admiral Ben Sisko, Admiral Kate Janeway and Commander Julian Bashir. Rebecca was there as well. But standing in the middle of it all was Kasidy Yates, who was flanked by Kira and Garak on the left; and Nog and Zeb MaCahan on the right.

Jennifer's face became cold and distant.

"It's over Jennifer," Ben said to his former wife. He spoke with a soft deep voice. "Not only that but our son," Ben motioned with his hands and Kaleb was brought in through the opened door by two security officers, "has filled in the rest of the blanks and his involvement. He is under arrest for murder."

Jennifer smiled as happiness overwhelmed her.

"Noooooo," she said, as tears came down from her eyes, "you're trying to confuse me. This is our wedding party," she said, as she went down to her knees, "I can't believe that your friends have come all this way to see us marry for the second time. Play the wedding march!" She reached out with her arms. "PLAY IT NOW!"

Sisko turned to Bashir. Sisko felt sorry for his former wife. It was clear that she had lost her mind.

"Julian," Ben said, "is it possible you can beam her straight to medical center? I don't want her to have to endure the long walk there."

Dr. Bashir looked over at Admiral Janeway who simply nodded her head. Julian and his assistant made their way over to Jennifer who was totally in shock, with a dazed look on her face.

"It's alright," Julian Bashir said to Jennifer as he got down on his knees to talk to her, "it's all over."

At that moment, Jennifer, Bashir and the medical assistant were all beamed away. And immediately after that, cheers could be heard on the various com channels as the Emprenda arrived overhead of the Star Fleet Complex with a new haul of saved life.

* * *

**One day later…**

Ben, Kasidy and Rebecca sat in Admiral Janeway's office. The Sisko's were finally reunited and it was time to say their goodbyes to Janeway, and return to their home on Timus Prime. Janeway smiled back at them as she sat down in her chair.

"I'm going to miss you Ben," Janeway said to Sisko. "And you can consider this an order; you better visit us. By the way," she added, her words aimed at Rebecca, "I have granted you a month of leave. But I expect you back here without any delay Ms. Sisko. It's bad enough I'm losing your father, I won't lose you too."

Rebecca smiled at the Admiral.

"You can count on it," Rebecca said. "Timus is a great place to settle down; but I still want to see the universe!"

The conversation took a serious tone as Kasidy looked at Janeway, with a serious look on her face.

"What will happen to Jennifer and Kaleb?" Kasidy asked Admiral Janeway. "I know I shouldn't care, after what she put me through, but I do. I can't blame them for all of it because there is no way to tell what effects they are suffering from since leaving the Borg Collective."

Janeway nodded in agreement.

"Star Fleet will certainly take that into account, in fact," Janeway said, as she read a message that was displayed on her computer screen, "I am in the process of drafting a message that will see to it that everyone who was aboard the blasted cube are re-examined given complete and thorough care. We owe it to them and their families to make sure they are all cared for; if needed."

"What about my son," Ben asked Janeway, "He did murder the Ferengi, but he was obviously under the influence of Jennifer."

Janeway nodded her head.

"Again," Janeway told Sisko, "I am quite sure his actions will be looked at through context. I will use every power at my disposal to make sure he gets the best legal protection; should it come to that."

Kasidy looked at her husband.

"You're a civilian again, Ben," Kasidy said, with pleasure in her voice. "But; now you get to return to Timus and catch-up on your duties as the mayor of Summit Grove."

Sisko nodded in agreement.

"Actually," he told her, "I relinquished my office when I rejoined Star Fleet."

Rebecca shook her head.

"Dad," she told her father, "they will beg to have you back."

Janeway looked at Sisko, and saw a look on his face; he had something else in mind.

"I don't know," Janeway said with a smile, "But I think your father isn't returning to Timus after all."

He smiled at his wife and daughter; it was a mischievous grin.

"Alright," Kasidy said, "what do you have spinning around inside that head of yours?"

Ben stood up and went over to one of the paintings on the far wall of Janeway's office. It was a beautiful painting of Earth. He pointed at the area of North American, in the vicinity of old Louisiana.

"We're going," he looked at Rebecca and Kasidy, "home."

Kasidy, Rebecca and Janeway all smiled because there was only one thing that meant; Ben wanted to take over control of his deceases father's restaurant; Sisko's. (_Don't worry readers…we will see the Sisko's in the near future…and I'm quite sure intrigue will follow them to Earth as well_.)

* * *

Several hours later, Ben and Kasidy were packing their belongings with help from their daughter. Luckily they hadn't brought or accumulated much since arriving from Timus two months earlier. The door chimed. The door slid open and the Siskos were pleased to see Kira, Nog, and Garak. Kasidy smiled upon seeing her friends who had helped in proving Jennifer's unlawful acts by obtaining the information she had obtained illegally from Darious-IV.

"Ah," Kasidy said upon seeing them, "my partners in crime."

"You're more correct than you know," Garak said with his usual mysterious tone. "Thankfully our actions there exposed the fact that the entire library on Darious-IV had been taken over by agents of the Orion Syndicate."

"However," Kira added, "Admiral Janeway has seen to it that our own little fact finding mission will be glossed over." She looked at Kasidy and Ben standing together. "I can't tell you how happy I am seeing the two of you together."

"Thank you," Kasidy replied, "where is Zeb?"

"Apparently," Nog chimed in, "Mr. MaCahan is wanted for various small legal infractions in several systems. Janeway gave him a three day's head start before submitting her report of his last known whereabouts in the Naissance."

Kasidy looked at Kira. Kira knew what Kasidy wanted to bring up, (the subject of Kira's two-year old daughter with Zeb MaCahan, which only they two of them (Kira and Kasidy) Knew about; but Kira gave a slight negative shake of her head. Kasidy would honor her friend's request and keep the secret.)

"Nog," Rebecca said to the Ferengi, "you always seem to be in the middle of the action." She began to keep count on her fingers. "First there was that that ordeal with the Planet Killer, and then the Talosians, and not to mention that whole crazy incident with this place (the Naissance) and the showdown between Gary Mitchell and Trelane as well as being sheriff on Timus and dealing with Harrison Riker and the Q; you need to relax."

Nog smiled at her.

"Actually my father took out an insurance policy on my life last year," Nog said with a slight chuckle. "He has a vested interest in my future."

"Well, I'll say this," Ben said as he looked at Nog, "I am quite sure that Jim Kirk, Spock and all the others you have helped would thank you if they were here; as I am now." He placed his hand on Nog's shoulder. "Thank you for helping my wife. I won't forget this."

For the next hour or so, old stories were shared between these close friends. And then, later that night, Ben, Kasidy and Rebecca boarded a transport; destination Earth.

**Continued…next time…the demon inside of S'vath is released! But will it mean death for the family of Ryan Tolbert's wife and child?**


	353. Mind over Matter

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Mind over Matter**

Amanda opened her eyes and smiled upon seeing her husband, S'vath, who was in the bed next to her, his head propped up by his hand, staring back at her. She reached over and began stroking his hairless chest, her mind filled with the memories they had made while making love to the wee small hours of the morning.

"You haven't been that aggressive for quite some time," Amanda said, with a coy look in her eyes. "I'm going to be horse for at least two days from all the screaming. I'm glad Cindy was able to baby sit the kids last night, or wow, they would have been really freaked."

S'vath rendered the Vulcan hand salute with his free hand.

"We come to serve," he said with a coy smile of his own. "I think these mind-meld sessions with Tuvok are helping. I know he hasn't been able to pull up that lost memory in my mind, but whatever else he is doing seems to be doing the trick for…umm…other parts of my mind."

Tuvok was due to return later in the day to continue with the mind-melds with S'vath's troubled thoughts; in hopes of pulling out the deep memory that was causing the headaches that had been rocking S'vath for three days.

But of course, S'vath knew what was causing the pain, but he couldn't let anyone, even his wife, know the truth; so it was all really just an act. For, as it was, hidden deep inside of S'vath's essence was some sort of entity that fed off the violent emotions of the body it possessed, in this case, S'vath's. But as it turned out, the entity was apparently divided in half months ago, with one half existing inside of S'vath and the other half inside of Federation Security officer Ryan Tolbert. (_This happened sometime back when S'vath, Ryan and Jim Kirk were retrieving Walter Bishop from a penal colony. Ryan, already possessed by the entity for many prior issues, had attempted to kill S'vath. But when he failed the entity made S'vath forget; but also implanted a portion of its existence inside of S'vath)._

_The entity wasn't powerful enough to take over absolute control of S'vath's body fulltime, but at times it could take over temporarily. Thus the entity threatened to kill S'vath's wife, Amanda, as well as their two children when S'vath was at his weakest, with his own to hands._

_But Tuvok's mind-meld powers were more powerful than most Vulcans. What would happen if Tuvok were to open the area of S'vath's where the entity had embedded its essence? One could only wonder._

A half-hour later, S'vath and Amanda were in the kitchen where she was making the both of them Vulcan tea. She was wearing a skimpy nightgown that barely went below her mid-section. It was rare when the two of them got time alone, and it was clear that Amanda wasn't going to let the time pass without some adult fun. They ended up making love on the kitchen floor, and then, two hours later, there was a knock at the door; Tuvok had returned for another mind-meld session. But unknown to S'vath, Amanda, and now Tuvok, what was about to happen would not only affect them; but someone else on Earth as well.

_Several hours later Ryan Tolbert was enjoying his retirement from the Federation Security Bureau. He had been reunited with his wife, Angela, and daughter Jan, after having believed them dead for many years. They had been kept in stasis for all those years by unethical powers inside the agency (led by Randolph Donnelly), to be used as pawns to get Ryan to do illegal deeds. Thankfully with the help of Jim Kirk and others, the truth was learned and Ryan's wife and daughter were found to still be alive. Ryan resigned from the agency to make up for lost time. But, as fate would have it, deep inside his essence was the same entity that was possessing S'vath._

The island resort off the coast of Maui, Hawaii, was one of the most sought after destination for vacationers on Earth, as well as visitors from other worlds. Whether it was real expeditions to the islands of Hawaii, or, the advanced holotech features, fun would be had by all.

As afternoon came, Ryan, wearing swimming trunks, watched from a beach-chair as Angela and Jan swam in one of the large heated pools. But the warmth of summer made the use of the heaters unnecessary. The pool area was decked out in the motif of a south-pacific style, with lounge chairs spread out in various areas. Ryan smiled as a Bajoran waitress set a martini next to him. He set the old style book he was reading, a gift from Spock, down so as to reach for the drink.

"Thank you," Ryan said to the attractive woman.

"That's your fourth already," the woman said. "Can you handle it?"

"I hope so," Ryan said with knowing chuckle.

Ryan had been one of the agency's most successful agents and to make it in that line of business, one had to have a pretty good tolerance for alcoholic beverages from across the intergalactic spectrum. He watched as the waitress headed away, admiring her firm bikini clad bottom; he was only a man and well, men, even in the early 25th century, could not resist such scenery.

Ryan set the martini down and was about to go back to reading his book, The Fountain of the Gypsy (written by CeJay) but suddenly he felt dizzy. At first the pain felt like a small needle behind his eyes, but then the pain became more pronounced. And then, he looked at his wife and daughter, and strange desires began to grow inside him; he needed to kill them both! He couldn't stop the storm from growing inside the darkest areas of his mind. His dark passenger, which he called the strange desire inside his soul, had to be satisfied. Angela looked over at him, from the pool, and smiled. Ryan smiled back, but Angela had no idea the thoughts that were swirling in her husband's mind; thoughts of utter violence and death aimed at her…and their daughter Jan.

This storyline will continue…next time…


	354. When Doves Cry

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**When Doves Cry**

Evening had come, and Ryan Tolbert, as well as his wife Angela and their daughter Jan, entered their luxurious hotel just off the coast of Maui, Hawaii. The hotel, which consisted of 10,000 rooms, actually floated above the ocean on anti-gravity fields. There were different levels of comfort, depending on the customers wants. True, in the 25th century, wealth didn't mean much to humans. But for the Ferengi owners of the hotel, credits and Latium, is what made the universe spin.

Ryan was actually holding his daughter as they came inside the room. Jan had fallen asleep at dinner, and Ryan had carried her all the way up from the dining area.

"You know," Angela said, as she watched Ryan set their daughter her bed. Angela pulled the blankets up to her daughter, "you could have yourself beamed up here; you didn't have to carry her all the way."

"Well," Ryan said, as he kissed Jan on the cheek, "where would the fun have been with that."

His slight English accent rang through his words. Angela came over to him, and then held him close.

"I love that accent of yours," she said, as she smiled at him and then place her lips on his.

"That's what all the women say," Ryan came back with, as well as a wicked smile.

He took Angela by the hand and led her out of their daughter's room and to the master room; which included a holokuzi for two. But by the state of their mutual arousal, they were long past the need for foreplay, and in mere moments, they were both nude underneath the covers of the bed. Like two young teenagers finding love, and with all that stamina, they made love for nearly two hours. When they were done, and their panting had calmed, Ryan had gone out to the kitchen and brought back to martinis; made with REAL alcohol of course.

"It is so hard to believe we lost ten years," Angela said, referring to the time that she and Jan had spent in suspended-animation. The two had only been revitalized for several months. She leaned over on her side, and propped her head up with her hand. "C'mon, Ryan," Angela said to her husband, "We've been back together for nearly four months and it seems as if you're not telling me everything."

He knew what she was referring to; had he gone on without her, and had there been other women. There were of course, but they were not important parts of his life.

"It was hard time," Ryan said back to her. "For nearly two years I live my life as if I were in a shell. If it weren't for my work, I would have…" he let his voice trail off.

She came close and put her arms around him.

"It's all over," Angela told him. "We're together, we have a family, and we have so much to live for. Nothing will ever take us away from each other again."

_But at that exact instant, in Riverside Iowa, coming events were about to happen to challenge Angela's proclamation for a peaceful future for her, Ryan and their daughter Jan._

* * *

**Riverside Iowa**

S'vath and Tuvok were sitting at the table near the kitchen as Amanda poured the three of them cups of tea. She brought them over and joined them at the table. S'vath was reading over a data-pad that Tuvok had brought with him.

"So let me get this straight," S'vath said, as he read the pad, "Even though Star Fleet isn't sure of the whereabouts of Jim Kirk, they are ceding this ranch house, his ranch house, to me and Amanda?"

Tuvok sipped from his tea, before continuing.

"To be more precise," Tuvok explained to S'vath, "they have ceded it to the two of you, as well as your father."

"Spock," Amanda said with a smile, "the part owner of a ranch. Kind of gives a whole new meaning to the term cowboy diplomacy."

S'vath shook his head. He did not like what he was hearing at all. He put the pad down, and shook his head in disbelief.

"This is crazy," S'vath said, "Jim and I became close friends over these past few years. I consider him like my second father," S'vath said, with a slight tone of anger in his voice. "I can't believe we are just giving up on him."

Tuvok cocked an eyebrow.

"They are not just giving up, as you put it," Tuvok said, "they are just admitting to the fact that Jim Kirk's future always seems to be in a point of fluidity."

S'vath smiled, understanding that point clearly.

"I can't deny that," S'vath said with a chuckle. "My mind tells me that Jim Kirk is gone, but my heart says we will see him again."

Tuvok arched an eyebrow.

"Yeah," S'vath said to Tuvok, "I said my heart. Don't forget, Tuvok," S'vath said, "I'm not quite the kind of Vulcan who follows the teachings of our people."

"He even likes to watch holoporn," Amanda added with a slight slap of S'vath's arm.

Tuvok nodded his head. And then he reached into the cloak he was wearing and pulled out a strange looking rock. It was smooth, and radiated a light neon glow.

"What the hell is that?" Amanda asked.

Tuvok set the rock on the table.

"This is a K'oltuam stone," Tuvok explained. "I had it shipped here from Vulcan."

Amanda reached out to touch it, but Tuvok stopped her.

"This particular K'oltuam comes from the Temple of T'Panit. For a Vulcan, it is not logical to hold such a place above others, so in that regard, just as you," Tuvok said to S'vath, "I am not quite an ordinary Vulcan either."

S'vath looked at the stone, but did not touch it.

"Why is T'Panit special to you?" S'vath asked.

Tuvok reached out and picked up the stone.

"My grandfather's Katra existed in the caves," Tuvok said, with a soft voice. "Ever since I was a child I have imagined that his existence became part of that place and that he is there when the monks chant. My grandfather's mind was believed to be matched by no other, with the exception of two others, including Sarek and," Tuvok said with a pause, "Sybok."

Amanda became worried. The whole ordeal where Sybok had captured Tuvok's mind in order to kidnap Lenora, and eventually baby Sarek (Amanda and S'vath's children) was only two years in the past. S'vath could see the worry in his wife's eyes.

"Honey," S'vath said to her, "Don't worry. Sybok is dead and can no longer hurt us our children."

Amanda looked over at Tuvok.

"I know I shouldn't say this, husband," Amanda said to S'vath with a smile, "but Tuvok's mind was taken over by Sybok. How can be sure…"

S'vath followed Amanda's train of thought, and looked over at Tuvok.

"…that your mind still isn't under the control of that madman?" S'vath asked.

"I assure you," Tuvok told them, "Sybok's influence over my mind has long since been nullified. However, that is why I brought this to you," Tuvok said, as he picked up the stone. "I used this to purge the final vestiges of Sybok from my existence; I believe it can help you too."

Amanda shook her head.

"Wait a moment," Amanda said, "all S'vath has inside his mind is a lost memory. You make it sound as if there is something more going on here."

_Of course, dear reader, we know, as does S'vath, that there is an evil entity inside of S'vath's mind. And it has already warned S'vath of dire consequences if that truth is revealed._

Tuvok nodded at Amanda's accusation.

"You are quite right," Tuvok said to her, and then he shifted his glance to S'vath. "There is something more going on here…"

And then, without hesitation, Tuvok reached out and placed his hand on S'vath's lower neck; applying the Vulcan nerve pinch. S'vath's eyes close; he was out cold.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Amanda demanded, as she reached over for her fallen husband.

Tuvok looked at her.

"A portion of S'vath's mind is under the control of an entity," Tuvok told her. "And unless I acted, it could have stopped me from doing what must be done."

Amanda shook her head.

"No, I don't believe you!" she fired back with. "How can you be so sure?"

In a flash, Tuvok reached out and placed his power right hand around Amanda's neck; and squeezed slightly.

"Because," Tuvok replied, "it's inside of me too."

Continued…


	355. Map Quest

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Map Quest**

A small ship came out of warp and approached a blue world just ahead of it. Chakotay was piloting the ship, a ship which he had owned for a long time. It was an old Maquis marauder that he had purchased through backdoor channels (Quark) and had kept stored for many years at the wrecking yard in orbit of one of Saturn's moons. But Chakotay was far from Earth's system, though, the world he was approaching was an exact duplicate of Earth.

The world had been initially explored by Jim Kirk during his first five-year mission. It, too, was called Earth, and the arrangement of its continents was identical to that of Earth. But the population of this duplicate Earth had been killed off by a disease of its own making. Scientists on this Earth-2 had attempted to prolong the human lifespan, but, unfortunately, their attempts had failed. Centuries ago, every adult on this world was killed within weeks. Their children, strangely enough, had aged at an extremely slow rate. But these children did not live forever, because once they entered puberty, they too died. (This was, of course, a brief recap of the events of TOS episode "Miri".)

Back in Kirk's time, nearly one-hundred thousand children were eventually rounded up on the disease ravaged world by ships that followed after Kirk's Enterprise had left. These children were then relocated on to other worlds where their normal aging returned.

As for the broader question of how there could possibly be a duplicate Earth, or more importantly why, those questions were left unanswered as Earth-2 had been put on the quarantine list, warning all ships to stay away. The disease's microbes were still present, and even in Chakotay's time, there was yet no cure. In order to survive on the world, a life force shield was needed (technology from TAS), and even then, it only offered temporary safety.

Chakotay was coming to Earth-2 due to yet another mystery. Several weeks ago, while on Earth, the former first officer of Voyager had a most interesting encounter with Satangkai; son of Kirok. He had been swimming in a pond with a female friend, Shaola. Chakotay had climbed up the face of a waterfall, and when he had reached the top…

**FLASHBACK BEGINS**

_A red-tail hawk swooped down from out of the sky and landed on a large rock in front of Chakotay, which was out of the view from where Shaola was in the pond below._

_Chakotay stopped in his tracks when the bird vanished and was replaced by a whiff of smoke. The thin cloud of smoke became more organized and then morphed into a humanoid shape which then became that of Satangkai; son of James (Kirok) Kirk. Satangkai was clad in his ceremonial clothing and large flowing white bonnet of feathers._

_"How can you be here," Chakotay asked the old man._

_Satangkai ignored the question, and came straight to the point._

_"The Hi'nakah are returning," Satangkai said. "I believe our people, as well as everyone else on this world, are in great peril."_

_Chakotay racked his brain, but had no memory of the Hi'nakah._

_"I'm sorry," Chakotay told the old man, "I have no idea what that means. Who are the Hi'nakah?"_

_Satangkai's shape began to fade as he slowly morphed back into smoke. But before he was totally gone, the old chief told Chakotay the answer._

_"They were the ones who took my tribe," Satangkai warned, "they will do the same again, here; however, this time they will take…everyone."_

_And then the hawk appeared and flew away. But in the animal's place, on the rock on which it had been perched, was a cloth of some sort. Chakotay walked over and picked up the cloth and unfurled it. On the cloth were old and faded images, with ancient writings on them. And then, as he looked closer, Chakotay realized what he was holding; a map._

_As he looked at the map, Chakotay was well aware of the story of the Native-Americans who were taken from Earth to a far off world. It was on that other world where James Kirk and the Enterprise found the long lost tribe. Could it be true that the Hi'nakah that Satangkai referred to were in fact the_

_Preservers?_

Chakotay decided to find the one person who could hold the answer; Spock. Several days later, Chakotay arrived at the ranch home of James T Kirk. Once there, Chakotay had found Spock. S'vath, Spock's son, had been suffering from some sort of memory block, and Spock, as well as Chakotay's good friend, Tuvok, was trying to help S'vath.

_Spock, Tuvok, S'vath, McCoy and Amanda were all startled when a Transporter signal began to materialize; it was Chakotay. _

_As Amanda and S'vath remained on the couch, Spock, McCoy and Tuvok went over to greet the arrival of Chakotay._

_"It is good to see you old friend," Chakotay said to Tuvok._

"_Yes," Chakotay said to Tuvok, "it has been a long time."_

_The two had not seen each other since Chakotay's return from years of isolation with the Voth. Chakotay could see that he had interrupted Tuvok and the others from whatever they were doing._

_"I do not mean to interrupt," Spock said to Chakotay, "however, does your arrival here have to do with the welfare of Jim Kirk's children?"_

_"Not at all," Chakotay said with a smile, "Chief Limanu is taking great care of Kirk's two young children. Now, what I am about to say may seem strange and out of the ordinary, but on a few occasions since my return to the native lands of my people, I have been contacted by Satangkai. He has come to me as various kinds of birds; messengers from the gods, or so my people believe."_

_McCoy said the obvious word usually reserved for Spock or Tuvok._

_"Fascinating…"_

_"Spock, it is in my people's beliefs that the essence of those who are great among us, someone such as Satangkai," Chakotay explained, "can take the form of animals so that they can give us guidance. Anyway, Satangkai visited me again and this he left me," Chakotay reached into the pocket of his jacket and removed a faded cloth of animal skin, and handed it to Spock, "this."_

_Spock unfurled the animal skin and saw what appeared to be ancient lines drawn upon it, and several small pictographs, which were also faded._

_"I believe it is a map," Chakotay said._

_"A fair assumption," Spock said. "Why have you brought this to me?"_

_Chakotay turned the cloth over, and on the other side were more interesting items, but they were not pictographs, they were symbols. Spock immediately recognized the style of the writings and showed McCoy because McCoy had seen this form of symbolism as well._

_"Those are the same markings from that blasted Obelisk," McCoy said with a startled voice._

_"According to Satangkai, this is a warning," Chakotay explained. "He also said that the Hi'nakah, the term he used to describe the Preservers, were going to return and this time they weren't only going to relocate the Native-Americans; they were going to relocate everyone."_

_"What do the symbols say," McCoy cut in with, speaking to Spock._

_"The first assumption we've all made was that this cloth was a map to a location here, on Earth," Spock said. "It is not."_

_"Then what is it a map to?" Chakotay asked._

_"If my reading of the symbols is correct," Spock told the others, "the place the map refers to is far from Earth. In fact, doctor, you and I have been there before."_

_"The planet the obelisk was on; where Jim lived with the Native-Americans?" Amanda asked, as she took the cloth map from Spock to hold it for herself._

_"No," Spock said softly._

_"Stop teasing us Spock," McCoy said, "where does this map lead to?"_

_Everyone looked at Spock and when he said his answer they were all stunned…_

**FLASHBACK ENDS…**

The answer Spock gave was Earth-2. And now, after retrieving his ship from the wrecking yard near Saturn, Chakotay had traveled to Earth-2 for answers.

**This storyline will continue with the next issue…**


	356. Distant Voices

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**THE DISTANT VOICES**

**Earth-2 **

A transporter beam shimmered into existence on the surface of Earth-2. Chakotay looked down at the device secured on his belt to make sure it was working properly. The device was a Type-2 personal life-shield, which when activated, projected a force field around the user's body. The technology had been around for over a hundred years, and had actually been experimented with; but ultimately, due to programming issues, it was discontinued.

But due to recent advances in the technology, the personal life-shield was being given a second chance. Chakotay talked Admiral Kate Janeway into letting him use one, on loan of course. She in turn contacted Star Fleet Command on Earth, and it was there the loaner was issued to Chakotay. She also did him another favor by getting him the needed permission to even visit Earth-2; being that it was listed as a quarantine planet. But what neither Janeway or Chakotay knew was that his interest in Earth-2 had been relayed to the FSB (Federation Security Bureau) and now his journey to Earth-2 was being covertly monitored by an unwanted observer (more on that later).

Using his Star Fleet training to the furthest, Chakotay had brought a recording device to record a personal log, so that if need be, he could use it as a reference. He took the device from his belt, and attached it to the jacket he wore, just below his left front collar.

"Personal log," Chakotay said, as he looked about. "I have arrived on Earth-2. I have transported down to the area of this duplicate Earth which would correspond with the ancient lands of Earth, my Earth, which I will refer from here out as Earth-Prime." He started walking. "In the distance I can see ruins, buildings, ancient automobiles and other man made artifacts. From the look of them, I'd confirm earlier reports I read about Jim Kirk's visit here that the culture's technological progress ended on a par with Earth-prime's early to mid-1900s."

Chakotay made his way down a dirt path and then up and over a ridge. Soon he stood atop a hillside and looked down at a valley below. Suddenly he saw a jack-rabbit run past him, and then he saw birds flying high in the sky.

"I have already seen rabbits and birds," and then he smiled. "I certainly hope that some of these animals represent the spirits of the descendants of Native-American populations of this world. In fact; that is why I am here."

He made his way down the foothill, and an hour later he was in the middle of a large field covered by a thin layer of shrubs and other plant life; what his Grandpa would have called weeds. On Earth-prime, a field located in the exact location was an unmarked burial ground for Native-Americans, specifically, a Navajo burial site. According to Spock's initial report a hundred plus years earlier, the tribe that Jim Kirk had lived among with for many months was a mixture of several tribes, including, Navajo. If that was true, and if Spock's reading of the ancient map that Satangkai had passed on to Chakotay was correct, then it was possible, very possible, that the Navajo tribe that was relocated to that distant world Kirk was on was from Earth-2, this Earth, and not Earth-prime.

And that is why Chakotay had come to this duplicate Earth. He had spent several weeks on Earth-prime trying to find proof that a tribe of Native-Americans, Navajo to be precise, had in their ancient stories, tales of a tribe or tribes being taken away. No such tales existed about the Navajo. But when Spock revealed that the map Satangkai had left was of this world, Chakotay but two and two together; but now he needed proof.

Was his thought process illogical? Maybe it was or maybe it wasn't. Before he had left Earth, Chakotay visited Limanu, the Native-American chief of all tribes on Earth-prime.

* * *

**FLASHBACK BEGINS**

_**Native-American lands on Earth in what used to be old New Mexico.**_

_Chakotay and Limanu entered a large adobe home. The home was where young children played together, and learned of the ways of their elders. It was a tradition that had not changed over the centuries._

_Limanu was the Chief of all Native-American tribes, having succeeded Satangkai; Son of Kirok. Limanu looked at the innocent children at play, and smiled at Chakotay. Among them were two very special children; Mathew and Dahme; offspring of Jim and Myran Kirk. At the present time, Jim Kirk's whereabouts were unknown, and Myran, his wife, was deceased. Limanu, once a blood enemy of Kirk, had sworn his life to protect the children. Both children's lives had already been in great danger (as long time readers know), so the protection was indeed warranted. Limanu waved at Mathew and Dahme, and then he left the daycare; Chakotay right behind them._

"_It is good to see the children of Jim Kirk smiling," Limanu said to Chakotay. "Not a day goes by that I do not come and visit them. It is sad that Jim is missing; they miss their father."_

_Chakotay nodded in approval._

"_What you have sworn to do, to protect them, is honorable; very honorable," Chakotay said with praise in his word._

_Limanu nodded in agreement._

"_Now," Limanu said, "what brings you here Chakotay; father of Kolopak," Limanu asked. _

_The two men continued to walk along a dirt path that led to the center of the tribe's village. _

"_I was visited by Satangkai," Chakotay told Limanu. "I am to go to another world, a sister world to this one. It would seem as if there were once tribes on that world, tribes with the same heritages and names of our people."_

_Limanu looked at Chakotay with slight look of doubt in his face._

"_Where are these tribes now?" Limanu asked. "Why do they not speak to us upon the winds of our souls?"_

**FLASHBACK ENDS**

* * *

Chakotay was brought out of his thoughts of the past when suddenly the Marauder's computer made contact. Nearby, he saw two more jack-rabbits running after each other, and in the distance what appeared to be a bird of some kind.

:::Preset allotted time has been met. Time for Transport to ship imminent::: the computer reported.

The lone drawback of the life-shield device was the power consumption of the field generator. It meant after two hours of use, one had to leave the world so as to reintegrate the inducers, a task that would take four to five hours. Chakotay would return to the exact spot, when the life-shield was recharged, and continue his investigation. A few moments later, Chakotay shimmered away… and was gone.

What he had thought was a bird in the distance changed course and headed to where Chakotay had just been standing a moment before and landed; but it wasn't a bird…it was something totally different. Though it flew with wings, to be sure, it wasn't a bird…it was…a dragon?

Continued…


	357. Open Window

**STAR TREK; THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**OPEN WINDOW**

* * *

**The Highland Expanse; near the center of the Galaxy; the USS Hauck travels through a vest dark void, but the ship's sensors have detected normal space ahead…**

As he stared at himself in the mirror, he had to keep reminding himself that he was not a Klingon Warrior, although he was inside the body of a Klingon. Walter Bishop was his name and though he had never met Commander Worf, the Klingon's body he temporarily inhabited, he knew one thing; he really liked the size of his sexual organ; and why not; it was big! VERY BIG!

After this ordeal was over, Walter was seriously considering making genetic advancements for all human males that would challenge the sexual toy business aimed at women; which was still rampant in the 25th century.

Walter Bishop (and remember reader, he is in Worf's body, but I will continue to call him Walter,) was inside his quarters aboard the USS Hauck. He was preparing to head to the bridge, as he had done for the past three weeks since, like the rest of the crew; he had arrived on the ship.

Arrived; what did that mean exactly? Walter Bishop, using the technology that Leonard McCoy and Montgomery Scott had created in order to animate a brainless Vulcan (episode Spock's Brain) paired with his own inter-dimensional sequencer, he was able to do the unbelievable. The unique crew aboard the Hauck, which comprised himself as well, Picard, Riker, Crusher, La Forge, Troi, as well as the artificial life form Curtis Daystrom, wasn't traditional in any sense.

The bodies of Picard, Riker, Crusher, La Forge and Troi, as well as Worf's body, which Walter was using, were actually clones. Their actions were being controlled by their real bodies back in the Alpha-Quadrant at Star Fleet Command on Earth. The cloned bodies had their brain functions nullified from the moment of their creation, so that via the subspace sequencer, their actions could instantly be manipulated by their counterparts in the Alpha-Quadrant. Why was any of this being done?

Nearly two decades earlier, another Starship, the USS Highland, encountered a Borg vessel in the Alpha-Quadrant. The Captain of that vessel, and a small away team, beamed over to the sphere shaped vessel believing it to be a derelict. Instead, the Borg ship became active, and destroyed the Highland, and then sped off toward the center of the galaxy.

Section-31, the clandestine Federation agency, decided to pursue the matter. Agent Sloan used coercive measures to attain the clones of the Enterprise crew (in the time between the destruction of the Enterprise-D and the Enterprise-E), as well as the Lore construct, and placed them on the USS Hauck and wiped the memories of Picard and the others.

The need for a cloned crew was a gamble. Reports from all over the known galaxy were clear; many ships had entered the area known as the Highland Expanse; none had returned. The Romulans had tried, the Borg had tried, and even the Voth had tried; nothing returned. The theory was that a dark void in the realm caused mental instability. Sloan's idea was to send a cloned crew whose minds would then be controlled by their counterparts, who would be safe and sound in the Alpha-Quadrant.

Of course, in the cases of Commanders Data and Worf, reality had interfered, and they were either destroyed or died in the intervening years. The artificial life form known as Curtis Daystrom was substituted for Data, and was in control of Lore's construct. And Walter Bishop used special medications in order to stand in for Worf and control the Worf clone.

A cloned version of Sloan was aboard the USS Hauck as well. The real Sloan was actually dead as well, having died on Deep Space Nine years earlier. The big question was this; just who was controlling Sloan's cloned body? For now; that was a mystery.

Walter left his quarters and headed for the bridge. He happened to see Troi walking ahead of him. She looked back and saw him quickening his steps to catch up with her.

"Counselor," Walter said, with Worf's deep voice, "as far as I can tell, our mental stability has returned."

Troi nodded in agreement.

"Yes," she replied, "the medicines Beverly concocted seem to have quieted the distressing dreams we were all having."

He looked at her.

"My dreams of you were of a sexual variety," he told her. "I won't deny that I found them quite," he smiled, "interesting."

Troi smiled. Walter Bishop's lack of social dynamics was common knowledge.

"Well, I'm sorry for your loss," she told him, "but I guess those dreams are over."

"Ahh, the dreams maybe over," Walter said with reverie in his voice, "but not the fantasies."

Troi rolled her eyes.

Moments later, Troi and Walter stepped off the Turbolift and took their places on the bridge; Worf at the tactical station, Troi and Navigation next to Curtis Daystrom (inhabiting Lore's construct) at the helm.

Picard sat in the center chair, as Riker manned the science station; Sloan sitting next to him.

"Captain," La forge's voice said, his voice heard from the engine room via the ship's comm system, "we should have full warp capability when we clear the void."

"Excellent Geordi," Picard replied.

The view screen showed nothing but darkness and then suddenly; the Hauck was surrounded by stars.

"Excellent," Sloan said from where he sat on the upper level next to Riker, "I knew we could do it."

"Mr. Worf," Picard said, "pardon me, I mean mister Bishop, what about tactical?"

Walter Bishop looked at the screen before him.

"Ummm," Walter said, "there is nothing to blow up; that's for certain."

Suddenly the ship shuddered slightly.

"What was that," Picard turned and asked Riker.

"Captain," Troi said from her position at Navigation, "look!"

Picard whirled around to look at the main screen. In the far distance there was what appeared to be a giant storm of twirling clouds.

"My god," Riker said, as he looked at it from the science alcove, "what the hell is that thing?"

Curtis Daystrom, who inhabited Lore's body, spoke next.

"It almost looks like a giant eye; in space," he said with wonder in his voice.

Walter scratched his Klingon goatee, and saw strange readings on his tactical screen.

"Picard," Walter said, "according to my scans, a tendril of energy originating from that disturbance is heading this way."

"Confirmed," Riker added.

"Destroy it!" Sloan demanded. "Don't let it on this ship!"

Picard looked back at Sloan.

"I did not come all this way to destroy," Picard said.

"Captain," Riker interjected, "scans show there are complex energy fluctuations in the tendril, similar to those of the Calamarain."

"So," Picard concluded, "it might be a form of intelligent life."

Then, suddenly, a red column of energy appeared on the bridge; it's swirling ribbons of energy putting off heat, and a very loud sound, like that of constantly breaking glass. Sloan reached for a phaser in his pocket, but Riker grabbed it from him before he could use it.

"It will destroy us," Sloan yelled over the sound of breaking glass.

The red column of energy suddenly zapped Curtis Daystrom!

* * *

**Earth; Star Fleet Command**

**The Control room where Picard and his team's bodies are being monitored by McCoy and Spock…and now Ilya and Decker!**

_Previously..._

_"What are you?" Spock asked Decker and Ilya. "What happened after the two of you merged?"_

_"We have reverted to forms your minds can interpret," Decker said to Spock. "What we became is far beyond even your comprehension," Decker added._

_"As I recall," Spock said to Decker, "did we not speculate, at the time, that the Voyager probe had entered a black hole; emerging on the far side of the galaxy. Was that indeed the case? Because, for all intents and purposes, life of both varieties exists in this galaxy; so I do not understand the debate."_

_Decker looked at Spock, and shook his head._

_"We were partially correct," Decker replied. "Voyager-6 actually emerged in another part of the universe, in a cluster of galaxies where no biological life exists."_

_Spock arched an eyebrow, but McCoy was not impressed._

_"This is all very interesting," McCoy said, "but what does this have to do with any danger to Curtis, Picard and the others?"_

_The strange crystal like orb that was located beneath Ilya's throat began to glow. Suddenly the main viewing screen that was centered on one of the walls became activated._

_"What are we seeing?" McCoy asked._

_"This," Decker replied, "is the Highland Expanse. If you look closely, you will see the USS HAUCK; the vessel Curtis and the others are on, as it makes its way deeper into this zone of your galaxy."_

_Sure enough; the image of a Starship could be seen…but soon it too was passed. Finally the stars returned._

_"What is this place?" McCoy asked._

_"This is an area of space that is beyond the starless void the Hauck is passing through. Once they get to this point, and if they are still alive, they will find…" Decker pointed at the screen… "That!"_

_A strange object appeared on the screen. If anything, it appeared like a giant eye surrounded by flames of energy._

_"Spock," McCoy said to his Vulcan friend, "what the hell is that thing?"_

_Spock arched an eyebrow, and bit his lower lip; and then he replied._

_"I have never seen anything quite like that before," Spock announced. He looked at Will Decker. "However; you have…"_

_"Yes," Decker said. "That is," Decker paused, and then came right out and said it; "your Galaxy's Window."_

McCoy chuckled.

"So now we are down to using poetry?" McCoy asked Decker.

Decker looked at McCoy and smiled.

"Not poetry, McCoy," Decker said, "but perhaps my humanity trying to grapple with what I know." Decker went over to the screen and pointed at the strange flaming object that the USS Hauck was unwittingly approaching. "I am going to tell what I know, and you can take it how you wish."

Ilya stepped toward Decker, her eyes cold and dark.

"You will not tell them of the other," Ilya said with tone of caution in her voice.

Decker smiled at her.

"I will tell them what they need to know," he said to her. He looked over to Spock. "I believe, at this point of Federation knowledge, you have mapped far reaches of this galaxy."

"That is true," Spock admitted. "The Bajoran wormhole opened up the far reaches of the Gamma-Quadrant, and the Starsihp Voyager's return to Earth provided much data from the Delta-Quadrant."

Decker nodded his head in approval.

"Indeed impressive," Decker said. "However; V'gers knowledge, as you discovered for yourself Spock when you left the Enterprise in that a space-suit to investigate, wasn't on a galactic scale; no it was on a universal scale. As I said earlier, the Voyager probe ended up on the far side of the universe and was eventually sent back on the path that that brought it there. Via wormholes and other anomalies, V'ger actually followed the same course that a probe from that side of the universe had already crossed."

"Wait a second," McCoy interjected, "are you saying that whoever sent V'ger back to Earth had already sent a probe this way already? Spock," McCoy said to the Vulcan, "what is Decker talking about?"

Spock knew exactly where Decker was leading to.

"Tan Ru," Spock said with a soft voice.

McCoy looked at his Vulcan friend.

"I know that name," McCoy said to Spock. "Where have I heard it before?"

Spock looked at McCoy.

"Nomad," Spock said to McCoy.

McCoy snapped his fingers.

"That's right," McCoy said, "Nomad was damaged by some sort of collision in space, and was repaired, and reprogramed, by another probe of alien origin; Tan Ru."

Spock nodded in agreement.

"So let me get this straight," McCoy said to Decker, "Tan Ru was a probe sent to our galaxy years earlier by the artificial species that sent Voyager back to Earth?"

Decker nodded in agreement, but before he could speak, Ilya did.

"Tan Ru was sent to study biological life," Ilya explained, "to ascertain the perfection of such life."

Spock took over.

"Where it then encountered the damaged Nomad probe, and merged with it," Spock said.

"Correct," Ilya said. "When Tan Ru failed to return, another probe was being constructed to investigate why. However, the Voyager probe had wandered into the far side of the universe. The primitive probe was studied, and then it was sent back instead."

Spock cut in.

"I find it highly improbable that Voyager-6 just happened to wander into the far reaches of the universe."

Decker cut in.

"We agree; which brings us to this," he said, as he pointed again at the strange swirling mass of energy in the Highland Expanse.

"Alright," McCoy said, "I'll bite; what is that?"

"Just moments ago," Spock said to Decker, "you called it our galaxy's window."

The crystal device beneath Ilya's throat began to glow again. Images on the screen began to page by rather quickly, but they were obviously images of other galaxies. Some of them were very similar to the Milky Way and Andromeda, but others were not.

"In all," Decker told Spock, "Tan Ru, as well as Voyager-6, traversed thirty-seven galaxies on their treks."

"That sounds hard to believe; impossible even," McCoy said, with doubt in his voice.

"It is not impossible," Ilya said to McCoy. "Your ignorance of that which you do not know is your kind's weakness."

Spock looked at Ilya, and was about to say something, but Decker cut him off.

"In any event," Decker continued to say, "In every galaxy that Tan Ru and V'ger crossed through, one of these windows, as I call them, was located near the center of each one of them."

A look of curiosity came over McCoy's face.

"You mean to tell me that one of these things," he looked over at the swirling mass of energy in the Highland Expanse, "is in every galaxy?"

Spock spoke next.

"Not everyone," Spock said, "only the thirty-seven galaxies that the probes traveled through."

"You have to admit," McCoy countered, "thirty-seven out of thirty-seven is a pretty good trend," McCoy said back to Spock.

"Not necessarily, Doctor," Spock corrected McCoy. "The number of known galaxies is in the billions; and a sample of thirty-seven is too small to draw a conclusion with, unless," Spock said to Decker, "there is more you have yet to tell us."

Neither Decker nor Ilya responded.

"You must have said something that concerned them," McCoy said with a smile. "Look at them; both quiet all of a sudden."

Spock arched an eyebrow, as he connected the dots out loud for McCoy to follow.

"Perhaps you are more correct than you know," Spock said to McCoy. Spock then looked back at Decker and Ilya. "As I said moments ago, I find it highly improbable that Voyager-6 happened to come across the same combination of wormholes and other anomalies that brought it to the far side of the galaxy where Tan Ru came from. Someone, or something thing, programmed Voyager-6 to go there."

McCoy looked at Decker with a look of irritation on his face.

"Is that true, Decker," McCoy asked. "What is going on here," McCoy pointed at the swirling mass of energy on the screen, which was in the ominous shape of an eye. McCoy looked over at the bodies of Picard, Crusher, Troi, La Forge, Riker and Walter Bishop. He then looked at the android Curtis Daystrom and back at Decker and Ilya, and then back to Spock. "We should wake Picard and his crew up. God knows what that mass of energy will do to them."

"Do that," Decker said to McCoy, "and you will kill them all."

"They're already in danger, according to you," McCoy said to Decker. "So why not just bring them out of it and cut our losses?"

Spock agreed with Decker.

"Decker is right," Spock said to McCoy. "We do not know what effect that would have on them. However, I believe I know what Ilya wants to do."

"Well," McCoy came back with me, "tell me because I don't have a clue."

Spock walked over to the motionless android construct Curtis Daystrom. He then looked at Ilya.

"You want to join with him," Spock said, "and share Curtis's existence in the Highland Expanse," Spock told her in a matter of fact tone. "And you want me to help you accomplish just that via a mind meld. However…"

Spock was about to continue, when suddenly Curtis's stasis chamber began to chirp loudly.

"Fascinating," Spock said, as he stepped back from Curtis. "It would appear as if Curtis is disconnecting his artificial mind from the subspace link with his counterpart; Lore's android construct. He is simply trying to wake up."

Ilya closed her eyes, and then opened them and looked at Spock.

"Not Curtis," Ilya said, "the Galaxy Window."

* * *

**The Naissance**

A Federation transport vessel was high above the Star Fleet complex inside the massive Dysonsphere construct. A visiting science class from Earth, consisting of mainly human teenagers, beamed down to the Star Fleet complex and would soon be divided into various teams by none other than Commander Julian Bashir.

One of the visiting students was a fifteen year old girl who had, at best, mediocre social skills. She was a loner, and not easy to get along with. Her name was Corvana and her life had not been ordinary. Very recently she had lived a care-fee life being a smuggler of stolen goods with Leonard McCoy who had lost his memory, and had gone by the name of Colt McCoy. But much had changed since that time, and now McCoy, with his memories returned, was her adoptive father, and was forcing her to go back to school to make something of her life. What she didn't know was that her life was about to change in ways she couldn't possibly imagine. She was about to become involved in a most peculiar adventure...with a young boy named Robert Canary.

continued


	358. Prolog

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Prolog**

Once again; he was alone. But it wasn't as if he didn't like being alone, he just missed the fact that his father would soon be leaving again, and he did miss his father when he was gone on one of his missions. But because his father was an important Star Fleet officer, other officers would look in on this young boy and he would be expected to behave them in his father's absence. One of those Star Fleet officers was none other than Admiral Kathryn Janeway.

Robert Lawrence Canary was the young boy's name. He was twelve-years old, and as fate would have hit, his father was Captain Jonathan Canary. They both lived inside the massive Dysonsphere known as the Naissance at the main Star Fleet complex located on continent, 4A .

Robert's father, Captain Jonathan Canary, commanded the USS Emprenda; a D7-class Klingon battle cruiser. The mission of the Emprenda was simple enough; bringing endangered animals, and plants, throughout the known galaxy, to the Naissance and giving them a chance to survive on one of the more than 14,000 continents that clung to the inside hull of the Naissance.

Due to Captain Canary's being away most of the time, Robert pretty much lived by himself in the quarters they shared. When Robert was not at school, he engaged in one of his many hobbies.

Among his favorite things to do were rock collecting, playing violin and piano, collecting ancient coins and he also liked to draw. One of his favorite items to draw was his mother; Michelle Canary. Robert's mother was assimilated by the Borg. And unlike others, she did not return when the Borg were finally defeated months earlier.

Robert watched as his father came out of his room holding two duffle bags, and wearing his Star Fleet uniform.

"Dad," Robert said to his father, "when am I ever going on one of these rescue missions with you? I think it would be cool."

"Cool," Captain Canary said as he looked down at his son, "where did you learn to use a word like that?"

Robert smiled.

"In history class we're reading about the 20th Century," Robert replied, "that was one of their favorite expressions for something great to do. I thought it sounded," Robert paused, "cool, so I'm going to use that word too."

Jonathan smiled at his son.

"My son," Jonathan said, "the history expert." Jonathan knelt down and placed his hands on his son's shoulders. "Robert," Jonathan said to his son, "your mom would be so proud of you; you just have to know that."

Jonathan hugged his son with all his might.

Robert nodded his head.

"I know dad; sometimes I believe she's here with us; keeping watch. Doesn't that sound stupid?"

Jonathan smiled and stood back up and smiled at his son.

"No, it doesn't sound stupid at all," Jonathan told his son, "I think it sounds…cool."

They said their goodbyes, and a moments later, Jonathan Canary beamed away and Robert headed off to school.

* * *

There was a beautiful park separating the officers' quarters and the Star Fleet operations center of the Naissance. Located next to the massive complex was a school for children. As he did on every school day, Robert walked along the path to the school with his good friend Rochan Jadhav.

Robert and Rochan were the same age and were in the same class together. Rochan's father was Hament Jadhav, a Lt. Commander and was a science officer who worked with Admiral Janeway and her team including Commanders Julian Bashir and John Waters.

"So," Rochan said to Robert, "your dad is leaving again isn't he?"

"Yeah, he's on some mission to somewhere," Robert said, "someday I'm going with him. In fact," Robert pointed up at the sky, "that's his ship right there."

They watched as it was soon out of sight.

"Yeah," Robert finally said, "I'm going with him someday."

Rochan laughed.

"And what would you do," Rochan asked, "play your violin on the bridge?"

"Hey, I can do other things than just playing violin," Robert replied.

"Like what," Rochan fired back with.

"Ummm," Robert thought, "I could help geology studies, or, help take care of the plant life they find on the way back."

Rochan was about to say something when suddenly, up ahead, they saw what was about to be a very tense situation; Ross Andru.

Ross Andru was fifteen years old and a school bully. The bullies of the 25th century were the same as bullies from all eras and centuries. As Robert and Rochan made their way down the path toward school, they saw Ross Andru and his moronic friends encircling a girl with blond hair. She was roughly the same age they were, but was a newcomer.

"We're going to kick your ass," Ross said to the girl, "unless you give us that Tri-corder of yours!"

The Tri-corder the girl was holding was one of the newer models, and was very sought after by the younger set. (Think IPADS)

Never wanting the innocent to go unprotected, Robert and Rochan ran over and stood between Ross Andru and the new girl.

Robert and Ross had been enemies for the past year; Robert usually ending up on receiving end most of the time.

"Back off, Canary," Ross said with angry eyes, "or you might get hurt; again."

"Leave the girl alone," Robert said; not backing down.

"Or what!" Ross demanded.

"Ummm," a very timid Rochan said to Ross, "Robert will kick your butt!"

Ross glared at Rochan, then back at Robert.

"Oh yeah," Ross said, as he stared directly into Robert's eyes, "you and what army?"

Robert gulped….

TO BE CONTINUED…look for my son's penname "RobertCanaryII". He is publishing this story (Star Trek: Canary) as a crossover between Star Trek Voyager and Star Trek The Original Series. The first chapter will be a reprint of this one...but from there on, the new chapters will be over there. Generally Star Trek: Canary will take place in the same time frame as The Galaxy Window. If there is any reason to mention any event happening that is shared between the two stories we will denote the issue numbers (like they do in comic books). But we will try to keep any cross polination short and sweet.


	359. Brave New World

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**By Robert Benson**

**"Brave New World"**

**The character of Amaranth is used by permission and was created by**

**Hideout Writer**

**(flashback scenes written by Hideout Writer)**

* * *

**Earth-2 (The world the TOS episode "MIRI" Took place on)**

Perviously…

_A transporter beam shimmered into existence on the surface of Earth-2. Chakotay looked down at the device secured on his belt to make sure it was working properly. The device was a Type-2 personal life-shield, which when activated, projected a force field around the user's body. _

_"Personal log," Chakotay said, as he looked about. "I have arrived on Earth-2. I have transported down to the area of this duplicate Earth which would correspond with the ancient lands of Earth, my Earth, which I will refer from here out as Earth-Prime_

_Chakotay made his way down a dirt path and then up and over a ridge. Soon he stood atop a hillside and looked down at a valley below. Suddenly he saw a jack-rabbit run past him, and then he saw birds flying high in the sky._

_"I have already seen rabbits and birds," and then he smiled. "I certainly hope that some of these animals represent the spirits of the descendants of Native-American populations of this world. In fact; that is why I am here."_

_If Spock's reading of the ancient map that Satangkai had passed on to Chakotay was correct, then it was possible, very possible, that the Navajo tribe that was relocated to that distant world Kirk was on was from Earth-2, this Earth, and not Earth-prime. And that is why Chakotay had come to this duplicate Earth-2._

_The lone drawback of the life-shield device was the power consumption of the field generator. It meant after two hours of use, one had to leave the world so as to reintegrate the inducers, a task that would take four to five hours. Chakotay would return to the exact spot, when the life-shield was recharged, and continue his investigation. A few moments later, Chakotay shimmered away… and was gone._

_What he had thought was a bird in the distance changed course and headed to where Chakotay had just been standing a moment before and landed; but it wasn't a bird…it was something totally different. Though it flew with wings, to be sure, it wasn't a bird…it was…a dragon?_

-our story continues…

The dragon's shape morphed into that of a woman. And it was by no mistake she was on Earth-2, she had been sent there by her employer; the Federation Security Bureau (FSB). She tapped a special communication device worn on the lapel of her FSB uniform which used a special inter-dimensional transmitter. It was a technology that transmitted a signal through another dimension, and redirected into the sender's original dimension. If properly aligned, it meant instant contact. Instantly the voice of Hank Algren replied.

"Alright," Algren's voice said, "what can you tell me about Chakotay's visit to Earth-2?"

Amaranth looked about the desert landscape, and then shook her head.

"I'm not sure," Amaranth replied. "He had to return to his ship to recharge his life belt."

There was a moment of silence, and then Algren spoke.

"What about you," Algren asked, "how sure are you that your unique nature can keep you safe from the mutated virus that killed nearly everyone on that world and forced the evacuation of the survivors?"

Amaranth had to admit that, at first, she was worried about coming to this other Earth, but she was confident she was safe from the effects of the virus. And, more important, she had a job to do, as well as proving herself useful in this century.

"I just know that I am," Amaranth replied. "I will remain here until Chakotay returns."

"Very well," Algren said after a moment, "I won't keep you from your mission. Find out all that you can and report to me."

Amaranth asked the most important question.

"And if his actions should pose a threat to Earth, our Earth, what do I do?" Amaranth asked.

There was another silence, and then Algren spoke.

"Unlike my predecessor, I will not condone murder unless it is the last resort," Algren said. "Algren out…"

And then the signal was ended, and Amaranth stood all alone on what had once been a beautiful world. If the reports were correct, then over 4 billion were eventually killed by the virus. It had been created to prolong life, but had destroyed it instead. Amaranth was sure the scientists who created it had nothing but good intentions; but with scientists you never knew what their ambitions were.

As she waited alone, she thought of him; Ajax. Was it possible that he was live, somewhere in this future? Her thoughts turned back to Commander Hank Algren and how he was there…when this future, her future, began…

_"She's waking up." a male said quietly._

_"Good." replied another man. His voice was authoritative, used to giving orders and having them obeyed. "Did you find out anything about her?"_

_"No, sir." a third said. "It's like she never existed."_

_"Well, obviously she does." the commander replied. _

_Amaranth heard soft footfalls as he approached, and her eyes shot open, even as she sat bolt upright. _

_"I am Commander Hank Algren of the Federation Security Bureau. Do you know who you are?"_

_Amaranth felt tired, but as each second passed, he became more alert._

_"I am Amaranth, bonded to Ajax. Where is he?" Amaranth replied briskly. She had a wary look on her face, and her arms were up as if to attack. The two others in the room were pointing strange devices at her, and she slowly lowered her arms before turning to sit a little more naturally on the table._

_"I don't know of anyone named Ajax." Hank replied. "Can you tell me about him?" he added softly._

_"Ajax is a human-avian hybrid, with deadly sense of sarcasm. He is good at living off the land with little to no trace of his having been there, and my soul mate. I would trust him with my life." Amaranth said._

_(__author's note; Ajax is in suspended animation, and will be until he awakes 35 years in the future from this story's point of time. He appears in Star Trek:Exodus__…)_

_"Affronti, my office, now." Algren said. "Dean, keep an eye on her."_

_The two men retired to Hank Algren's office, and sat down. _

_"She could be valuable." Affronti said. "She's definitely had some sort of combat training. I'd rather see her with us than with Section-31. I can only wonder what Commander Donnelly would do with her."_

_"I agree." Hank Algren replied. He seemed to think for a moment and then he seemed to impulsively arrive at an idea. "Affronti, clear my schedule. I'm going to convince her to join us."_

_"Very good, sir." Affronti said. "Anything else, sir?"_

_"James, have you been watching those old __Batman__ movies again?" Hank asked asked; slightly incredulously. At seeing the defensive look on the other's face, he quickly waved it aside. "never mind." With that, he went back into the room where Amaranth was waiting._

_"So, Amaranth, you said your name was?" he asked._

_"Yes." came the reply._

_"Any last name?"_

_"No." she replied. "I never saw the point in having alternative names, aside from certain..." here she smiled slightly at a memory, "nicknames."_

_"Ah." Hank replied. "I'm willing to help you find this 'Ajax' you spoke of, if you are willing to join us. If not, I will not stop you from leaving."_

_"And what is it that you do?" Amaranth asked softly._

_"We operate outside of the law to look out for the Federation's best interests." Hank replied._

_"And the Federation is? Forgive my ignorance of today's affairs, I was frozen in the year 2020 A.D." Amaranth said softly, standing up. She picked at the hospital gown she was wearing, and glared at it in disgust._

_"The Federation is a commonwealth of worlds." Hank replied. "They work together to…"_

_"I know what a commonwealth is." Amaranth replied impatiently. "How many worlds?"_

_"You seem very calm about the idea of other worlds, for having been frozen in 2020." Hank replied._

_"Look around." Amaranth said, sweeping an arm around the room. "Everything glows or beeps. I'm obviously in the future dreamed about by science fiction writers, and quite frankly, I don't care if there is one species or nine hundred trillion species out there."_

_"There are well over a thousand worlds in the Federation." Hank replied._

_"And what do you want me for?" Amaranth asked imperiously. "There are well over a thousand worlds to choose your operatives from. Yet, you choose me. Why?"_

_"You have an invaluable advantage." Hank replied._

_"Oh?" Amaranth asked, an eyebrow arched. "And what might that be?"_

_"You don't currently exist anywhere in the computers of the Federation." Hank answered. "There is nothing that someone could use to identify you."_

_"Ahh, the heart of the matter at last." Amaranth said, a look of satisfaction on her face. "You take a long time to get to the heart of things. Be aware that I am not fond of those who try to lie to me, or mislead me."_

_"Noted; and I will never lie to you." Hank answered; his tone deliberately light. "My offer to help you was very real."_

_"As opposed to...somewhat real, half real, slightly real?" Amaranth asked._

_Hank smiled. "Are you in?" he asked seriously._

_"I...will join you." Amaranth said at last._

_"Excellent." Hank replied. "Oh, and I'm sorry about the hospital gown. Your dress was removed when you were examined for injuries. Also, none aside from the very few wear such clothing anymore."_

_"I see." Amaranth said frostily. "Then get me set of clothes like you are wearing, in the shade of my dress."_

_"Savage, see to it." Hank said. "I've got some paperwork for you to deal with." With that, he retreated to his office, leaving Amaranth alone._

_She flexed her fingers and wrists, rolled her neck around, and felt along her thighs, squeezing experimentally in a few places. She then ran her fingers up along her back, occasionally prodding a few places before standing up. She winced slightly, as she supported her full weight, and she began a few basic mobility movements. _

_Just then, Dean entered, bearing a bright green pile of cloth. Amaranth accepted it, and excused herself to another room. She changed quickly, and folded up the hospital gown before coming back to see that Hank had re-entered the room with a few devices. She looked at them, then flicked her gaze back up to meet Hank's eyes...which had traveled somewhat south of her face for a moment._

_Hank handed her the devices, and she saw text on the screens, but didn't know how to manipulate it. "This one is your form, and this is a training program, to help you understand how to use the PADD. Orientation begins as soon as you finish the form."_

_"Thank you." Amaranth said, accepting the two devices._

_Hank nodded and then he left, followed by Dean._

_Amaranth set down the devices on the bed, and raised her fists, making several punches into empty air, as if she was boxing with an invisible man. She kicked a few times, and then switched to jabs and a few other movements, before sitting down, and starting the training program._

_As she read on, she also thought of what would come next. Hank Algren said they had examined her; what did that mean? With their modern tech could they see that there was more to her than…met the eye?_

Amaranth was brought out of her memories by the sound of a voice; she had let herself drift too deeply into her thoughts. She turned around to see Chakotay looking at her. He smiled, and for all intents and purposes, he seemed friendly.

"So," Chakotay said to her, with a smirk on his face. He motioned toward her uniform, "what kind of uniform is that; Section-31? Are you one of Donnelly's assassins; here to wipe me out of existence? Jim Kirk warned me about your ilk," Chakotay aimed a phaser at her. "I won't go easily..."

Amaranth prepared to attack!

continued...


	360. Masks

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**MASKS**

**Previously…**

{Ryan Tolbert and his family, reunited after many years being separated were enjoying time at a lavish hotel off the coast of Hawaii. After putting their daughter, Jan, to bed…Ryan and his wife, Angela, shared an intimate moment in the master bedroom.

"It was hard time," Ryan said back to her. "For nearly ten years I lived my life as if I were in a shell. If it weren't for my work, I would have…" he let his voice trail off.

She came close and put her arms around him, feeling the pain that he had gone through believing they were dead.

"It's all over," Angela told him. "We're together, we have a family, and we have so much to live for. Nothing will ever take us away from each other again."

But at that exact instant, in Riverside Iowa, coming events were about to happen to challenge Angela's proclamation for a peaceful future for her, Ryan and their daughter Jan.

**Riverside Iowa**

**The ranch home of S'vath and Amanda. (The house Jim Kirk's but he had given it to them via a special document had he gone missing…as he had…)(Having said that, he will appear in STAR TREK: Canary..written by my son…RobertCanaryII here at Ad Astra)**

Tuvok had returned for another session with S'vath, who was suffering from some sort of memory block. Tuvok was trying his best to break the memory block which was causing discomfort for S'vath for nearly a week. Tuvok, S'vath and Amanda sat at a table in the dining room.

Tuvok set a strange looking rock on the table.

"This is a K'oltuam stone," Tuvok explained. "I had it shipped here from Vulcan."

Amanda reached out to touch it, but Tuvok stopped her.

"This particular K'oltuam comes from the Temple of T'Panit. For a Vulcan, it is not logical to hold such a place above others, so in that regard, just as you," Tuvok said to S'vath, "I am not quite an ordinary Vulcan either. My grandfather's Katra existed in the caves," Tuvok said, with a soft voice. "Ever since I was a child I have imagined that his existence became part of that place and that he is there when the monks chant. My grandfather's mind was believed to be one of the most gifted, matched by only by a select few, including Sarek and," Tuvok said with a pause, "Sybok."

"Wait a moment," Amanda said, "all S'vath has inside his mind is a lost memory. You make it sound as if there is something more going on here."

_(Of course, dear reader, we know, as does S'vath, that there is an evil entity inside of S'vath's mind. And it has already warned S'vath of dire consequences if that truth is revealed.)_

Tuvok nodded at Amanda's accusation. And then, without hesitation, Tuvok reached out and placed his hand on S'vath's lower neck; applying the Vulcan nerve pinch. S'vath's eyes close; he was out cold.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Amanda demanded, as she reached over for her fallen husband.

Tuvok looked at her.

"A portion of S'vath's mind is under the control of an entity," Tuvok told her. "And unless I acted, it could have stopped me from doing what must be done."

Amanda shook her head.

"No, I don't believe you!" she fired back with. "How can you be so sure?"

In a flash, Tuvok reached out and placed his power right hand around Amanda's neck; and squeezed slightly.

"Because now," Tuvok replied, "it's inside of me too."

**our story continues…}**

Amanda stared into the eyes of Tuvok, just inches from her.

"I knew it," Amanda said, struggling to speak, "your mind is still under the control of Sybok!"

Tuvok slowly released his fingers.

"No," Tuvok said, "Sybok was banished from my mind months ago, I assure you (earlier storyline). However," Tuvok said as he looked over at S'vath, who was still out cold. "Your husband's mind has been under the influence of a mental entity that feeds off violence and fear. I am sorry for my action, but I have managed to, in essence, slice it in half, an have control of it now. If there was one fortunate side effect from having fought for my mind against Sybok all those months ago, it's the added ability to deal with such intrusions."

Amanda looked at her S'vath.

"A mental entity," Amanda repeated, and then she looked at Tuvok, "how?"

Tuvok, now in complete control of the entity inside of his mind, was able access its memories.

"It is thousands of years old," Tuvok told Amanda, "and has possessed the minds of millions. It usually preys on those who have families; and then it brutally murders the possessed person's family, and then finds another host. There is no reason why; it just exists in this manner."

Amanda became worried, and then she asked…

"How did it get inside the mind of S'vath?" Amanda asked.

Tuvok closed his eyes to concentrate on the memories his mind was sifting through.

"Apparently," Tuvok said, after a moment, "the entity has been in possession of Agent Ryan Tolbert's mind for over a year. When he and S'vath, and Jim Kirk, went to the Tantalus Penal colony to retrieve Dr. Walter Bishop, Ryan Tolbert, under the control of the entity, attempted to kill S'vath…"

Tuvok was cut off in mid-sentence.

"Yes," Amanda said, snapping her fingers, "S'vath was attacked and almost died. He never saw the attacker, and we assumed it was a prisoner who had done it. Apparently an attack on the colony released all the security grids, and there was a riot and prisoners were running amok."

S'vath opened his eyes. He closed them, and then opened them again.

"Honey," Amanda said, "are you all right?"

"What happened?" S'vath asked Tuvok.

Tuvok explained the situation, and the information he had garnered from the entity.

"I want the rest of it out of me," S'vath said to Tuvok. "Can you do that?"

Tuvok thought for a moment.

"Perhaps," Tuvok replied.

"What do you mean perhaps?" Amanda demanded.

"As I said," Tuvok told the two, "the other part of this entity exists in the mind of Ryan Tolbert. If I were to purge the part in my mind, and yours, from existence, which I believe I could do, it is possible that Tolbert's would sense it and could either kill him or cause him to kill others around him. If I am correct," Tuvok continued to say, "Agent Tolbert has a wife and child."

"Yes he does," Amanda replied. "He thought they were dead for many years, but after that ordeal with Agent Randolph Donnelly (earlier storyline) they were reunited. In fact," Amanda went on to say, "I believe Spock told me that Ryan and his family were going to spend some time at a resort here on Earth; somewhere near Hawaii."

"I fear their lives are in danger," Tuvok came back with.

An air of urgency took over Tuvok, S'vath and Amanda…

**At that moment, at the massive resort hotel floating on the ocean off the coast of Hawaii…**

Ryan Tolbert opened his eyes; although it wasn't Ryan Tolbert. The entity had awakened, and it needed more than anything to feed the bloodlust that drove its existence.

Ryan looked over at the woman in bed next to him; his wife Angela. He thought for a moment, and then he decided that she would be the first to die. After she was dead, Ryan would then kill his daughter.

Ryan got out of bed, put on a robe, and he made his way through the darkened room and over to the kitchenette. There was a knife rack on the marble counter, and he pulled out the largest one; a carving knife. Suddenly; he heard a voice.

"Daddy…I can't sleep…"

Ryan whirled around with the knife in his hand. Standing before him was his daughter, Jan. He would have to change his plan; she would die first and then his wife Angela.

"Hello Jan," Ryan said to his innocent ten-year old daughter. He gripped the knife that he was hiding behind his back, "Daddy has something that will help you sleep…forever."

Continued…


	361. Universal Dynamics

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Universal Dynamics**

**Featuring…Spock-McCoy-Will Decker-Ilya-Curtis Daystrom-Picard-Lore-Riker-Crusher-La Forge-Slone and the Galaxy Window**

**Earth;**

**Star Fleet Command**

**A science lab located 14 stories below the man Star Fleet complex…**

_"Fascinating," Spock said, as he stepped back from Curtis. "It would appear as if Curtis is disconnecting his artificial mind from the subspace link with his counterpart; Lore's android construct. He is simply trying to wake up."_

_Ilya closed her eyes, and then opened them and looked at Spock._

_"Not Curtis," Ilya said, "it is your Galaxy's Window."_

Spock pressed a button which opened the stasis chamber that contained Curtis's android construct. McCoy walked over to where Will Decker was standing, which was next to the Ilya as Spock analyzed Curtis with a Tricorder.

McCoy looked at Decker and Ilya.

"As you know," McCoy said to Decker, "I am not the same Leonard McCoy that you met during the incident with V'ger. However," McCoy continued to say, "I did read the log reports made by that McCoy, as well as Spock and Jim Kirk; and I was under the assumption that you merged with her," McCoy pointed at Ilya. "What happened after that; why are you even here?"

Decker nodded in agreement.

"In order to come here, to Earth," Decker replied, "Ilya and I had to," he smiled, "de-evolve. When we merged all those decades ago, our joined existence, for lack of better words, took us out of this reality."

"You mean this universe," McCoy corrected him.

"No," Decker said, "this reality. Let me just say," Decker continued, "I am here in human form and Ilya is here in the form she was in when I merged with her."

"Curtis," Spock said to Decker, but speaking of Curtis, "what is he to you?"

Before Decker could respond, Curtis spoke.

"Coming into the eye is not allowable," Curtis said, with a flat cold voice.

Spock looked at the screen, and swirling mass of energy that the USS Hauck was approaching, then he looked back at Curtis.

"The ship," Spock replied, "is exploring the unknown; that is its purpose."

Curtis looked over at Ilya and Decker.

"Your being here, in this part of the," Curtis paused for a brief second, "universe violates the Equilibrium."

McCoy shook his head.

"What is he talking about?" McCoy asked.

"As I told you before," Decker replied, "the Tan Ru probe, which accidentally merged with the Nomad probe, was sent to this galaxy by artificial beings from a very distant part of the universe."

McCoy nodded his head.

"We got that," McCoy said to Decker. "And then you told us that Voyager-6, somehow, went back along the same path Tan Ru took to get here, ended up in that distant galaxy, and ended up being sent back to our galaxy; and on to Earth."

Ilya spoke next.

"The beings who built Tan Ru, as well as the construct which brought V'ger back to Earth, did so unaware of the Equilibrium."

Spock looked over at Curtis.

"What is the Equilibrium," Spock asked Curtis.

Curtis didn't respond; Decker did instead.

"Spock," Decker said to the Vulcan, "as I said before, the Tan Ru visited 37 seven other galaxies, via a web of wormholes. Near the center of all those universes were swirling masses just like the one your ship is approaching."

"What are they; these giant eye shaped masses of energy?" McCoy asked.

Curtis answered the simple question.

"Life," Curtis replied simply.

Spock arched an eyebrow, and then listened as Decker continued.

"For specifics I cannot go into, let me say this," Decker said. "There are areas of the universe that are governed, for lack of a better term, by dynamics that involve life. Every galaxy in the universe is part of one of these many dynamics. It may sound strange, and hard to believe, but these dynamics are separate and unique."

Spock nodded his head, understanding where Decker's train of thought was headed.

"Then I can assume that Tan Ru," Spock said, "was sent here by artificial beings from a galaxy that resides in a different dynamic than this galaxy?"

"Yes," Decker said, as he looked at Ilya. "Both Ilya, and Curtis, are such beings. And as Curtis and you just said, they don't belong in this part of the galaxy. The Equilibrium has been violated."

McCoy shook his head.

"I don't buy it, Spock," McCoy said. "Decker is implying that they," McCoy pointed at Ilya and Curtis, "are not supposed to be here in this galaxy because of the fact they are artificial life forms far beyond androids and the like. By saying that, Decker is also implying that, in this galaxy, only biological life forms, like humans, Klingons, Cardassians, and yes," McCoy said, looking at Spock, "Vulcans, are allowed to exist. Well, that's just poppycock. We all know that there are life forms from our galaxy that are indigenous to this galaxy, that are artificial. So what's the big deal if Ilya and Curtis come from some other part of the universe? Are you implying there are no biological life forms there?"

Curtis spoke.

"The Equilibrium has been violated," Curtis said to Ilya. "I have taken control of this being's presence near the Window to warn you not to return. I will consider the second transit…"

McCoy cut Curtis off.

"The second transit; what is the second transit again?" McCoy asked.

"When Voyager originally went through the string of wormholes which took it to the other dynamic," Decker replied. "That was the second of three transits. The first, when Tan Ru came here; the third when Voyager, as V'ger, returned."

Spock shook his head.

"Again," Spock said to Decker, "I find it highly illogical to conclude that Voyager-6 was able to back-track the entire path that Tan Ru took to get here by chance. And, who exactly created the string of wormholes that are gateways to the other so called dynamics? There are, as a human ancestor of mine once said, holes in your story."

McCoy chuckled.

"Wait, Spock," McCoy said, "Are you implying that someone here, on Earth, sent Voyager-6 back along that path on purpose? It was launched in the 1970s; no one on Earth had knowledge of any of this."

Before McCoy could continue, Curtis cut him off.

"This does not concern the Window," Curtis said. "The second transit should not have been allowed by the Window nor the third. It will…"

Inside the Highland Expanse, moments ago (just before Curtis awoke in Alpha-Quadrant) the USS Hauck approached the swirling mass; the Galaxy Window. A tentral of energy spirled out and pentrated the Hauck's shields and struck Curtis (in Lore's construct).

Picard stood up from his chair as Lore (which Curtis had been controlling from the Alpha Quadrant) slumped over and fell to the ground. Crusher and La Forge rushed over and scanned Lore's construct.

"What happened to him," Riker asked.

Before La Forge could respond...Slone did instead.

"Isn't it obvious," Slone said, as he stood next to Picard, "that thing," he pointed at the swirling mass of energy before the Hauck, "is using Lore's construct to control Curtis on the other side, in the Alpha Quadrant; For all we know it might destroy Earth; we have to destroy it!"

Sloan withdrew a phaser from his pocked and aimed it directly at Lore!

Continued…


	362. Expectations

**Star Trek: The Galaxy Window**

**Expectations…**

**written by Robert "Canary" Benson and Hideout Writer**

**Amaranth created by Hideout Writer**

* * *

_Previously…_

_Chakotay had traveled to Earth-2; the duplicate Earth first visited by Captain James T Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise; NCC-1701. It was a world devastated by a man-made virus meant to prolong life, but wiped out the human population. Though the human population was gone, the virus did not kill off the animal life or plant life. Chakotay had come to Earth-2 to find the ancient Native American lands of that world, and was led there by a map given to him by Satangkai's animal spirit back on Earth-prime; our Earth. But due to the effects of the virus, Chakotay's life belt could only provide safety for two to three hours at a time before having to be recharged aboard his ship, which was in orbit of the planet. With the belt finally recharged, Chakotay had beamed down to find a strange site; a woman in a uniform._

"So," Chakotay said to her, with a smirk on his face. He motioned toward her uniform, "what kind of uniform is that; Section-31? Are you one of Donnelly's assassins; here to wipe me out of existence? Jim Kirk warned me about your ilk, " Chakotay aimed a phaser at her. "I warn you; I won't go too easily..."

Amaranth prepared to attack, as she most certainly would have done 400 years ago. But now…well, not this time at least...

* * *

**Flashback begins…**

Amaranth and Hank Algren materialized on the planet Vulcan inside the home of Sajah. Sajah was a Vulcan female who helped to train the art of patience in the face of uncertainty. Amaranth and Hank looked around, and realized that Sajah had yet to join them.

"She said she might be a few minutes late," Hank said. "This time of the day is set aside for her meditations."

Amaranth looked about at the interior of the abode. There were what appeared to be sculptured art pieces on the wall, yet the room had a very sparse look to it.

"She doesn't seem to have much in the way of furniture," Amaranth noticed.

Hank smiled at the observation, for he had made the same one upon his visit to Sajah home the first time several years earlier.

"That is their way," Hank replied. "You will find that the Vulcans are a very conservative people when it comes to material possession. However, the items you see here are important to her so please," Hank said, as he lowered his voice, "if you suddenly have the urge to, you know," referring to her Dragon form, "change; please be careful; these things are probably very valuable."

At that moment, a very elegant Vulcan female walked through into the room. She was not only elegant, but very old. There was one particular physical attribute she had. The right side of her face was slightly deformed; scarring tissue was obvious, but very old as well; almost as if she had been burned ***.

_(*** R__eaders will remember her character from "Star Trek: The Lost Condor" as the Vulcan who mind-melded with Jim Kirk)._

"Sajah," Hank Algren said with a warm smile, "it is very good to you see you."

Sajah came over to them and offered the traditional Vulcan hand salute, which Hank offered back as well. Hank peaked over at Amaranth and cleared his voice. Amaranth got the message and attempted to do the hand salute as well, but couldn't quite get her fingers right.

"I'm sorry," Amaranth told the Vulcan woman. "Commander Algren has tried over and over to teach me how to do that; I just can't get it right."

Sajah nodded her dead.

"I could not master it until I was eight years old; and I am a Vulcan," her voice warm, not cold as most Vulcan voices were. She looked back at Commander Vulcan. "It is agreeable to see you again, Commander Algren. However," she pointed at Hank's stomach, "you have lost too much weight since we last met a year ago. I will offer you some Mo'tay soup; you will not refuse."

Algren shook his head.

"You do not have to feed me, Sajah," Hank said, as he followed Sajah into the small kitchen area. "I'm not a child you know."

Sajah looked back and gave him _that_ look.

"Why is it," Sajah said, looking at Amaranth, "that most men from your world seem to stop maturing at the age of fifteen." Before Amarnath could respond, Sajah continued. "That is the price I will demand; you eating some of my soup." Sajah said, not once looking at Hank Algren as she prepared the soup. She looked over at Amaranth again, who was still standing where they had first appeared.

"I sense something very unique about this one," Sajah said to Hank, as put some soup in a bowl.

Hank looked over at Amaranth, and then back at Sajah.

"Until recently, she was in suspended-animation for nearly four hundred Earth years," Hank explained, as he accept the bowl of soup; "thank you."

Sajah looked at Amaranth and spoke to her.

"You do not need to stand in one place," Sajah said, "you are free to move about."

Amaranth looked to Hank, who nodded his head, but gave her a "_be cautious_" look with his eyes, conveying the "_don't break the artwork_" warning. And who said humans didn't have telepathy.

"Why are you concerned about her breaking my artwork?" Sajah asked.

Hank had forgotten the fact that Sajah had above average mental telepathy skills for a Vulcan.

"Nothing to concern yourself with," Hank replied. He switched the subject. "Amaranth is going to become one of my best agents, I can guarantee it. All I need for you to do, if you can, is give her more focus."

Sajah knew what Hank meant.

"I am of the opinion that I have enough control." Amaranth said softly. Her nostrils flared slightly as she sniffed the air, and she moved towards the soup, having not eaten earlier in the day. "If it is no trouble, I would appreciate some soup. I have been introduced to the absence of gravity recently in my training, and…well. I had anticipated more of the same training today, and did not wish to make another mess, so I refrained from eating." Her lips twitched upwards ever so slightly, in what may have been a smile. "As for why Commander Algren is concerned about my breaking your artwork, I am not human. Rather, I am a dragon, with the ability to take on a human form. I can remain in this form as long as I wish, so I do not think that there will be any trouble."

Algren looked a little shocked that Amaranth would reveal herself so readily, and he looked at her, concern showing in his eyes.

"She is a telepath." Amaranth stated bluntly, by way of explanation. "If we are to work with each other, there must be some level of trust between us, and if she were to sense that I am hiding something, it could make her distrustful of me, and perhaps hinder what I am here for."

Sajah raised an eyebrow, at hearing Amaranth's words, and handed Hank a bowl full of soup.

Amaranth sniffed again, catching a good whiff of the soup, and then looked at Sajah's clothing. Her eyes flicked back to Algren. "They are a quiet people." she observed. "Simple, reserved, and yet quite strong; I suspect that they do not often lose."

"The Commander is right, you lack focus." Sajah said. "Otherwise, you show wisdom. How old are you?"

"Eleven years old." Amaranth replied. "Not counting the time spent in suspended animation, which I suspect allowed another six months. I know that the process does not completely stop aging."

"Eleven years?" Hank asked. "You look like you are in your early twenties."

"I reached maturity at the end of my first year." Amaranth answered. "It is traditionally marked by the ability to breathe fire. The older I am, the longer I will be able to hold it."

Sajah handed Amaranth a bowl of soup, which Amaranth accepted with a dip of her head and a soft "Thank you."

"Come to think of it," Sajah said, looking at Amaranth, "you need to put on some weight as well. What are you feeding them these days?" Sajah asked Hank Algren.

"Enough," Hank said, as he sipped from his bowl. Sajah cast him a weary work, and he went back to using his spoon.

After the three had eaten, Amaranth turned to Sajah. "The meal was most agreeable, I thank you." After a short pause, she continued. "You and Commander Algren are correct, I do lack focus. Under normal conditions, I would have completed my education by my third year. However, my Rider and I were unable to find an Ebrithil, and have been forced to learn what we can as we go. As a result, deficiencies, such as my lack of focus, have made themselves glaringly obvious. I will do my best to submit myself to your teachings."

Sajah nodded in acknowledgement. Algren smiled on the inside; it all went easier than he had expected. Even the soup was good.

…**End of Flashback**.

* * *

Amaranth was about to go into action, but she remembered the training that Sajah imparted on her and held back.

"I assure you, Chakotay, I am not here to kill you." Amaranth said to Voyager's former executive officer.

"And yet you know my name," Chakotay said. "How can you explain that?"

"I can only offer this; my commanding officer is Hank Algren," Amaranth said to Chakotay.

Upon hearing Algren's name, Chakotay lowered his weapon.

"I remember him," Chakotay said. "I met him at Jim Kirk's house back on Earth a couple months ago. If I recall, Commander Algren helped rescue the family of Agent Ryan Tolbert. Jim Kirk considered Algren a good person, which means, for now, so do I. So answer this; what is your name and why are you here spying on me?"

Amaranth pointed at Chakotay's life belt.

"My name is Amaranth, and apparently that technology, while not new," Amaranth stated, "is still a controlled item."

Chakotay nodded his head, and knew what she meant.

"I get it now," Chakotay said. "The moment Admiral Janeway gave me permission to check it out from Star Fleet Headquarters on Earth, Star Fleet alerted the powers that be and they in turn notified Commander Algren, and you got assigned to monitor whatever it was I was doing."

Amaranth nodded her head.

"Very well," Chakotay said, "I might as well fill you in."

He opened a pouch that was attached to a belt around his waist and retrieved the map. He explained how it had come into his possession; including the part about Satangkai, a human spirit, assuming the physical form of a red-tail hawk.

"So if I understand you correctly," Amaranth said, "you believe the Native-Americans that these Preservers took to that world far off world didn't come from our world, but from this one; this duplicate Earth."

Chakotay nodded.

"Yes," Chakotay said. "Though I must tell you Amaranth; I noticed that when I told you the part of the story where I received this map from a human spirit in the form of a bird, you just accepted it at face value. Others I have told have cringed at that part; but not you."

Amaranth looked at Chakotay, and had the urge to tell him her secret; her ability to morph into the form of a Dragon, but she thought twice about it and didn't.

"There are many interesting things in this universe, Chakotay," she replied, "Your story is just a testimony to the wonder of life." She tried to sound as much like Sajah as she could.

"You know what," Chakotay said, "I like you Amaranth. So, here is the problem I have," Chakotay said, as he looked at the small foothill he had walked down earlier. "The map leads me to right here; right here where you and I are standing."

Amaranth looked about, and then back at Chakotay.

"What was it you hoped to find?" she asked.

Chakotay chuckled.

"I really don't know," Chakotay said. "However," he said, as he saw a bird flying in the sky, "maybe I can contact the spirit realm on this world and find an answer."

Amaranth looked at the bird as well, as it screeched in the distance.

"How will you do that?" she asked.

Chakotay pointed at the pouches on his belt.

"Inside these pouches are herbs, and, well," he said cautiously, "mind-altering substances. When the sun sets, in about half an hour or so, I will unfold my Tahagh; my ceremonial blanket and ask a spirit to guide me."

Amaranth thought about what Chakotay said.

"Then, I will give you your privacy and return to my ship, the Phoenix, andwhen you are finished," Amaranth said to him.

Chakotay smiled at her.

"No, if it's possible, I'd rather you stay and observe," Chakotay came back with. "I have no idea what will happen to my mind, on this planet, when I offer my spirit for union with this place."

Amaranth pondered what Chakotay requested.

"Very well," Amaranth replied. "I will observe, but how will I know to do anything?"

Chakotay chuckled.

"If I seem out of it for more than an hour, slap me as hard as can," Chakotay said. "That should do the trick."

She nodded in agreement and watched as Chakotay went about setting up the blanket. She then watched as he removed the pouches and also went about starting a small fire next to the blanket.

What she didn't notice was that Chakotay was checking her out too. He noticed one important fact; she wasn't wearing a life belt. And since the virus that was deadly to all human life was still at play on this duplicate Earth, requiring him to wear the life belt; where was her life belt? And if she didn't require one to exist on this world, then; there was more to Amaranth than met the eye, and Chakotay was fascinated to find out what it was…and he made sure his phaser was primed.

**Continued…**


	363. Masks II

**STAR TREK; THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**MASKS II**

_Previously…_

_On the Earth, at S'vath's and Amanda's house in Riverside Iowa, Tuvok was able to gain control of the entity inside of Ryan Tolbert's mind. But he couldn't risk destroying it entirely for reasons he explained to S'vath and his wife Amanda…_

_"As I said," Tuvok told the two, "the other part of this entity exists in the mind of Ryan Tolbert. If I were to purge the part in my mind, and yours, from existence, which I believe I could do, it is possible that Tolbert's would sense it and could either kill him or cause him to kill others around him. If I am correct," Tuvok continued to say, "Agent Tolbert has a wife and child."_

_"Oh my God; yes he does!" Amanda replied in near panic _

…

_**At that moment, at the massive resort hotel floating on the ocean off the coast of Hawaii…**_

_Ryan Tolbert opened his eyes; although it wasn't Ryan Tolbert. The entity had awakened, and it needed more than anything to feed the bloodlust that drove its existence._

_Ryan got out of bed, put on a robe, and he made his way through the darkened room and over to the kitchenette; he heard a voice._

_"Daddy…I can't sleep…"_

_Ryan whirled around with a sharp carving knife in his hand. Standing before him was his daughter, Jan. He would have to change his plan; she would die first and then his wife Angela._

_"Hello Jan," Ryan said to his innocent ten-year old daughter. He gripped the knife that he was hiding behind his back, "Daddy has something that will help you sleep…forever."_

"_Is it ice cream?" Jan asked excitedly._

_our story continues..._

* * *

Inside of Ryan's mind, the entity, which was no longer at full strength, was fighting against Ryan's own thoughts with all its might.

: I WILL NOT LET YOU KILL MY FAMILY…came from Ryan's thoughts:

Then entity replied, as he came closer to Jan, preparing to kill her.

#Look at her…so sweet. When I slice her throat; I will pull her tongue out through the bloody hole and rip it all the way out; and there is nothing you can do to stop me.#

And then, as swift as possible, Ryan, under the control of the entity, reached out and grabbed his daughter; Jan. The little girl was too startled to realize what was happening as her father put the blade of the knife to her neck.

And then, from out of nowhere, two transporter signals shimmered into view; just feet away from Ryan. The two were Commander Hank Algren and Tuvok

"Don't come any closer," Ryan yelled, as Jan began to cry. "Shut up, brat," Ryan said to the girl.

Algren pulled a phased out.

"Don't do it," Agent Algren said, as he aimed a phaser at Ryan. "If you do it, I'll kill you and you will be destroyed."

Suddenly, Angela came running out of the room, and became frightened at what she saw.

"Ryan," she screamed, "what are you doing?"

Tuvok spoke next.

"Your husband," Tuvok said, "has been under the control of an entity for well over a year now. It feeds on negative energy," Tuvok said to Angela, but then he turned to face Ryan. "Listen to me," Tuvok said to Ryan, "the rest of your non-corporeal essence is here; inside of m me," Tuvok said. "Let the girl go."

Ryan pressed the knife harder, and a trickle of blood came down from the point.

"Please," Angela pleaded, "let my baby go. She's your daughter."

Agent Algren took another approach.

"Look at me," Agent Algren said, "you may be non-corporeal, but you want to live. And I can assure you; unless you leave that girl alone, and leave Ryan's body, you will die right here; right now. Now," Agent Algren said, "LET HER GO!"

Ryan looked to Tuvok.

"How do I know that you will honor your word," Ryan said, "and let me go; once I am reunited with the rest of my essence."

Tuvok nodded his head, understanding the situation.

"You have my word as a Vulcan," Tuvok said. "You will be allowed to leave."

"What about him?" Ryan asked Tuvok, but looking at Agent Hank Algren.

"Go; before I change my mind," Agent Algren said.

And then; it happened. A stream of energy came out of Ryan's body. Another stream came out of Tuvok's body; both streams intertwined and became one. Ryan's body fell to the ground, and both his daughter and wife went to him.

"Now leave this world," Tuvok said to the energy.

The energy being began to move toward the window that looked out over the ocean. But suddenly Algren aimed his phaser at it.

"A useless gesture," Tuvok said to Agent Hank Algren. "Phasers will not work on non-corporeal life forms."

Hank Algren's eyes squinted, and he smiled.

"This isn't a phaser," Hank said, and then he fired the weapon which instantly threw out a beam that obliterated the energy being; destroying it.

Tuvok glared at Hank Algren.

"No matter its offences," Tuvok said, "it was a sentient being; perhaps the last of its kind."

Before Hank Algren could respond, Ryan Tolbert, who was still on the ground but cradled by this wife and child, did.

"That thing," Ryan said, with a soft voice, "has literally killed thousands; women and children included," he said, as he looked up at his daughter and hugged her. "It deserved to die."

Tuvok shook his head, and gave Agent Algren a weary look.

* * *

Ten minutes later, Ryan was sitting on the couch of the hotel room, his wife on one side, his daughter on the other. Tuvok had already left; beaming back to Riverside Iowa to update S'vath and Amanda on what had happened.

"Thank you," Ryan said to his commanding officer, Hank Algren. "That thing was part of my soul for so long; I never thought I would get rid of it."

Algren, who was sitting in a chair, nodded his head.

"When you have the chance," Hank said, "you should thank S'vath. When you attempted to kill him back at the Tantalus Penal colony; that is when he absorbed some of the entity. It was only recently that he was able to overpower it and, led us to you when we realized the danger you were in."

"Daddy," Jan said, "I love you."

Ryan hugged her even tighter. He knew how close he had come to killing her, and wanted nothing to do but make up for what had happened. And all the lost time since both she and Angela had been in suspended-animation for so long.

Hank stood up; it was time to go.

"Well," Hank said, "I wish I could live it up here in this cushy resort," he told them, "but I have to go."

Angela could see in her husband's eyes that he wanted to go with Hank. Even though Ryan, Angela and Jan were separated for so many years, Angela could tell that Ryan was still an agency man; some things just never seemed to change.

"I know you want to go with him," Angela said. "So go," she added. She looked at Jan. "Just promise me you will come home."

Hank smiled.

"You don't have to come," Hank said to Ryan. "Besides, I might not even have a mission for you." Of course that wasn't true.

Ryan hugged his wife and child, and then stood up and joined Hank.

"You listen to me," Angela said to Hank, "you make sure he comes back. Or,"

Angela was cut off by her daughter.

"Or we'll kick your butt," Jan said with fake intimidation in her words.

Hank smiled at them.

"Of that I have no doubt," Hank said with a chuckle. Then he looked at Ryan and asked one simple question. "What do you know about dragons…"

Continued…


	364. Consequence Obliteration

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Consequence; Obliteration!**

**Featuring…Spock-McCoy-Will Decker-Ilya-Curtis Daystrom-Picard-Lore-Riker-Crusher-La Forge-Slone-Dr. Ian Maddox and the Galaxy Window**

**Earth;**

**Star Fleet Command**

**A science lab located 14 stories below the man Star Fleet complex…**

* * *

_Previously_

_"When Voyager originally went through the string of wormholes which took it to the other dynamic," Decker replied. "That was the second of three transits. The first was when Tan Ru came here; the third when Voyager, as V'ger, returned."_

_Spock shook his head._

_"Again," Spock said to Decker, "I find it highly illogical to conclude that Voyager-6 was able to back-track the entire path that Tan Ru took to get to Ilya's world and then return. And, who exactly created the string of wormholes that are gateways to the other so called Dynamics? There are, as a human ancestor of mine once said, too many holes in your story."_

_McCoy chuckled._

_"Wait, Spock," McCoy said, "Are you implying that someone here, on Earth, sent Voyager-6 back along that path on purpose? It was launched in the 1970s; no one on Earth had knowledge of any of this."_

_Before McCoy could continue, the Galaxy Window, in the form of Curtis, cut him off._

_"This does not concern the Window," Curtis said. "The second transit should not have been allowed by the Window or the third. It will…"_

_Inside the Highland Expanse; a tendril of energy spiraled out and penetrated the Hauck's shields and struck Curtis (in Lore's construct)._

_"What happened to him," Riker asked._

_Before La Forge could respond...Slone did instead._

_"Isn't it obvious," Slone said, as he stood next to Picard, "that thing," he pointed at the swirling mass of energy before the Hauck, "is using Lore's construct to control Curtis on the other side, in the Alpha Quadrant; For all we know it might destroy Earth; we have to destroy it!"_

_Sloan withdrew a phaser from his pocked and aimed it directly at Lore's android construct!_

**Our story continues…**

Before Sloan could fire his phaser, Riker threw an uppercut that cause Sloan to hurl the phaser into the air, and landed him on his ass; with Riker catching the flung phaser. Picard gave Riker a look of surprise.

"Well done," Picard said with a slight chuckle. "I think even Jim Kirk would have been proud of that little move of yours."

Sloan leaned up from the ground.

"You simply minded fools." Sloan threw out his words with anger, "you may have just signed Earth's epitaph."

* * *

**Back on Earth…Star Fleet lab beneath the main complex in San Francisco**

Before McCoy could continue, Curtis cut him off.

"This does not concern the Window," Curtis said. "The second transit should not have been allowed by the Window or the third. It will…"

Suddenly, without warning, Ilya charged at Curtis (the Galaxy Window's avatar), the crystal in her neck sparkling with a bright light as she did, and she placed her right hand on Curtis's head.

"Stop her Spock!" McCoy said urgently. "If she angers that thing, it might destroy the Hauck and everyone aboard her!"

Spock didn't do as the doctor suggested, and when McCoy tried to grab Ilya's arm, Spock stopped him. Spock motioned to the strange energy that was pulsating from Ilya's hand and into Curtis's head; his mind.

"Sorry," Spock said to McCoy, "However, I do not think it would be wise to interfere now. And remember; the crew members aboard the Hauck are all expendable."

"No one is expendable, Spock," McCoy said, "Not even clones."

McCoy was agitated, but he calmed down because Spock was right; who knows what might have happened had McCoy touched Ilya in her present state of flux.

"Then," McCoy looked at Decker, "would you mind telling us what the hell is Ilya doing?"

Decker smiled at McCoy and Spock.

"I know this is difficult to accept," Decker told them, "but Ilya and Curtis are not like any artificial life forms you have ever encountered before. Trust me when I tell you that only one of Ilya's kind will be able to save us all now. When the Dynamics have violated each other's area of the universe before, it resulted in the destruction of whole galaxies. If Ilya can't stop what is too come then" Decker said with a somber tone, "it might not only result in this galaxy's destruction, but other galaxies near to it."

McCoy chuckled.

"And all because probes from and artificial Dynamic came into an area of the universe where there are biological life forms; it sounds a bit petty if you ask me." McCoy asked.

At that instant, several transporter signals streamed into view across the lab. Star Fleet tactical soldiers appeared, each holding a phaser rifle, which they then pointed at Ilya and Curtis. And then another transporter streamed into view; Dr. Ian Maddox.

* * *

**At that instant in on the USS Hauck; deep inside the Highland Expanse…**

Riker and Picard, and the rest of the bridge crew watched as Sloan's body suddenly went limp; and collapsed to the floor. And before Picard could anything else, two brilliant light streams appeared on the bridge and they solidified.

"Jean-Luc," Beverly Crusher said, as she recognized the bald woman from history texts, "that's the artificial life form that the Enterprise encountered inside of the V'ger phenomenon."

"Ilya was its name," Worf's deep voice replied (under the control of Walter Bishop's mind in the Alpha-Quadrant of course). "The most advanced artificial life form ever."

"Admiral," Diana Troi said, as she stood next to Picard. "Ilya is more than an artificial life form; she's alive."

Ilya stepped forward as did Curtis.

"Curtis," Picard said to the young looking android man with ebony colored skin, "what is happening?"

And then both Ilya and Curtis responded with four simple words.

"You must all die."

And then, instantly, the** USS Hauck exploded**!

Continued…


	365. The Price of Life

**STAR TREK: THE GALAXY WINDOW**

**Consequence; Obliteration!**

**Featuring…Spock-McCoy-Will Decker-Ilya-Curtis Daystrom-Picard-Lore-Riker-Crusher-La Forge-Slone-Dr. Ian Maddox and the Galaxy Window**

**Earth;**

**Star Fleet Command**

**A science lab located 14 stories below the man Star Fleet complex…**

_Previously_

_The stasis chambers containing Picard's crew were in the foreground as Ilya walked over to Curtis and touched his shoulder. Spock watched as her arm began to shift with strange patterns, the same patterns he had seen when Decker and Ilya had merged all those years ago. And where her hand was on Curtis's shoulder, his shoulder began to flux as well._

"_I know this is difficult to accept," Decker told Spock and McCoy, "but Ilya and Curtis are not like any artificial life forms you have ever encountered before. Trust me when I tell you that If Ilya can't stop what is too come then" Decker said with a somber tone, "it might not only result in this galaxy's destruction, but other galaxies near to it."_

_At that instant, several transporter signals streamed into view across the lab. Star Fleet tactical soldiers appeared, each holding a phaser rifle, which they then pointed at Ilya and Curtis. And then another transporter streamed into view; Dr. Ian Maddox._

"_What is the meaning of this," McCoy demanded?_

_At that instant in on the USS Hauck; deep inside the Highland Expanse…_

_Riker and Picard, and the rest of the bridge crew watched as Sloan's body suddenly went limp; and collapsed to the floor. And before Picard could anything else, two brilliant light streams appeared on the bridge and they solidified._

"_Jean-Luc," Beverly Crusher said, as she recognized the bald woman from history texts, "that's the artificial life form that the Enterprise encountered inside of the V'ger phenomenon."_

"_Ilya was its name," Worf's deep voice replied (under the control of Walter Bishop's mind in the Alpha-Quadrant of course). "The most advanced artificial life form ever."_

"_Admiral," Diana Troi said, as she stood next to Picard. "Ilya is more than an artificial life form; she's alive."_

_Ilya stepped forward as did Curtis._

"_Curtis," Picard said to the young looking android man with ebony colored skin, "what is happening?"_

_And then both Ilya and Curtis responded with four simple words._

"_You must all die."_

_And then, instantly, the USS Hauck exploded!_

_Our story continues…_

**Earth;**

**Star Fleet Command**

**A science lab located 14 stories below the man Star Fleet complex…**

Spock arched his eyebrow as Dr. Ian Maddox came over to him and McCoy

"What is going on here;" McCoy demanded again. "why all the fire power?"

Maddox looked at McCoy.

"I have been monitoring the situation down here from my lab one floor up," Maddox told McCoy. "When security picked up the additional life sign down here, yours," Maddox said to Willard Decker, "they wanted to come barging in but I was able to convince them not to. But when Ilya and Curtis vanished, I was over ruled by Secretary Jy'lor Paream," Maddox finished saying. "So," Maddox said to Decker, "where are they; where are Ilya and Curtis?"

Willard Decker thought for a moment and then he spoke.

"Before we came here," Decker explained, "Ilya and I knew that, in the end, the culpability as to who violated the precedents rested with those who had built Tan Ru, and also reconfigured V'ger and sent it back to Earth."

McCoy did not like the sound of that at all.

"So what are you saying," McCoy said to Decker, "these Dynamics destroyed the artificial beings in that far away galaxy?"

Decker shook his head.

"Perhaps we will never know, in fact…" Decker attempted to say, but he was interrupted by the voice of Picard.

Picard's stasis chamber had opened and he had awakened.

"That is indeed what happened," Picard said.

One by one; the other chambers opened, and Riker-Troi-Crusher-La Forge and Walter Bishop began to wake up as well.

Willard Decker came over to Picard.

"What happened?" Decker asked.

Walter Bishop reached down to find his own human sized penis rather than Worf's and frowned.

Before Picard could respond, McCoy stopped him.

"This can all wait for one of those silly debriefing meetings I am sure we will have, now," McCoy said to Picard, as well as to Riker and the others, "you will all undergo thorough examinations before you do anything else."

"But…" Picard began to say, before McCoy cut him off; again.

"No buts," McCoy said, with a stern voice. "I am the lead medical officer for this endeavor, and," he added, "if you don't complain I'll have you out of sickbay in two days; complain and it will be a week."

Riker looked at Spock.

"Was he always this difficult on the Enterprise?" Riker asked while shooting McCoy a dour look.

"You have no idea," Spock said.

As other medical staff came in, Lal entered the lab as well and went over to Picard who Will Decker and Dr. Maddox were still standing next to. With McCoy decoyed with the other techs, Maddox and Decker waited.

"Please," Decker said to Picard, "what happened to Ilya and her," Decker grinned slightly, "son?"

"Where is Curtis," Lal asked, as she was keenly aware that Curtis was not in the lab.

Picard looked at Decker.

"Ilya and Curtis suddenly appeared," Picard told them, "and they flatly said that we, meaning our clones, could not live. And then," Picard said, "there was a bright light and, in a sliver of a moment, Ilya, Curtis and Lore, whom the Galaxy Window was communicating with us threw, seemed to merge into one and then…we were back here."

"She knew," Decker said with a grin. "Ilya knew that the price to pay for Tan Ru's first venture here may have been her and Curtis; all traces of their existence on this side of the universe had to be erased."

"Curtis is gone?" Lal asked. "I will miss him. I know it sounds illogical, but I will."

Maddox nodded his head.

"Curtis was very unique," Maddox told Lal. "When I first met him he gave me this," he held out his hand and gave Lal a strange looking object; it was appeared to be a simple square shaped pebble.

"What is that?" Picard asked.

Maddox explained.

"When Curtis first came out of a sandstorm in the Sahara desert, other than being nude, he didn't know who he was." Maddox explained. "Eventually he was brought to my attention when it was clear he was an artificial being. Overtime, he and I had discussed many aspects of humanity and our own attempts at creating life forms such as his." Maddox reached out and patted Lal on the back, "like you my dear."

"What does this signify?" Lal asked, as she looked at the tiny square pebble.

"On three occasions since he was with me, Curtis was destroyed" Maddox began to say, "two of which you will recall because you were there (when Curtis died on the planet of the living dead and when he was later ripped to shreds by the T-rex) he came back to us. He claimed that this little thing," Maddox pointed at the square pebble, "was his anchor to life. What exactly he meant by that, he never told me. But on those three occasions when he was destroyed, immediately, and I mean immediately, this pebble would crack in two, one of which would regrow back into the original size, the other half would instantly create another Curtis; his memories intact as if nothing happened. And it didn't matter how far away he was when his existence was ended; the pebble would always crack in two, and then there he was."

"But not this time," Decker concluded for Maddox.

Maddox nodded his head slowly.

"No," Maddox said softly, "not this time."

"So what does that mean?" Lal asked.

"What it means," Spock said to Data's offspring, "is that Ilya and Curtis have paid the price for life's curiosity; both organic and artificial."

Spock looked at Picard.

"What exactly did you see," Spock asked. "What did the Galaxy Window look like?"

Picard was about to explain when suddenly he stopped and looked around with puzzlement on his face. But not only did he suddenly have a puzzled look, but so did the rest of his crew; Riker, Troi, Crusher, La Forge and Walter Bishop.

All of them had lost their memories of the entire voyager to the Galaxy Window. It was clear to all that they were not meant to remember, and it was probably for the better; some things were best left alone.

Knowing that it was unlikely that Curtis would return, Dr. Ian Maddox let Lal keep the strange square shaped pebble.

The debriefing meetings were indeed held the next day. But because of the memory loss, the meeting was rather short. Star Fleet also decided it was best not to send another ship to find the so called Galaxy Window. A signal of an unknown origin sent the locations of all the anti-matter bombs that Sloan had used to get Picard and this crew to follow his demands.

One question was left unanswered; who was controlling Sloan's actions on the USS Hauck?

With the final briefing over, Willard Decker stood near a window and looked out at the beautiful San Francisco skyline in the distance; just over the Bay Bridge. He then reached into his pocket and took something out of it; a small square pebble of his own, and then he smiled. He would see Ilya again someday…someday.

* * *

Next time; STAR TREK "THE GALAXY WINDOW" will become STAR TREK: PATH TO DESTINY

Chakotay and Amaranth discover danger on Earth-Two…also…Commander Willard Decker is back! What does he want to do with this new found life of his; command a starship of course! Meanwhile; Captain Jonathan Canary's son, Robert Canary, as well as Dr. McCoy's adopted daughter Corvana, discover a mystery of their own and it leads them to…JIM KIRK! And if that isn't enough; Lal and Rebecca Sisko return to "The Planet of the Living Dead!"


	366. Vision Quest

**Star Trek: The Path of Destiny**

"**Vision Quest"**

**written by Robert "Canary" Benson and Hideout Writer**

**Amaranth created by Hideout Writer**

_Previously…_

_Chakotay had traveled to Earth-2; the duplicate Earth first visited by Captain James T Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise; NCC-1701. It was a world devastated by a man-made virus meant to prolong life, but wiped out the human population. Though the human population was gone, the virus did not kill off the animal life or plant life. Chakotay had come to Earth-2 to find the ancient Native American lands of that world, and was led there by a map given to him by Satangkai's animal spirit back on Earth-prime; our Earth. But due to the effects of the virus, Chakotay's life belt could only provide safety for two to three hours at a time before having to be recharged aboard his ship, which was in orbit of the planet. With the belt finally recharged, Chakotay had beamed down to find a strange site; a woman in a uniform._

_"So," Chakotay said to her, with a smirk on his face. He motioned toward her uniform, "what kind of uniform is that; Section-31? Are you one of Donnelly's assassins; here to wipe me out of existence? Jim Kirk warned me about your ilk, "Chakotay aimed a phaser at her."I warn you; I won't go too easily..."_

_Amaranth prepared to attack, as she most certainly would have done 400 years ago. But now…well, not this time at least..._

_"I assure you, Chakotay, I am not here to kill you." Amaranth said to Voyager's former executive officer._

_"And yet you know my name," Chakotay said. "Oh, I get it now, when Admiral Janeway gave me permission to check it out from Star Fleet Headquarters on Earth, Star Fleet alerted the powers that be and they in turn notified Commander Algren, and you got assigned to monitor whatever it was I was doing."_

_Amaranth nodded her head._

_"So if I understood my briefing correctly," Amaranth said, "you believe the Native-Americans that these Preservers took to that world far off world didn't come from our world, but from this one; this duplicate Earth we are now. I have no idea what will happen to my mind, on this planet, when I offer my spirit for union with this place; I wish for you to observe."_

_Amaranth pondered what Chakotay requested and nodded her head in agreement._

_She then watched as Chakotay removed the pouches and also went about starting a small fire next to the blanket. Chakotay was checking her out too and he noticed she didn't require a life-belt to exist on virus stricken world; why? Chakotay was fascinated to find out what her secret was._

_Our story continues..._

With his preparations complete for his vision quest, Chakotay sat down on his ceremonial blanket, which had been passed down to him from past generations of his family. He removed a dagger from his pouch and carved a tiny track into his upper right arm. Amaranth watched carefully, having no idea what he was doing. Sensing her bewilderment, Chakotay spoke.

"In order to speed the process up," Chakotay explained, as he placed the dagger back into the pouch and removed an even smaller pouch and poured a powdery substance on his bleeding wound, "I will put this oom'hauahtay potion straight into my blood system."

Amaranth nodded her head, but she did not speak, knowing that silence was required, as Chakotay closed his eyes. It was then that Chakotay began speak a chat, ever so softly.

_Chakotay opened his inner eyes and found that he was falling down through the sky. Even though it was dusk, he could see the tattered remains of a town nearby; abandoned decades and decades ago when the virus killed off most of the people of this duplicate Earth. He was in the shape of a hawk, and was following another hawk in the near distance. He had no idea where the avian was taking him._

Amaranth stared in amazement as Chakotay was now in complete silence; his eyes were now opened, but transfixed on something inside his mind as though he was possessed.

With Chakotay on his vision quest, Amaranth was, for all intents and purposes, alone again. The stars were invading the sky as she sat down on the dirt ground, propping herself up on a large boulder. She sat a good twenty feet from Chakotay, giving him his space. She thought back to one of her favorite memories since she had accepted Commander Hank Algren's offer to join the Federation Security Bureau.

* * *

_**It was back on Earth**, two years ago, at a secret F.S.B. training site in the mountains of New Zealand. It had actually been built during World War II by the Australian military. The training site was a collection of four rather large warehouses, each converted into more modernistic F.S.B. needs._

_Amaranth and Algren were in structure 4A; the physical training facility. It was here that agents of the F.S.B. learned the craft of self defense and one on one fighting techniques. And on this day, Amaranth was getting a no holds-barred lesson from her Commander; Hank Algren...at least, that was what he thought._

_The floor of this section of the warehouse was solid dirt, with all sorts of hand to hand weapon thrown about. Knifes, brass-knuckles, maces; you name it. The fight started with Commander Algren and Amaranth's hands clasped; they were about to engage in a fight; watched on by Algren's assistant, Savage, and another F.S.B. agent; Ryan Tolbert. The two men stood at the top of an observation tower to watch the soon to begin fight._

_Before the starting pistol was fired by Savage, Hank brought his knee up and smashed it into Amaranth's gut; keeling her over in pain._

"_There are no rules when someone is fighting for their life," Hank said to her with a very serious tone._

_She stood up, and clasped his hand again with hers. She stared into his eyes, and again, before Savage could fire the pistol, Hank tried to bring his free hand around to punch Amaranth, but she blocked with her leg and then flung him back on the ground._

_Savage chuckled and Agent Tolbert clapped his hands._

"_She got you on that one," Ryan said with a laugh._

"_Hush your words," Amaranth said, glaring up at Ryan Tolbert and Savage, "we do not train for sport."_

_Ryan smiled at her, with a devious look in his eyes._

"_Perhaps not, but," Ryan said as he then looked over at Savage, "But I got two bars of gold pressed Latinum on Hank," Ryan said with confidence._

_Savage looked down at the gritty looking woman and shook Ryan Tolbert's hand._

"_You're on," Savage said to Tolbert. _

_Algren stood up, and then he clasped hands with Amaranth again. This time there were no hits before the pistol and then Hank and__ Amaranth separated, breathing hard. Algren more so than Amaranth, though it was clear that Amaranth was still shaken from the blow to the gut. They eyed each other, preparing to engage; heckled on from above by Savage and Tolbert._

_"Your fighting style is complete and utter crap." Amaranth said disdainfully. "And it is only out of respect to you that I have followed your forms. It is what has, in essence, defeated me."_

_"Are you saying you can beat me?" Algren challenged._

"_She's a pussy," Ryan said, upon hearing Algren's challenge to Amaranth._

_Amaranth glared up at Ryan, then back at Hank._

_"Easily…" Amaranth replied. "When allowed to fight as I please. I care not for form, or honor. I fight to survive, and at the end of the day, that's what a fight is. A fight is a contest to decide who survives and who does not. I have always survived, to the detriment of my enemies."_

_"Really;" Hank Algren said dryly. He grabbed a towel, and dried most of the sweat from his face and what was left of his hair._

_"Yes." Amaranth replied firmly. "I did."_

_"And what would you do if you were attacked by fifty men in the street?" Hank retorted.  
_

"_I have, and I've done it." Amaranth replied._

_"What?" he asked; confused._

_"I have been attacked by fifty men in the street, and as for what I would do, I killed them all." Amaranth replied._

_Hank looked at her in open shock for several seconds. "Savage!" he called.  
_

_"Sir?" came from Savage's voice.  
_

_"I'd like you to go around with Amaranth. Anything goes, but don't kill her. Amaranth, same rules." he ordered._

"_Oh what the hell is this Hank?" Ryan Tolbert protested. "This is bullshit, why don't you fight this bitch! You just cost me two strips of…"_

"_Shut up," Commander Hank Algren barked at Ryan Tolbert. "You know full well that I can't engage in a fight like that with those who I command; but Savage can."_

_Ryan shook his head and watched as Savage climbed down from the tower and walked over to Amaranth as Hank stood off to the side.  
_

_"Alright;" Savage replied, "let's do this."_

_He was easily two inches taller than Amaranth, and his muscles were well-defined, in the way of a man who has worked with heavy objects for several years. He sneered at Amaranth, his African features clearly showing disdain for his opponent._

_Amaranth sneered in return, and launched herself into the air, flipping once before landing, cat-like in a combat stance.  
_

_"Begin." Algren said.  
_

_Savage rushed Amaranth, and she simply stepped aside, leaving one dainty foot in the way for him to trip over. He fell, but rolled out of his fall, and punched at Amaranth. She deflected the blow, catching him by the wrist, and immobilizing him. She applied the sleeper hold, and then released the unconscious Lieutenant. The fight had lasted slightly longer than thirty seconds. _

_"As I said." Amaranth said, walking towards the towel rack. "I survive first, and worry about form later. Just like my shooting policy. 'Shoot first, ask questions later.' I have no use for beating about bushes." With that, she stalked out of the training room._

_Commander Algren looked up at Ryan in the observation platform and gave him a smirk._

* * *

**EARTH-TWO**

_Chakotay, now in the form of an animal spirit, a hawk, followed his spirit companion, another hawk, and they soon landed upon the hill which Chakotay had hiked down from earlier. And then, before his eyes, Chakotay saw the face of a native- American from this duplicate Earth. Although they were from two different worlds, it was clear that Chakotay and his companions were related in spirit._

_"Where are your people;" Chakotay asked._

_The spirit of Chakotay's companion hovered above his aviary avatar._

_"Our feet no longer walk upon this world," the companion replied. "They," he spat his words out, "tried to extend their lives and lost them; and lost ours as well. Yet, to be honest, their actions were not entirely their own. Their materialistic needs were the seeds that destroyed all of us; but the fruit those seeds bore were altered."_

_Chakotay pondered the words he had just heard._

_"Are you trying to tell me that the virus on this world, that these humans created, was not entirely of their own doing?" Chakotay asked._

_The companion, the native-American spirit, nodded his head._

_"The answers you seek are below where then feathers of our spirits are touching the sand," the companions said._

_And then, suddenly, the other hawk flew away leaving Chakotay alone._

* * *

Instantly Chakotay closed his inner eye and found himself back inside his body; with the campfire burning before him. He looked over at Amaranth.

"How long was I gone?" Chakotay asked.

"Nearly two hours," Amaranth replied.

Chakotay stood up and began to fold up his ceremonial blanket. He also packed away his pouches. His life-belt would need to be recharged.

"Did you find any answers?" Amaranth asked.

Chakotay looked over at the distant hill he had flown to in spirit from.

"Yes I have," he said, "however, I may not be able to investigate it any further; for now."

"Why is that?" Amaranth asked.

"It was implied that the answers I seek are under the ground of that hill over there," Chakotay said to her. "And unfortunately, my ship doesn't have the sensors I need to see if there is anything to it."

Amaranth stood up and came over to him.

"We can use my ship; the Phoenix," she told him. "It is of the Defiant-class, and because it is F.S.B. she is well equipped; there isn't nothing my sensors can't find."

Chakotay nodded in acceptance of her offer.

"Won't your commander, Hank Algren, frown upon your helping me?" Chakotay asked with a grin.

"Perhaps," Amaranth said, but then she cast her own devious glare, "however, if you don't tell I won't tell either."

Chakotay nodded his head and chuckled. And in mere moments they prepared to beam away. And as they started to shimmer away, Chakotay wondered what he was going to find beneath that hill in the distance; and just who was Amaranth and why did she seem so mysterious?

Continued…

What if you lived in a world where STAR TREK was just a TV show...and then, somehow...your mind created a real-life USS ENTERPRISE. On top of that; you're son has baked weed laced brownies and accidentally served them to some cops...meanwhile, a ruthless chinese agent is trying to get his grip on the Enterprise..and then there's this place called NORAD that wants to blow the USS ENTERPRISE out of the sky! **STAR TREK FRANK GRAYSON**! Check it out in the TOS section of FANFIC


	367. Arrival

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Arrival**

Once again; he was alone. But it wasn't as if he didn't like being alone, he just missed the fact that his father would soon be leaving again, and he did miss his father when he was gone on one of his missions. But because his father was an important Star Fleet officer, other officers would look in on this young boy and he would be expected to behave them in his father's absence. One of those Star Fleet officers was none other than Admiral Kathryn Janeway.

Robert Lawrence Canary was the young boy's name. He was sixteen-years old, and as fate would have hit, his father was Captain Jonathan Canary. They both lived inside the massive Dysonsphere known as the Naissance at the main Star Fleet complex located on continent, 4A .

Robert's father, Captain Jonathan Canary, commanded the USS Emprenda; a D7-class Klingon battle cruiser. The mission of the Emprenda was simple enough; bringing endangered animals, and plants, throughout the known galaxy, to the Naissance and giving them a chance to survive on one of the more than 14,000 continents that clung to the inside hull of the Naissance.

Due to Captain Canary's being away most of the time, Robert pretty much lived by himself in the quarters they shared. When Robert was not at school, he engaged in one of his many hobbies.

Among his favorite things to do were rock collecting, playing violin and piano, collecting ancient coins and he also liked to draw. One of his favorite items to draw was his mother; Michelle Canary. Robert's mother was assimilated by the Borg. And unlike others, she did not return when the Borg were finally defeated months earlier.

Robert watched as his father came out of his room holding two duffle bags, and wearing his Star Fleet uniform.

"Dad," Robert said to his father, "when am I ever going on one of these rescue missions with you? I think it would be cool."

"Cool?" Captain Canary said as he looked down at his son, "where did you learn to use a word like that?"

Robert smiled.

"In history class we're reading about the 20th Century," Robert replied, "that was one of their favorite expressions for something great to do. I thought it sounded," Robert paused, "cool, so I'm going to use that word too."

Jonathan smiled at his son.

"My son," Jonathan said, "the history expert." Jonathan knelt down and placed his hands on his son's shoulders. "Robert," Jonathan said to his son, "your mom would be so proud of you; you have to know that."

Robert nodded his head.

"I know dad; sometimes I believe she's here with us; keeping watch. Does that sound stupid?"

Jonathan smiled.

"No, it doesn't sound stupid at all," Jonathan told his son, "I think it sounds….cool."

The two said their goodbyes...again...

* * *

Moments later, Jonathan Canary beamed away and Robert headed off to school.

There was a beautiful park separating the officers' quarters and the Star Fleet operations center of the Naissance. Located next to the massive complex was a school for children. As he did on every school day, Robert walked along the path to the school with his good friend Rochan Jadhav.

Robert and Rochan were the same age and were in the same class together. Rochan's father was Hament Jadhav, a Lt. Commander and was a science officer who worked with Admiral Janeway and Commanders Julian Bashir and John Waters.

"So," Rochan said to Robert, "your dad is leaving again isn't he?"

"Yeah, he's on some mission to somewhere," Robert said, "someday I'm going with him."

Rochan laughed.

"And what would you do," Rochan asked, "Play your violin on the bridge?"

"Hey, I can do other things than just playing violin," Robert replied.

"Like what," Rochan fired back with.

"Ummm," Robert thought, "I could help geology studies, or, help take care of the plant life they find on the way back."

Suddenly, up ahead, they saw what was about to be a very tense situation; Ross Andru.

Ross Andru was fifteen years old and a school bully. As Robert and Rochan made their way down the path toward school, they saw Ross Andru and his friends encircling a girl with blond hair. She was roughly the same age they were, but was a newcomer.

"We're going to kick your ass," Ross said to the girl, "unless you give us that Tricorder of yours!"

The Tricorder the girl was holding was one of the newer models, and was very sought after by the young set. (think IPADs of the future).

Never wanting the innocent to go unprotected, Robert and Rochan ran over and stood between Ross Andru and the new girl.

"Back off, Canary," Ross said with angry eyes, "or you might get hurt; again."

Robert stared up at the much larger boy. But it was Rochan who blurted…

"Ummm," Rochan said to Ross, "Robert will kick your butt!"

Ross glared at Rochan, then back at Robert.

"Oh yeah," Ross said, as he stared directly down into Robert's eyes, "you and what army?"

Continued…

Don't forget to try out "**STAR TREK THE REPLY**". When a boy living in the real broadcasts Earth's first subspace message, it starts into motion a most incredible series of events; including genecide?


	368. Metamorphous

**STAR TREK: The Path of Destiny**

**Metamorphous**

* * *

Previously…

**Earth-2 (the Earth featured in TOS "Miri")**

_Chakotay went on a vision quest as an animal spirit (a hawk) with the animal spirit (a hawk as well) from a Native-American on Earth 2. He found that the virus that killed off the humans of Earth-2 (the Earth featured in TOS episode "Miri") wasn't only the doings of the scientists who were trying to prolong life; the virus was tainted by outside forces. Chakotay also was told that more answers waited for him beneath the ground that he was standing upon)_

_Instantly Chakotay closed his inner eye and found himself back inside his body; with the campfire burning before him. He looked over at Amaranth._

_"Did you find any answers?" Amaranth asked._

_"It was implied that the answers I seek are under the ground of that hill over there," Chakotay said to her. "And unfortunately, my ship doesn't have the sensors I need to see if there is anything to it."_

_"We can use my ship; the Phoenix," she told him. "It is of the Defiant-class, and because it is F.S.B. she is well equipped; there is nothing my sensors can't find."_

_Chakotay nodded his head and chuckled. And in mere moments they prepared to beam away. And as they started to shimmer away, Chakotay wondered what he was going to find beneath that hill in the distance; and just who was Amaranth and why did she seem so mysterious?_

**Our story continues aboard Amaranth's vessel; a Defiant-class starship.**

Chakotay's life belt was charging in the engine room of the ship. While he hadn't been aboard many Defiant-class starships, he was growing quite fond of the sleek design and advanced systems. He was even more impressed with the fact that Amaranth could operate the ship by herself. They were both in engineering looking at the unique system that allowed her simple thoughts to control the ship.

"Project Diamond," Chakotay said upon hearing Amaranth mention it in their discussion. "I've never heard of it."

Amaranth nodded in agreement.

"It was a top-secret project that attempted to use Betazoids to control ships, like this one," she explained, "with mere thought. Unfortunately, they decided to grab too much power and were exposed by James T Kirk and Admiral Kate Janeway."

Chakotay smiled upon hearing Kate's name.

"Wow, I really missed a lot during my time with the Voth," Chakotay said to Amaranth as they headed out of engineering on their way to the galley.

"The Voth," Amaranth said, nodding her head, "if memory serves, they were instrumental in the final defeat of the Borg. And if I recall, you had something to do with that."

They entered the galley, which wasn't far from engineering. Chakotay got a coffee and Amaranth got a small bowl of fruit. They sat at the lone table, still in mid-conversation.

"Yes," Chakotay replied, picking up on the Voth part of the conversation. "Many years ago, while I was aboard Voyager, we encountered the Voth. As fate would have it, they were a reptilian race that had evolved on Earth and had migrated to the Delta-Quadrant. In time they had forgotten they had come from Earth, and to make a long story short, I ended up staying with them; replaced by a clone who did not know he was a copy of me."

Amaranth shook her head.

"So your copy returned with the Voyager, and lived your life," Amaranth continued. "Where is he now?"

It was a difficult subject for Chakotay, knowing the difficulty his clone and Annika had faced upon returning to Earth, leading to the death of their daughter and his clone's turn to a life of crime the final years of his life. In the end, however, the clone-Chakotay had risked his life to save one of Jim Kirk's children, and died.

"Well, without getting into the details of it all," Chakotay said, "my clone had a difficult time after arriving on Earth; he died risking his life to save another and, well," Chakotay said, "that was that. You know I was thinking over what you said about Project-Diamond and how Betazoids were going to control these ships with devices like the one in engineering," he told her, "but you're not Betazoid; so how is it you can control this ship?" He wanted to get to the bottom of what made Amaranth different; because he knew she had to be since she could exist on the planet below sans a life-belt.

Amaranth looked at Chakotay, and was starting too really like him. He had shared the moments of the vision quest with her and the story about his clone was no-doubt difficult to tell, and yet, he had, which meant he respected her. Perhaps it was time to respect him as well. She ate some food from her bowl, and then looked right at him.

"I'm going to tell you something about me," she began to say, "and when I do, I want you to know that it is in the strictest of confidences."

Chakotay smiled.

"You're not going to tell me that you a hologram or something like that; are you?" Chakotay asked with a chuckle.

She forced a smile, and then shook her head.

"No," she told him, with a soft voice, "I'm afraid my story is more complex than that; indeed more terrifying."

Chakotay could that whatever she was about to say, it was serious.

"You have my word," Chakotay told her. "What is said here will stay here. Go on," Chakotay, "I will listen."

Amaranth smiled at him, and then she stood up from her chair.

"Actually, you don't really need to listen," she told him, "just watch."

Chakotay looked at her; puzzled. She stepped back from the table and then…he saw one of the strangest and beautiful sights he had ever seen. A first her body began to glow, and then it became brighter and brighter to the point that Chakotay had close his eyes and look away. When the light began to dim, he looked back to where Amaranth had been standing but she was gone and in her place was a dragon that was so large, it was barely contained in the galley's space. There was only one thing Chakotay could do; and that was gulp!

Continued…


	369. The Challenging Winds

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**The Challenging Winds**

* * *

**The Delta-Quadrant**

**A massive Voth vessel made its way through space…**

The chamber which housed the Ministry of Elders was empty, with the exception of one person; Minister Odala. She stood alone in the massive room, and with the aid of a walking cane, made her way toward one of the observation ports which offered an uninterrupted view of the infinite expanses of space. She heard the door to the chamber slide open, and then she heard it close seconds later; at last Gegen had arrived.

She turned around to face Gegen. Their relationship through the years had often been strained, and for good reasons. As the leader of their people, Odala was tasked with guiding the Voth through uncertain times; uncertain times brought about by the evolving place in which the Voth viewed their selves in the universe. And of all Voth citizens, Gegen was one of the most ardent challengers of accepted dogma.

"Minister," Gegen said, as he approached his long time adversary, "you look well."

Odala smiled. For while they did not see eye to eye on philosophy and science, Odala and Gegen, though advisories, did respect each other very much.

"Perhaps your eyes are failing you, in your advanced age," Odala replied with a sarcastic sound to her voice. "As you can see, Gegen, I need this," she motioned at the walking cane, "to walk about."

Gegen had seen the cane.

"Come now Odala," Gegen was one of only a hand few of Voth who could get away with referring to the Minister by her given name, "you of all Voth should know that our minds can and will outlive the usefulness of our bodies; with mine be the prime example. Now," Gegen said, changing the subject of old age, "do you mind telling me why you have summoned me from my work?"

Odala grinned. She and Gegen had clashed so many times throughout so many decades, and had often made fun of each other's advancing ages. Her grin faded as she made her way over to Gegen.

"My friend," she told him, "I fear that the coming days will challenge our sanity."

Gegen shot Odala a quizzical look.

"Of what do you speak?" Gegen asked.

She motioned for him to have a seat at her desk, and then she sat at her desk, to as to take the pressure off of her aging legs.

"I speak of Molvon," Odala replied.

Gegen knew the younger Voth male named Molvon, having been his philosophy professor during his Cycle of Knowledge days.

"He is a bit short sighted," Gegen said to Odala, "but I see no reason to fear…"

Odala raised her hand, motioning for Gegen to stop talking.

"Gegen, listen to me," Odala said, with all due seriousness to her voice. "My term will come to an end very soon, and the council will no doubt elect Molvon to replace me. His youth of ambitions inspire their aged minds as well."

Gegen nodded his head.

"Odala; It is the natural order of things," Gegen told her. "In fact you must know by now that I have resigned my academic chair to my long time assistant; Veer."

"Yes, I did know, and I think you were a fool to do so," Odala said to Gegen. "However, whereas Veer chairs an academic program, Molvon will soon decide the fate of our people and," she added, "the people of Earth."

The mention of Earth brought a look of worry to Gegen's face.

"Yes, I thought that would interest you," Odala said after a moment. "Thanks to your earnest efforts all those years ago, and with the help of the human called Chakotay, you were able to prove that our race originated on Earth millions of years ago and eventually migrated into space and ended up here in the Delta-Quadrant."

"What does any of that have to do with Molvon?" Gegen asked. "If I recall correctly, he was a very ambitious student who even found the concept of Distant Origins quite a stimulating topic, especially where it concerned Earth."

"Too stimulating I fear," Odala said in a beat. "When we went to the Alpha-Quadrant and destroyed the last Borg cube (an earlier storyline) and saved the humans, Molvon took that opportunity and used our systems to collect as much science information from their databases, in terms of their history and technology. You see, in the intervening years when he was your student and a member of the council, Molvon has always had this vision of reuniting the Voth and humans."

Gegen shook his head.

"He must know that humans did not exist on Earth at the time of our ancestors," Gegen interjected.

"Oh, I am quite sure he knows," Odala said. "I believe this reunion he wishes is just hiding his ultimate ambition to return our people to our birth of origin." Gegen shook his head.

"The Voth would conquer Earth," Gegen said, under his breath, "that is our way."

"Let me show you something," Odala said, as she activated the screen on her desk. The image of Earth appeared.

"Earth," Gegen said, "such a beautiful world."

Odala looked at him, and smiled.

"No, Gegen, this is not Earth," she corrected him. "According to my sources in the House of Sciences, Molvon has concentrated his study on this world which is an exact duplicate of Earth, but several dozen light-years away from it. And, as it happens to be, just as on Earth, life evolved on this world and according to my source; Molvon now believes that we descended from this second world, not from Earth. The DNA markers you found in our evolution seem to prove this as well."

Gegen looked perplexed.

"Am I to assume that Molvon wishes to claim this duplicate Earth?" Gegen asked.

Odala nodded her head.

"I believe he will make that his opening gesture to the humans," Odala replied. "He will ask that we be allowed to claim this second Earth as our home, but do you really believe our natural instincts will be satisfied with one world?"

Gegen knew the answer.

"No; I do not," Gegen said after a moment. "

"The Voth instinct to conquer will never change. However," Odala said, as she took a breath, "there is another problem as well. While we were in the Alpha-Quadrant destroying that last cube, Molvon dispatched an advance team to this second Earth to study it."

Gegen did not like the sound of that at all.

"There are still Voth in the Alpha-Quadrant?" Gegen asked. "And we haven't warned the Federation?"

Odala nodded her head.

"As I said," Odala said, as she sat back in her chair, "we face stressing times ahead. If Molvon is selected to replace me; there is no telling what will happen next."

But what happened next happened suddenly; the chamber of Ministry of the Elders exploded and Minister Odala and Gegen died instantly. Instead of an election, there was a silent coup and by the customs of Voth society, an election by the council was soon held and the Voth had their new leader; Molvon.

* * *

**Alpha-Quadrant; the Naissance Dysonsphere**

**Previously…**

_The patrons at the park all watched in worry as Robert Canary and Ross Andru stared each other down and prepared to throw their punches._

_"I'm gonna mess you up," Ross said, as he glared down at Robert._

_Robert glared back at Ross._

"You're a coward, Ross," Robert said, "picking on a girl!"

Suddenly, and without warning, Corvana pushed Robert aside, and then she threw a punch which landed on Ross Andru's nose as she also kicked him in the balls. Ross keeled over, and dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes. Just then, a Star Fleet officer happened to be strolling by and came over to put a stop to the ruckus. All of the students straightened up at seeing the office; all except Ross Andru, who was still on the ground in a fetal position.

"What the hell is going on here?" Commander John Waters demanded.

"Ummm, nothing sir," Robert said, as he looked down at Ross in pain. Robert fought back the urge to laugh at Ross.

"I kicked that jerk in the nuts," Corvana said. "And if you want" Corvana said to Commander Waters, "I'll kick you in the nuts too."

Commander Waters nodded his head, and then looked down at Ross. Waters recognized the signs of teenage angst, and let it slide.

"Very well," Commander Waters said, "I'll consider this matter closed." But then Commander Waters pointed at Corvana and told her; "This time I will let you off with a warning, the next time you won't be so lucky. I know who you are; the adopted daughter of Dr. Leonard McCoy." And then he looked at Robert. "And I know who your dad is buster! Don't kid yourselves into thinking that having famous parents can help you here; it doesn't."

And then Commander Waters walked away.

Robert looked at Rochan who hadn't said a word.

"Let's get out of here," Robert said to Rochan.

"I'm coming with you," Corvana said to Robert.

Robert shook his head.

"Are you kidding," Robert asked. "You're nothing but trouble."

Corvana glared at Robert.

"I'm coming with you," Corvana repeated.

"Oh yeah," Robert said, "and what if I don't want you to come with us?"

She started to make a kicking motion with her leg; Robert decided to change his mind.

"Okay," Robert said, not wanting to end up on the ground like Ross, "you can come with us."

Corvana smiled and then she looked at Rochan.

"So what's your name?" Corvana asked Rochan. "I think you're cute."

Rochan gulped as Corvana began to walk toward the school. The three of them made their way toward the main school complex. They attended the first three hours of school, and then it was time for lunch break. Robert and Rochan, with Corvana behind them, made their way down to the shuttle landing pad. During lunch breaks, Robert and Rochan liked to watch the shuttles take off and land to pass the time as they dreamed of Starfleet futures. They sat on a grassy knoll that looked over the landing pad, and ate their lunches; sandwiches and other food snacks.

"So this is it?" Corvana asked them, as she sat near them on the knoll. "You just watch the shuttles come and go?"

Rochan looked over at her.

"Yeah," Rochan said, "I want to learn how to operate one; someday!"

Corvana smiled, and gave them a mischievous look. She stood up, and pointed at the landing pads.

"Why not learn how to fly one," she said, "today."

Robert, who had some fruit juice in his mouth, spit it out upon hearing what Corvana said.

"Are you crazy?" Robert asked her.

She glared right back at Robert.

"Are you chicken?" she came back with. "Bok bok bok bok," she added, clucking like a chicken.

Robert looked at Rochan, and Rochan could read his mind.

"Don't do this," Rochan said to Robert. "If you get caught; Admiral Janeway might throw you in the brig!"

"Not if we don't get caught," Corvana added.

And then, almost on cue, Robert, Rochan and Corvana made their way down the grassy knoll toward the shuttles. It was the beginning of an extraordinary adventure that would propel them into a most interesting meeting with; James T Kirk.

Continued…


	370. Legends

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Legends**

**Earth;**

**Star Fleet Command**

Two Star Fleet legends made their way down a busy corridor inside the massive building which was home to Star Fleet Command. Upon reaching an observation platform which provided an excellent view of San Francisco, the two men stopped to look at the beautiful city across the bay. The two men were Admiral Jean-Luc Picard and Willard Decker. Decker's status in Star Fleet was yet still to be determined, and it was Jean-Luc Picard's task right now to help the young man.

"Don't worry Will," Picard said to Decker, "the first round of de-briefing is always the most difficult. The cobwebs we call memories can always be elusive, but, in the end, you will do just fine."

Willard Decker looked at the city by the bay, and nodded his head. He looked at Picard.

"Admiral; the knowledge I have, of what I saw when I was joined with Ilya, is fading fast. I don't think the human mind has evolved to a point to contain such wonders." He chuckled, and then continued. "Being a starship captain was all I ever aspired to be, it was what drove me as a child, especially after my father died." Decker explained. "And then, there I was, pretty much turned into a God by V'ger. I saw wonders that I couldn't even explain to you if I tried. And now, here I am, just an ordinary man again, but now, so much time has passed by. Please tell me how can a relic like me can be useful in this time? I still want to make a difference."

Picard smiled at the question, having heard it before from other refugees of time. Decker shot Picard a curious look, upon seeing the Admiral's smile.

"Well," Decker said, "I'm glad one of us can find humor in all of this."

Picard shook his head.

"Pardon me," Picard replied, "perhaps I should explain. You are not the first person who I have had the honor of greeting into this period of time."

"So there have been others?" Decker came back with.

"Indeed," Picard said. "In fact, James T Kirk himself has proven to be one of the most artful dodgers of linear time, and he used those exact words when I first met him; wanting to make a difference."

"Jim Kirk is here; in this time?" Decker asked with astonishment in his voice. "He would be well over a hundred and fifty years old by now."

Picard grinned again.

"That's what I meant," Picard said, nodding his head as he spoke. "He was also moved forward through time, in his case, due to a transporter mishap."

A new spark of hope seemed to inspire Willard Decker, as he turned to look at the city again, turning back to look at Picard again.

"Then he's here, like me, still young and vibrant?" Decker asked. "I have to see him, Admiral. He and I had a rocky relationship there, toward the end, but I always considered him a father figure, due to his close friendship with my father."

Picard nodded his head, and continued to explain Kirk's current whereabouts which were unknown.

"The last person who saw Jim Kirk was S'vath; the son of Spock," Picard said.

Decker nodded his head.

"Yes," Decker said, "Spock told me about his son. I hope to meet him someday; but what about Jim; what did S'vath see?"

Picard shook his head, the expression on his face denoting bewilderment.

"We don't really know," Picard told Decker. "S'vath was able to identify the woman that he last saw Kirk with; her name was/is Edith Keeler. And, according to Spock, she was a woman that both he and Kirk encountered on Earth over four hundred years ago." Picard changed the subject. "Will," Picard said, "what about you? After the de-briefing is over, there might yet still be a future for you in Star Fleet. I can help you there."

Willard Decker was about to respond when Spock, who was on his way to the shuttle-hub, upon seeing Picard and Decker, came over to them, offering the Vulcan salute as usual.

"Now that you are done with your part of the de-briefing, where are you off to now, old friend?" Picard asked.

Spock cocked an eyebrow.

"I am…" Spock began to say, "As would you say, off to Vulcan. My wife, Elizabeth, is about to give birth to our child."

"Oh yes," Picard said with a broad smile, "congratulations."

Decker shook his head.

"Incredible," Decker said softly.

Spock looked at Decker.

"I assure you," Spock told the much younger human, "having a child at my age is quite normal for a Vulcan."

Decker smiled.

"No Spock, it's not that," Decker said, "it's just amazing how life goes on. I mean; I've been gone for decades, and yet," he motioned to Spock, and then to San Francisco in the distance, "life just keeps going."

"We've been discussing," Picard interjected to Spock, "what Will here could do with his life; after the official de-briefings are over. He doesn't seem to think someone from the past can fit in here; and then I mentioned Jim. Jim has had the time to have two children of his own."

Spock nodded in acknowledgement of Picard's meaning.

"Yes," Spock said after a moment. "It is interesting that I have existed on a constant line between then, and now," Spock told Decker. "And while I have seen changes come and go, I know one thing; the human capacity to adapt, and yes I do include my own human half, is one of the universe's most enduring mysteries. Perhaps I can help find you," he said directly to Decker, "a purpose. It wouldn't be long-term; however, I could use your assistance."

"What would that be?" Decker asked.

Spock looked over at Picard, and then back at Decker.

"As I was approaching, I heard you mention the fact that Jim Kirk had gone missing," Spock said.

Decker nodded his head.

"Yes," Decker replied, "though we hadn't gotten to how he had gone missing with a woman that you and Jim both met four-hundred years ago."

Spock nodded his head.

"And there is the mystery," Spock said, with a tone of curiosity to his voice. "Once I have settled my wife and child in to our home, after she gives birth, I intend to find Jim Kirk and," he looked at Decker, "I would like your help."

"You got it," Decker said; resolutely. "What about Doctor McCoy? Won't he want to help too?"

Spock nodded his head.

"Oh yes; Doctor McCoy left on a transport vessel earlier this morning for Vulcan, so he could be there to deliver my wife's and my child; I trust no other doctor for this endeavor. So indeed," Spock added, "he will assist as well."

"Well," Picard cut in with, "let's not jump ahead. From what I know of these de-briefings, I would estimate that Will has another few days of questioning; but once he is done with that, I'll throw my weight around and see if I can get him a commission in Star Fleet, and then I'll send on his way to Vulcan. And remember," Picard said to Spock, "if you need anything in your quest to find Jim; you let me know."

Spock nodded his head, and then headed away. And then, with one last look at San Francisco, Willard Decker and Jean-Luc Picard made their way back to the Star Fleet offices for more de-briefings of not only Decker's missing years, but the events inside the Highland Expanse.

Continued…try out my new story..**STAR TREK: V'GER**! It is a reboot of Star Trek like you have never seen!

And don't forget **STAR TREK: FRANK GRAYSON. **In Frank's universe, STAR TREK is just a TV show. But...one day...he awakes to find a communicator in his car and the next thing he knows he is up on a USS ENTERPRISE that his own mind has created into the real world! Now governments from all over the world are out to get this real life technological wonder...but...Frank's mind also created something else; a fully manned Romulan warship and its on its way...TO EARTH!


	371. Hello Phoenix

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Hello Phoenix...**

The characters "Amaranth" and "Phoenix" were created by Hideout Writer and used by permission

* * *

**Previously…**

**Earth-2 (the Earth featured in TOS "Miri")**

_Chakotay arrived on Earth-2 (the world featured in TOS episode "MIRI") with a map which led him to what was once native-American lands on that duplicate Earth. He was there to discover if the native-American tribe located on an un-charted world which Jim Kirk once visited (TOS episode "The Paradise Syndrome") were actually from this second Earth._

_Unknown to Chakotay, at first, he was being spied upon by a Federation Security Bureau agent named Amaranth. She had been sent there by her superiors to keep an eye on what Chakotay was doing to make sure it didn't pose a threat to the Federation. Eventually the two met up, and Chakotay allowed Amaranth to keep watch over him while he went on a vision-quest with an animal spirit, in the form of a hawk. Chakotay would soon learn that answers were hidden beneath the ground, and while his ship didn't have the capability to scan so deep, Amaranth's Defiant-class ship did. Once aboard the ship Chakotay came to find out that Amaranth had her own deep secret._

Our story continues on Amaranth's Defiant-class ship...the Phoenix; in the Galley...

"You have my word," Chakotay told her. "What is said here will stay here. Go on," Chakotay, "I will listen."

Amaranth smiled at him, and then she stood up from her chair.

"Actually, you don't really need to listen," she told him, "just watch."

A first her body began to glow, and then it became brighter and brighter to the point that Chakotay had close his eyes and look away. When the light began to dim, he looked back to where Amaranth had been standing but she was gone and in her place was a dragon that was so large, it was barely contained in the galley's space. There was only one thing Chakotay could do; and that was gulp!

And then, another beautiful thing happened; Chakotay could hear Amaranth's voice, in his mind.

"I can only communicate telepathically in this form," she told him.

And then, her body began to glow again, and the human form of Amaranth returned. She could see the astonishment in Chakotay's eyes.

"You were repulsed," she said, in a near whisper.

Chakotay smiled and shook his head.

"I think you're beautiful," he told her, "whether as a human, or as a dragon. So," he continued to say, "are you human first, or dragon; and are you from Earth?"

Amaranth chuckled slightly.

"Trust me, Chakotay," she replied as she sat back down at the table, as did Chakotay, "it is a very long story that involves another galaxy in fact; the Pegasus galaxy to be more precise." She shook her head. "Someday I will tell you more, however, for now, let us get on with what we came here to do and see if the scans are complete."

Chakotay nodded his head, getting the impression that Amaranth wasn't ready yet to trust him with the story of his past, which he understood.

"Very well," the former XO of Voyager said to Amaranth, "let's go."

He began to stand up, but Amaranth reached out and places her hand on his arm.

"There is no need to go to the science hub on the bridge," Amaranth said, "Phoenix will suffice."

Chakotay arched an eyebrow and sat back down, gently.

"Who is Phoenix?" Chakotay asked.

::I am the AI that assists Amaranth in the operational status of this vessel::

The voice was that of a woman, but very life like, and even somewhat alluring.

Chakotay cocked a smile and chuckled.

"You are full of all kinds of surprises," Chakotay said to Amaranth. "I can understand your not telling me about who or what you are, but you have to tell me about the AI."

Amaranth nodded her head.

"Actually, there isn't much to tell," she told him; though that wasn't quite true. "I had to take this ship we're on, the Draconis, through a plasma cloud in deep space, and that's when Phoenix came aboard and, for lack of a better word, merged with the operational systems of this ship."

Amaranth could have added the fact that Phoenix had once been a member of the Q, but thought better of it since the Q were not well liked by Star Fleet officers, of which Chakotay had once been.

"Why not take the Draconis to space dock and have the computer core replaced?" Chakotay asked.

::I am a sentient life form, Chakotay," Phoenix responded with. "You cannot simply just turn me on or off.::

"I see," Chakotay said. "Then again, I can truly understand. There are sentient androids and hologram creations that have been granted rights; so why not the living essence of plasma clouds; lord knows there are many of them out there in space too."

Amaranth smiled.

"You seem to be a very open minded person, Chakotay," Amaranth said, with the slightest of smiles.

"Well," Chakotay came back with, "I've seen a lot of interesting things in my travels. Now," he said, changing the subject, "I assume that Phoenix can scan the area on the map we programmed into the computer and tell us if there is anything worth investigating."

::Yes, Chakotay, I have completed the scan:

An image of the scan appeared on the main screen which was in the forward part of the galley,

::There is definitely an area at a depth of 750 meters which shows an oxygen nitrogen mix suitable to humanoid life from. My readings indicate it is unreachable via caves or other means.::

"If there are no caves, then how did that hollowed out area get there?" Amaranth asked.

::The atmosphere inside the area being scanned is being artificially supported by, as of yet, unknown means::

Chakotay and Amaranth looked at each other; the situation had just taken an interesting twist.

"Fascinating," Chakotay said. "Can the Transporter reach that distance?"

::Affirmative, however, I must point out that upon scanning the area on the map, moments ago, I detected two anomalies on the surface. I have rescanned and they are no longer there.::

Chakotay didn't like the sound of that, nor did Amaranth.

"On the surface," Amaranth repeated, "but we were just there a couple hours ago."

"Are they life forms?" Chakotay added.

::Unfortunately the scans of the anomalies were incomplete::

"Speculate," Chakotay said to Phoenix.

::There is a 97.8 percent probability that the anomalies are artificially generated," Phoenix reported::

Chakotay shook his head as he began to become concerned, but Amaranth had a thought.

"Personal cloaking devices perhaps," she suggested, "Jem-Hadar?"

Chakotay nodded his head, but it didn't make any sense to him.

"That would be my first guess too, but why," Chakotay asked.

Amaranth thought back to when she and Chakotay were on the planet a couple hours ago when he told her about his vision quest.

"Weren't you told by the animal spirit who guided you that the virus that killed off most of the humans on this world was tainted by off-worlders," Amaranth asked. "It could have been the Jem-Hadar."

Chakotay nodded his head.

"Yes, it could be, however; why would the Jem-Hadar travel all the way here from the Gamma-Quadrant, over a hundred thirty-years ago, to contaminate this world and kill everyone one? It doesn't make any sense. Besides," Chakotay added, "the wormhole hadn't been found yet back then."

"They could have traveled here by normal means," Amaranth countered with.

"That would have been an eighty-year journey," Chakotay came back with. "Why go through all that effort? No, it makes no sense for it to be the Jem-Hadar."

Suddenly, the computer made a loud chirping noise.

"What is it Phoenix," Amaranth asked.

"The sensors are detecting a ship on an intercept course with us; we are being hailed," Phoenix stated in her warm voice.

"On screen," Amaranth replied.

The image of the scanned area on Earth-2 was replaced the image of a face that both Amaranth and Chakotay recognized; Agent Ryan Tolbert.

"Agent Tolbert," Amaranth said, but with a cold tone to her voice, "what brings you here?"

"Oh I don't know," Ryan Tolbert said with a broad smile, "perhaps it's because I miss all those wonderful times we shared." He then shifted his glance to Chakotay. "It is good to see you again Chakotay. I trust Jim Kirk's children are in good hands."

Chakotay nodded his head.

"They are indeed; it is good to see you again," Chakotay replied. "I must really be spooking Star Fleet if I warrant not one," he motioned to Amaranth, "but two Star Fleet handlers."

Ryan Tolbert smiled at the insinuation.

"Well, be that as it may," Tolbert said, "I should be arriving with in fifteen minutes. Please do not go back down to Earth-2 until I arrive. And Chakotay, you may find what I have say quite interesting since it has to do with your friends."

Chakotay shot Tolbert a puzzled look.

"My friends," Chakotay repeated back to Tolbert.

"The Voth," Ryan Tolbert said, as his frown slowly faded away…

**Continued**…and next time it's the return of JAMES T KIRK!


	372. Roar Again!

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Roar! Again...**

* * *

**Inside the Naissance Dysonsphere...**

A sleek Star Fleet shuttle cruised through the atmosphere of the Naissance Dysonsphere. Sixteen-year old students Robert Canary and Rochan Jadhav watched in awe as seventeen-year old Corvana expertly piloted the vessel. The two young men were sitting to her right on the passenger seat and watched her hands expertly glide over the control panels.

"You're really good at this," Rochan told her.

Rochan was born in Punjab India, and his father was a well respected scientist in the field of botany. His mother was a legal analyst and the three of them had come to the Naissance Dysonsphere when Rochan's father had taken an assignment inside the massive sphere shaped object which constructed around a J-type star.

"Rochan's right," Robert Canary said, as he too was enthralled with Corvana's effortless maneuvering of the shuttle. "Where did you learn to fly ships like this?"

Corvana smiled and looked at Robert and Rochan.

Robert Canary was the son of Captain Jonathan Canary, who commanded the Klingon D7 cruiser Emprenda.

"Oh, nothing special really," Corvana said, answering Robert with a smile. "I've lived an interesting life. I was even a smuggler for a while when I hung out with this cool dude who is now my father; Leonard McCoy."

Robert Canary cocked an eyebrow.

"I've met him before," Robert said to Corvana. "You're his daughter?"

Corvana nodded her head.

"Yep," she replied.

"Umm, he you two," Rochan cut in, "I remember reading McCoy's obituary when I was younger. He was like a hundred and sixty years old or something like that when he died; so how could you both have known him?"

The shuttle banked lower through a trough of clouds, dipping down below the slightly overcast sky and giving them an excellent view of a giant valley. They could see a large herd of animals below, one of many species which had been brought to the Naissance; which was a reservoir for plant and animal life transplanted from endangered worlds, and brought to the Naissance, by of all people Robert's father, Captain Jonathan Canary, to continue their existence.

"Well, it's a weird story," Corvana explained, "but the Leonard McCoy who adopted me was trapped outside of the time continuum. When he came back into our universe he didn't remember who he was and chose to go by the name of Colt MaCahan. To make a long story short, he saved my life and eventually remembered who he was. But in that time, when he was Colt MaCahan, we had some wild times."

Rochan nodded his head.

"Oh yeah, that's right," he said, "I do remember reading something about a younger version of Leonard McCoy. So you spent time with him being a smuggler; cool."

"Very cool," Robert said to Corvana. "So I imagine that's when you learned to fly ships like this?"

Corvana nodded her head.

"Yep," she told them.

Rochan took on the worried look he usually had on his face.

"Well, one thing is for sure," Rochan told Robert and Corvana, "when we get back; we're busted. We'll be lucky if they let us be part of the Star Fleet First Division corp."

First Division, in most fleets, was the maintenance division charged with, among other things, maintaining cleanliness i.e. janitorial responsibilities.

"Bullshit," Corvana said with a laugh. "Just stick to our cover story; that you were both trying to stop me, and it will be fine. They can blame me all they want, but I'm telling you, I'm so well connect, hell, I knew James T Kirk! They can't touch me."

"Whoa," Rochan said, his eye bulging at the sound of the legendary captain's name, "you knew Jim Kirk?"

But, before Corvana could reply, the shuttle shook.

"What was that?" Robert asked, as the situation became tense.

Corvana looked at the readings on her panel and shook her head.

"It's hard to say," Corvana replied.

And then, just as before, the shuttle shook again, but this time it was more violent, and Corvana lost control of the shuttle, as it tumbled out of the sky. But, her hands flew across the helm control and she regained control.

"I think I should set us down," she told Robert and Rochan, "it might be safer."

"Yes," Rochan said, who was visibly shaken, "set us down!"

The shuttle came out of the sky and down toward and out-cropping of hills. Corvana expertly brought the shuttle down and landed it near a clearing.

"I should probably look at the outside of the shuttle," Corvana told them, "to make sure those jolts didn't do any structural damage."

"We'll help," Robert said.

As Corvana stood up and walked past Robert, his eyes couldn't help but scan down her back to her nicely shaped rear-end, which her tight pants formed around perfectly. Rochan saw the direction Robert's eyes were staring an elbowed him in the process. Robert regained focus and followed Corvana and Rochan out of the shuttle.

"Wow," Rochan said, as he stepped out of the shuttle and stared up at the partly cloudy sky. He inhaled a deep breath through his nose and closed his eyes. "Ahhh," Rochan continued to say, with his slight southern-India accent, "The air here reminds me of Tamil Nadu."

"It is beautiful," Robert added, as he and the other two fanned out from the shuttle upon the short grass, which was near one of rocky hillsides. Robert saw a group of small wild flowers, and plucked three of them out, and then he looked over at Corvana. He went over to her, "here, check these out," Robert said to Corvana as he gave her the flowers.

Corvana took the flowers and breathed their scent in and then she smiled at Robert.

"Thank you," she told him. "But I've been more of a rock girl," she said, as she dropped the flowers and then bent over to pick up some rocks, and began to throw them at a nearby tree.

The three friends came upon a small area grass where there was a puddle from recent rains. Robert and Corvana skipped some rocks over the surface of the puddle and watched as the ripples quickly faded and the water became still. They were laughing and throwing rocks when all three of them felt the ground slightly shake; and ripples unsettled the puddle of water again; the ripples being caused by the slight movement of the ground.

"What was that?" Rochan asked as he came over to Robert and Corvana.

"Maybe the vibration was caused by whatever made you have to land the shuttle," Robert said to Corvana.

"I don't know, I kind of doubt it," Corvana said.

And then the ground shook again, and then again.

It was then that all three of them saw the most frightening sight; a massive Tyrannosaurus Rex came out from a gathering of trees nearby and made its way toward the frightened teenagers. The dinosaur came to a stop on the other side of the shuttle from where the three stood.

"What the hell is that doing here?" Rochan asked. "Maybe we can talk to it."

"Talk to it," Robert repeated, "are you nuts?"

"No," Rochan came back with, "maybe it's an intelligent species of dinosaurs brought here by your father."

"Hey," Corvana said to them, as the dinosaur went about sniffing the exterior of the shuttle, "I think we can make it to that rock face over there."

Rochan and Robert looked over at what she was talking about. There was a out-cropping of rocks and rock faces that reached as high at least fifty feet. There were spaces they could hide between if they had to.

"Go!" Robert replied.

And at that, Corvana, Robert and Rochan ran as fast as they could toward the rocks and rocky hills. Rochan looked back at the Rex just in time to see it roar loudly and begin to chase them. Being the slowest of the three, Rochan was not happy at now being pursued by the beast which had massive jaws of munchers that even a shark would kill for.

"Holy crap!" Rochan screamed as he chased after Robert and Corvana, as the Rex chased after him, "I'm going to be eaten by a fricking dinosaur!"

Robert looked back at his slower friend and the Rex which was closing in, and was no further than 30 yards away.

"No you're not," Robert yelled back at his friend. "Push it Rochan," Robert yelled some more, "push as fast as you can!"

The hillside seemed like miles away, but it wasn't; it was the terror of being chased by one of the animal Kingdome's most notorious creations that made the hill seem further than it was. Corvana ran toward a space between to off the outcroppings, and Robert and Rochan followed; the Rex roared as all three vanished from its sight into the maze of large rocks and boulders. Corvana came upon an opening in the rocks, a cave, and Robert and Rochan followed her quickly. Safe from the still roaring dinosaur, the three teens breathed heavily, having just escaped, at least for the time being, the gruesome deaths from being mauled by the ferocious killer.

"What are we going to do," Rochan asked, as he breathed in and out at a rapid rate; adrenaline pumping through his body; his hair damp with sweat. "We can't get to the shuttle."

"And even if we could," Robert added through his own quick breaths, "it might not even be functional."

It was then that Corvana heard some strange sounds and then she brought her index finger to her lips, the universal signal to be quiet. Rochan and Robert followed her lead and became quiet. They too could hear the strange sounds.

"What is that sound?" Rochan asked Robert in a whisper.

"It sounds like tones computers make sometimes," Robert replied.

Corvana nodded in agreement. But why would there be any kind of technology inside an old and dingy cave? Robert stepped in front of her to take the lead as the three made their way deeper; each of them pressed up against the cave wall.

"Hey," Corvana said with a whisper of protest, "I wanted to take point; you chauvinist pig."

Robert looked at her.

"Now wait a minute, sweetie," Robert said with a twinkle in his eyes, "I'm taller. If we come up to some wall of sort, and have to see over it, I have the better chance."

"He has a point," Rochan, who was behind Corvana, told her.

Corvana shot Rochan a look of irritation.

"Oh shut-up," Corvana said to Rochan, "you're just agreeing with him since he's your friend."

Rochan didn't reply; the truth was that he liked looking at her nicely shaped rear-end too.

The three teens slowly made their way deeper in to the cave which led them to a large open area which was ringed by several computer panels. Before they could say anything, they saw two men walk into the area from another direction. The two men were talking to each other, and were unaware of they were being watched by Robert, Corvana and Rochan. It was then that Corvana recognized one of the men.

"Hey," she said out loud to the two men, "I know who you are."

Robert and Rochan cast her looks of anger, as her outburst gave up their position and caused both men to look in their direction. Robert and Rochan looked back at the men too, and then even they recognized one of the men instantly. The man smiled and came over to them.

"Hikaru," he said to the other man, "it looks like we have visitors."

The other man, who was oriental, came over and joined his friend.

"You're Jim Kirk," Corvana said to the first man. "We've met before."

"Yes, Corvana, we have. I have to admit that I didn't expect to see you here." Kirk said, with a slight chuckle. "My friend here is Hikaru Sulu. Let me guess; Barney chased after you and you ended up here in the cave with us."

The teens nodded their heads.

"So that's why he's in a bad mood. We could hear him roaing in here," Sulu added. "You three must have been in the shuttle we scanned approaching this area."

Corvana and Rochan relaxed and walked past Robert who was still dumbfounded. When Robert didn't budge, Sulu looked back at him.

"Is there something wrong," Sulu asked Robert.

Robert shot Corvana and rochan a good old "jolly gee" look of puzzlement, and then he looked at Sulu and Kirk.

"Well, excuse me," Robert said to Hikaru Sulu and Jim Kirk, "it isn't everyday you get chased by dinosaurs and end up in the presence of two Star Fleet legends; what is all this stuff and what the hell is going on?" Robert added, motioning toward the computers and other instruments.

"Oh, the usual," Jim Kirk said, with a dead-pan delivery. "We're just trying to save the Federation."

Robert could only shake his head and wonder what he, Rochan and Corvana had stumbled upon.

Continued…


	373. Android Souls

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Android Souls**

* * *

**Earth; Star Fleet Command…**

The massive Star Fleet complex, located across the bay from the city of San Francisco, was one of the most recognizable structures in all of the Federation. With the academy structures in the foreground, the entire area was that of legend. The academy was where most, if not all, Star Fleet legends began their illustrious careers. In fact, when entering the Academy's main structure, one could not help but be mesmerized by the large "time line" painting that adorned the massive wall upon entering the grounds. On the paintings were representations of the legends of Star Fleet; they were all up on that wall. From early days of Captain Archer, through the so called golden age of captains Pike and Kirk, to the more modern eras of Picard, Janeway, Sisko. Every era was represented in one form or another.

Willard Decker stared up at the wall, and saw the proud image of his father, Matt Decker. His image was bracketed by the paintings of Chris Pike and Jim Kirk. Will Decker smiled at the image of this father. It had always been Will Decker's goal to get his own image on that wall of legends, but alas, it never happened. His career took a decisive turn when he elected to merge with the Ilya probe. He had been considered one of Star Fleet's hottest prospects at one time, but, his life had gone in a totally different direction.

"You've been staring at that wall for quite some time," came from a female's voice.

Decker heard the person's words and turned to face the woman, whom he had never met before. And while the woman was very pleasant looking, Decker sensed there was something unique; special about her.

"Oh," Decker said, peeking up at his father's image one last time, "I was just looking at it for old time sake."

The woman smiled.

"You are Commander Willard Decker of Star Fleet," the woman said, with a smile. "Your father was Matt Decker, one of Star Fleet's more decorated officers."

Willard Decker felt a little embarrassed as he looked at the woman again. He hoped that his staring at the painting didn't appear to be an act of conceit.

"You probably think it is a little self serving," Decker said with a chuckle.

"No, not at all," she replied.

Decker liked the woman; she had a very calming effect on him.

"You have me at a disadvantage," Decker said, after a moment.

The woman, who Decker could tell was also a little shy, smiled back at him.

"My name is Lal," she told him. "My father is on this wall as well."

"Really?" Decker asked, as he looked back up at the time-line. He concentrated on the more recent depictions.

"Commander Data," she said, pointing at her father's image.

Willard Decker remembered the young lady now. He had seen her briefly in the science lab after the situation with Picard and the rest of the USS HAUCK crew had been resolved.

"You're an android," Decker said to her, as they began to walk together into the academy grounds. "Admiral Picard told me that Commander Data had been successful l in creating an offspring."

Lal nodded her head.

"The Admiral has always been like a father to me," Lal said to Decker. "After my father was destroyed, and after my matrix was reconstructed by Professor La Forge, he helped give me a purpose."

Decker noticed the rank of ensign on her lapel.

"I'm sure your father would be proud of how far you have come," Willard Decker told her. "Picard told me that you were close to Curtis."

Lal nodded her head.

"Commander Decker," Lal began to say, but Decker stopped her by cutting in.

"Will," he told her, "please call me will."

She nodded her head.

"Will," she continued to say, "I don't believe Curtis," she paused to find the right word, "is gone."

Decker shot her a perplexed look. He knew that her matrix was capable of doing missions of formulas per-second, so surely she must have been able to grasp the concept of destruction and death.

"Lal," Decker began to say, "The Hauck was destroyed by the Galaxy Eye near the center of this galaxy. The clones of Picard and the others, as well as Lore's construct, Ilya and Curtis, were destroyed as well."

Lal nodded her head as they made it to a small food court located near one of the structures. Decker picked up a cup of coffee from one of the counters where food was kept, as did Lal, and they sat at one of the tables.

"Yes," Lal went on to say, "I read the de-briefing highlights that Admiral Picard and the others gave. And yes, I am also aware of the sensor reports and all the information that proves beyond a doubt that the Hauck was destroyed," she told Decker.

"Then," Decker said, sipping his coffee, "how can you possibly think that Curtis is still alive?"

"Because," Lal said to him, her voice becoming quieter on purpose. "He has died before; at least twice. And after both times; he came back."

Willard Decker had been just about to take another sip of his coffee when, upon hearing Lal's statement, he stopped. Curtis was created by the same technology that had created the Ilya probe all those decades ago when the Enterprise had encountered V'ger.

"I'm sorry," he told said to Lal, "what did you say?"

She went on to explain the events of what had happened on the so called "Planet of the Living Dead" and how Curtis had been destroyed. But then she encountered him again inside the Naissance where he had been destroyed, again, by a T-Rex (the same one who we saw last issue; dear readers.). In both instances, Curtis's essence had not been extinguished.

"That is interesting to hear," Decker told Lal. "I wonder why Admiral Picard chose not to tell me about those two incidents."

At that moment, another young ensign came over to where they were sitting. It was Ensign Rebecca Sisko, daughter of Benjamin Sisko and close friend of Lal.

"Hey there," Rebecca said to Lal, "what are you still doing here?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Willard Decker said to Lal, "I hope I'm not keeping you from anything."

"Not at all," Lal said, as she looked up at Rebecca. "I have already packed my belongings and besides," Lal added, "our transport vessel to Timus Prime won't leave for another hour; so please sit down."

Rebecca did as Lal suggested as Lal introduced Willard Decker to Rebecca Sisko. The exploit of the Enterprise's encounter with the V'ger anomaly was required reading.

"To be honest," Rebecca Sisko said to Will Decker, "I had always thought of your experiences with Ilya, and then the Ilya probe, as a romance; sorry, just keeping it real."

Decker smiled at the thought.

"Well, Ilya and I had known each other years earlier when I was posted on her home world," Will Decker said to Rebecca, "so one might assume that to be the natural flow of things. But when she and I merged, we became one, and evolved into a higher-from of being."

Rebecca looked at Will Decker with wonder in her eyes.

"Wow, I can only imagine what that would be like, becoming something like a God," Rebecca told him. "My father had a similar experience, and here you are, telling me of yours. Can you remember any of it?"

Decker shook his head.

"As each day passes, my memories of that time seem to fade even more," Will Decker told her.

That was when Lal cut in.

"I was just telling Will about our interesting interactions with Curtis Daystrom," Lal explained to Rebecca. "How," she lowered her voice again, "he had seemingly come back from nothingness in a new body/construct."

Rebecca nodded her head.

"I still don't understand it," Rebecca said to Lal and Will. "But I know someone who can tell us more; my father."

Will Decker sipped some more coffee.

"Is your father Benjamin Sisko? I saw the painting of him on the time-line wall."

Rebecca smiled and nodded her head.

"Yes, that's my dad," Rebecca replied. "And I know for a fact he has his own questions about what exactly Curtis was. Lal and I have some leave time coming to us, so that's why we are on our way to Timus Prime which is where my mom and dad live. Well, actually, they live there for now. They are in the process of tying up loose ends up there, and they hope to return to Earth a few months and run my grand-father's restaurant in New Orleans, here on Earth."

"You should come with us," Lal said.

"Why would Mr. Decker come all the way to Timus Prime with us?" Rebecca came back with.

Before Rebecca could respond, Lal did.

"Because of Ilya," Will Decker said. "What she and I shared, for all that time, goes beyond the limited words that humanity has for the term; one. If Curtis can come back from wherever artificial life forms go when they cease to exist; then why couldn't Ilya?"

Rebecca nodded at the logic of it all.

"Well, then yes, come with us," Rebecca replied with. "The fact that you knew Jim Kirk too will make you instant friends with my dad."

"Your father knew Jim Kirk?" Will Decker asked.

Rebecca smiled.

"In fact," Rebecca teased Willard with, "Jim Kirk actually saved my life on a couple of occasions."

Will Decker found that hard to believe and looked over at Lal for confirmation; Lal nodded her head, and added.

"He saved my life," Lal added.

"Well," Will Decker said, "I better go book package on the transport vessel taking you there. I can't wait to meet your father," Decker said to Rebecca.

The three of them stood up and headed out of the Star Fleet Academy food court, and toward the booking center. What they didn't notice was that someone else was monitoring their movements. He tapped a small communicator which was clipped to the lapel of his shirt.

_"Go ahead," a voice replied._

"Everything is proceeding as planned; what now?" the man watching Rebecca, Lal and Will Decker as they made their way toward the booking center asked.

There was a pause; then a response came.

_"Go ahead with our plans, and board that transport vessel," the voice responded. "You know what to do from there."_

"What about Decker," the man replied. "He is a random element we have not planned for."

Again there was a pause.

_"If his being there becomes a distraction," the voice said, after a moment, "then eliminate the distraction. But don't act too rashly," the voice added. "He could be useful when you get to where you're going."_

The man nodded in agreement, and then stood up and made his way out of the food court as well. His destination was the transport vessel that would soon be leaving for Timus Prime, but would actually end up somewhere else altogether; "The Planet of the Living Dead!"

-next time…Spock becomes a father; again!


	374. A Child is Born

**Star Trek; The Path of Destiny**

**A Child is Born**

* * *

**Previously…**

**10 months ago on the Planet Vulcan…**

_Ambassador Spock and his new wife, Elizabeth Pike, were finally reunited after he had left Vulcan for nearly three weeks. On the second morning of his return, Spock opened his eyes and found his wife sitting next to him on their bed. She was smiling down at her husband, with a smile that was more broad than usual._

_"You look beautiful," Spock said, as he brought his hand up and caressed her left cheek._

_"I love staring down at you when you are sleeping, Elizabeth said."You look so content. But on this morning, I hope you will be happy."_

_"Elizabeth," Spock said, as he sat up in bed, "you should know, by now, that as a Vulcan, happiness is just another state of mind. One need not be, as you would say, giddy with excitement."_

_"Unless that person was to find out," Elizabeth began to say, "they were soon to be a father."_

_Spock was indeed wrong; for he smiled at the surprise._

_**Four hours later…Planet Vulcan…the medical complex located in the Shikahr providence. **_

_Ambassador Spock and his wife Elizabeth, who was pregnant with their baby, exited the examination center, and they had both heard great news. The baby she was carrying inside of her was healthy; and it was girl. They were about to leave the complex when someone they knew very well came up to them; Ambassador Picard._

_"Ambassador Picard," Spock said, as he rendered the Vulcan hand salute, "it is good to see you."_

_"I was worried, since I've been gone for so long," Picard said with a smile, "that I was going to be relieved from my duty as Earth's Ambassador to Vulcan," Picard added with a slight chuckle. "I heard the news about the baby," Picard added, "congratulations."_

_"We had hoped to keep the pregnancy secret," Spock said to Picard, "however, I have found out recently that the human need to spread," he paused to find the right word, "gossip may not be indigenous to Earthlings alone."_

_"Well, you let know if you need anything," Picard said to Elizabeth._

_"Thank you, I will," Elizabeth said with a smile. "The gardens up here on Vulcan have never got the knack of growing pickles."_

_As the three friends made their way down the walkway, someone else entered the medical complex and made their way to one of the access computers that were spread throughout the complex. After bypassing many security measures, the person, a Bajoran, was able to tap into the data files, and soon the medical conditions of Elizabeth Pike and the baby inside of her were displayed._

_Our story continues…_

* * *

**10 months Later…**

Spock and Leonard McCoy had arrived on the planet Vulcan only an hour earlier, and immediately the two friends were beamed over to the medical center located in the Shikahr Providence. Spock's wife, Elizabeth, was about to give birth to their first child, and luckily, or logically, depending on one's point of view, Spock and McCoy had arrived just in time. Normally the birth would have happened on the family lands, which was were Spock had been born, and his son S'vath as well. However, for precautionary reasons, the birth would happen at the medical complex, under the watchful eyes of Leonard McCoy.

As Spock entered the waiting area, he was pleased to find his son S'vath, and his wife Amanda, waiting there as well.

"Father," S'vath said, as he came over to hug Spock upon seeing him, "I know I'm not supposed to hug you and all that, but," S'vath said, with a wide smile, "I'm going to be an older brother, so it's my job to get junior in trouble when I can; you know, being a role model and all."

Spock nodded his head at the successful attempt at humor. Spock looked over at Amanda, and then back at S'vath.

"I thought," Spock began to say, "the two of you were on your way back to Timus."

"We were," Amanda said. "After the ordeal with that entity in S'vath's mind finally being extracted by Tuvok (recent events of course), we were heading back to Timus when we got your message about Elizabeth going into labor so we came as fast as we could."

"Actually," S'vath said, "I think we only left Earth a few hours before you did. But, anyway, here we are. Have you decided on a name for the little guy yet?"

"Or the little gal," Amanda corrected her husband. "Remember; you father and Elizabeth didn't want to know until the birth."

S'vath chuckled at the thought.

"That's right," S'vath said. He eyes his father. "Not knowing what a child's sex is going to be until the last moment would seem to be," he paused of the effect of saying, "illogical."

Spock nodded in agreement.

"We are talking about my wife," Spock said, "a human female. And if anyone should know," Spock said, glancing over at Amanda and then back to S'vath, "it would be you."

"Hey," Amanda said, "what is that supposed to mean?"

Before Spock could respond, S'vath cut in.

"It's too bad Jim couldn't be here," S'vath said to Spock. "I still wish we knew what happened to him after he went inside that holographic merry-go-round back on Earth. Why isn't Starfleet taking his disappearance more seriously?"

"S'vath is right," Amanda said. "Why are they dragging their feet?"

Spock arched an eyebrow; appreciative of the fact that his son and daughter-in-law were concerned about his good friend just as much as he was.

"The fact that you saw Edith Keeler with him," Spock explained, "opens up a lot of questions as to what exactly happened. However, as soon as Elizabeth is home with our child, I have been given permission by Admiral Picard to look into the matter. And as fate would have it," Spock added, "I will be assisted by Commander Willard Decker."

S'vath arched his eyebrow upon hearing the name Willard Decker.

"Decker," S'vath said, "is this a distant relative of the Willard Decker who went MIA after that incident with the Voyager probe a long time ago?"

Spock shook his head in disagreement.

"Actually; it is that Decker," Spock said. "He is no longer joined with the V'ger anomaly, and since he wants to help find Jim."

"We want to help too," Elizabeth said to Spock. "He did a lot for us, and it's only fair we watch out for him."

Spock nodded in agreement.

"I will keep that in mind," Spock said.

"What about Jim's children," S'vath said. "The last I saw of Chakotay, he left Earth with that map of his, on his way to Earth-2. So, if Chakotay isn't watching the two kids; then who is?"

"Chief Limanu," Spock said. "I am quite confi…"

Before Spock could say anything more, the door opened and in walked Leonard McCoy; and he was holding an infant bundled up inside a myriad of blankets; to help keep it warm.

"Congratulations, Spock," McCoy said with a broad grin, "you're the father of a baby girl."

Spock took the child from McCoy, and held it close to him. S'vath, Amanda and Leonard McCoy all smiled at seeing Spock with the infant. It was a joyous event, to be sure, but somewhere else in the medical center, someone else had a keen interest in the baby as well. The person, who was a Bajoran male, and who was dressed as one of the medical staff, made his way to another level of the medical center which led to a expansive park that had pathways that wound their way through the banks of flowers and other planet life that dotted the nearby areas. Once the Bajoran man was sure of privacy, they took a communicator out of their pocket and activated it.

"What can you tell me about the child?" a voice asked from the communicator.

The Bajoran spoke.

"The child is a female," the Bajoran said. "And. according to the first medical scan, it is healthy."

There was silence for a moment, but then the person on the other end finally spoke.

"So," the voice said, "my brother has seen fit to deliver me a niece to plan for," Sybok said. "She will live a wonderful life...with me."

continued...


	375. A Time-Stream Thing

**Star Trek: The Path of Destiny**

**A Time-Stream Thing…**

* * *

_**Previously…**_

_**Earth-2 (the Earth featured in TOS "Miri")**_

_**The Draconis (Amaranth's ship, a Defiant-class ship in orbit of Earth-2)**_

_The image of the scanned area on Earth-2 was replaced the image of a face that both Amaranth and Chakotay recognized; Agent Ryan Tolbert._

_"Agent Tolbert," Amaranth said, but with a cold tone to her voice, "what brings you here?"_

_"Oh I don't know," Ryan Tolbert said with a broad smile, "perhaps it's because I miss all those wonderful times we shared." He then shifted his glance to Chakotay. "It is good to see you again Chakotay. I trust Jim Kirk's children are in good hands."_

_Chakotay nodded his head._

_"They are indeed; it is good to see you again," Chakotay replied. "I must really be spooking Star Fleet if I warrant not one," he motioned to Amaranth, "but two Star Fleet handlers."_

_Ryan Tolbert smiled at the insinuation._

_"Well, be that as it may," Tolbert said, "I should be arriving with in fifteen minutes. Please do not go back down to Earth-2 until I arrive. And Chakotay, you may find what I have say quite interesting since it has to do with your friends; the Voth."_

**_Our story continues…_**

Chakotay and Amaranth had gone down to the small Transporter room and then, upon Amaranth's orders, the ship's A.I. system (Phoenix) activated the device and in mere seconds, agent Ryan Tolbert was appeared. Tolbert stepped off of the four-person transporter pad and shook Chakotay's hand.

"Good to see you again," Agent Tolbert said to Chakotay. "Before I headed here, I had a brief conversation with Spock about the map that brought you here."

"Yes," Chakotay said to Tolbert, "I showed it to him at Jim Kirk's place before I came here. In fact, it was Spock who suggested that I came here, so I'm not sure as to why it is such a big deal."

Chakotay was about to respond when Amaranth cut in.

"Not even a hello for me?" Amaranth asked Tolbert.

Ryan Tolbert shifted his glance to Amaranth.

"Trust me," Tolbert said to Amaranth, with a smile on his face, "I would like nothing better than to grab you, kiss you passionately and dive my tongue into your mouth ,but gee," he added with a chuckle, "I don't want to get my throat torched. Did you tell Chakotay about your little secret?" Tolbert asked.

The three of them made their way out of the Transporter room and then down the corridor toward the bridge; conversing as they went.

Chakotay could instantly tell that there was no love lost between Agents Ryan Tolbert and Amaranth; and he found it quite amusing in fact. But, Chakotay did feel a little more loyal to Amaranth due to the time they had shared.

"You mean," Chakotay replied, "do I know she can turn into a dragon; yes. And to be honest," Chakotay added, "I have no problem with it; do you?" Chakotay asked Tolbert.

Ryan Tolbert chuckled.

"Well, we'll see what you think after the two of you… well…" Ryan Tolbert let his voice trail off, "that's not why I'm here. Like I said," Tolbert said to Chakotay, "Starfleet has detected tracers in nearly all of its data systems. It would seem that when the Voth destroyed that last Borg vessel (an earlier plotline), our lizard friends tried their best to get a look into every nook and cranny of our computer systems. And apparently," Tolbert added, "they seemed to find Earth-2 quite interesting."

Chakotay thought for a moment, as they arrived on the bridge, and then he aimed his words at Ryan Tolbert; and they had a defensive tone to them.

"The Voth are an honorable race," Chakotay countered. "They may have their social quarks; however, during the time I spent with them, which was rather lengthy, I never saw any inclination on their part of showing any interest in Earth or the Alpha-Quadrant; outside of basic knowledge of course."

"Well," Tolbert said, upon thinking about what Chakotay said, "that maybe true, but the fact is; we have detected signals coming from Earth-2 of an unknown origin. Starfleet intelligence thinks it is highly probable that there could be an advance Voth exploratory team here, on Earth-2."

At first there was silence.

"Those reports are possible," Amaranth said to Tolbert as she took him over to one of the monitors that repeated the readings from earlier of the two unexplained readings.

"We thought they might have been cloaked Jem'Hadar soldiers," Chakotay added, as Ryan Tolbert sat at the science alcove and studied the readings that had been taken.

"Did the Voth have personal cloaking technology when you were with them?" Tolbert asked Chakotay.

Chakotay shook his head.

"Not that I could see, however, I did spend most of my time with them aboard a vessel devoted to the study of advanced archeology," Chakotay admitted. "But I still don't think that Minister of Elders, Odala, would condone any move against Earth."

Ryan Tolbert looked at the other scans of a cavernous area 750 feet beneath the ground. He read the readings carefully.

"Am I reading this correctly?" Tolbert asked. "This cavern is being sustained artificially?"

_": Yes agent Tolbert:" Phoenix replied. ": The date is correct:"_

"Oh, hello there Phoenix," Tolbert said. "I hope you remember the settings that I prefer when I use the sonic shower."

_": Affirmative,: " Phoenxix replied._

Ryan Tolbert chuckled at the thought and then he stood up and looked at Chakotay.

"If there are cloaked Voth down there," Ryan told them, "They could be protecting whatever it is your map will lead us to."

Amaranth nodded her head.

"Excuse me, agent Tolbert," Amaranth said, in a matter of fact tone, "we didn't need you to come all the way out here and tell us this; that was already our conclusion. In fact; why didn't Director Algren tell me you were coming?"

Tolbert looked at her, and then smiled.

"He wanted to send in the big gun," Ryan Tolbert said, with a sarcastic smile. "And, on top of that, due to the unknown signals, it was decided to communicate as little as possible."

"Then what do we do now?" Chakotay asked. "I could try to contact the Voth; I am known to them. It might prefent any altercations."

Tolbert shook his head, as he looked at the main screen which showed a live image of Earth-2 below.

"No," Tolbert said, after a moment. "Before I came here I conversed with Admiral Janeway and Commander Algren, and we all agreed that whatever is down there, the Voth don't want us to know. So, to that end, we're just going to beam down to that cavern and have a look for ourselves."

"It could be a trap," Amaranth said, with coolness to her voice.

"Yes, it could be," Agent Tolbert said, "but we have our orders."

And then, as if on cue, Chakotay and agents Amaranth and Ryan Tolbert prepared to beam down to Earth-2, and into the cavern beneath the surface. What they didn't know was that two other humans were standing on the bridge of the Defiant as well; but they were unseen due to the fact they were wearing devices that kept their bodies slightly out of phase with the universe. The two people were Frederic Thorn and Annika Hanson.

"I can't believe you married him," Fredric Thorn said to Annika, as they watched Chakotay prepare to beam down to the planet below. "He' so boring."

Annika still had a soft spot in her heart for Chakotay; even though he wasn't the Chakotay she had married and had a daughter with. She and her Chakotay had shared a special love and due to an unkind twist of fate, their daughter had died and the anger of the young child's death turned her Chakotay into a criminal and caused Annika to lose her mind (all earlier storylines; dear readers).

Fredric could see the pain in Annika's eyes.

"I was wrong for bringing that up," Fredric told her. "It was unkind, and I really am sorry."

He reached out and held her hand with his. The two of them, Fredric and Annika, had become lovers ever since he had convinced her to travel with him throughout all of time, via the special ship created by Walter Bishop (yes…another earlier plotline).

"So what do we do now," Annika asked; as she pushed the thoughts of her deceased daughter and husband out of her mind.

"Well," Fredric said, as he held up a Tricorder with the image of a man on it, "as you know, we can't interfere at this point of the time-stream. But, if the waves of times are correct, something will go drastically wrong when the three of them beam down to Earth-2, and then, we will have to go find this guy," Fredric said as he showed Annika the image of the man on his tricorder.

But the man in the image wasn't ordinary at all; he had wings.

continued...


	376. Here to There

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Here to There**

* * *

**Inside the Naissance; ****(a Dysonsphere that is used to help save enangered plant and animal life forms from throughout the galaxy.)**

_Previously…_

_After stealing a Federation shuttle craft for a joyride, Corvana had to forcibly land the small vessel when an energy pulse interfered with its systems. Corvana, and her new friends, Robert Canary and Rochan, were uninjured. But soon a giant T-Rex chased them into a cave. Then, the most unexpected event happened. While exploring strange computerized sounds that were coming from deep inside the cave, the three of them found themselves face to face with James T Kirk and Hikaru Sulu!_

_Our story continues…_

Robert Canary looked at Jim Kirk and Corvana, who knew each other already, and was somewhat confused.

"Well, excuse me," Robert said to Hikaru Sulu and Jim Kirk, "it isn't everyday you get chased by dinosaurs and end up in the presence of two Star Fleet legends; what is all this stuff and what the hell is going on?" Robert added, motioning toward the computers and other instruments.

"Oh, the usual," Jim Kirk said, with a dead-pan delivery. "We're just trying to save the Federation."

Robert could only shake his head and wonder what he, Rochan and Corvana had stumbled upon.

"What does that mean; saving the Federation?" Rochan asked. "Sir, everyone thinks that you're dead."

Sulu chuckled at Rochan's words.

"So what else is new?" Sulu asked back. "They've been thinking Jim Kirk has been dead for over a hundred years."

Kirk and Sulu chuckled again.

"Jim," Corvana said, surprising Robert and Rochan again with the fact that she was on a first name basis with the legend, "they all think you're dead, including my dad."

"I know," Kirk said, as he and Sulu, with the kids behind them, made his way back toward the center of the computer area, "and it has to stay that way; for now."

Robert didn't like the sound of that at all.

"Mr. Kirk, sir," Robert said, "we stole that shuttle craft; they will come looking for us when they find us, we will have to tell them what we found; you."

Jim Kirk nodded his head.

"The kid is right," Sulu told Kirk. "Or at the very least, whoever comes looking for them might be able to detect our presence inside these caves."

Kirk rubbed his chin for a moment, as he did sometimes when pondering the situation.

"Then we'll have to make sure," Kirk said to Sulu, "that our young friends here are part of whatever we do."

Again, Robert didn't like the sound of that at all.

"Does that mean you're going to hold us against our will?" Rochan asked, as he too did not like any of what he was hearing.

Kirk looked at the three teenagers and explained the situation.

"Mr. Sulu and I are, as I said a moment ago, trying to save the Federation," Kirk told them. "We are doing so with the authority of the President of the Federation. Now, as fate would have it," Kirk went on to say, alternately looking at each one of the teenagers in the eyes, "you three have been deposited into this cave which means," he said as he came closer them, "I am," he searched his mind for the right term, "deputizing the three of you to help; am I clear?"

The three of them became nervous and nodded their heads in acknowledgement of Kirk's words.

Robert, Corvana and Rochan could only wonder in their minds how they, three simple teenagers, could be of help in such a worthy cause; saving the Federation. They would soon find out.

* * *

**Earth-2**

Three transporter signals solidified in a dimly lit cavernous expanse, some 750 feet below the surface of Earth-2. Chakotay and F.S.B. agents Amaranth and Ryan Tolbert, each wore a flashlight device around the wrist of their right arms. But while the flashlights were needed, they had not arrived totally in the dark.

"Look there," Amaranth said, as he shined her light at a square shape object on the cave wall; it was a light panel of some kind. "Now that is interesting."

Tolbert shined his light at another light panel, which gave off the same dim white light as the other one.

"It sure is," Chakotay said, "especially when you think about how old these caves are. I'd estimate around 500,000 years per foot, so we're talking about the neighborhood of 35 million years ago."

"Are you serious?" Tolbert asked, as they looked about. "Are you suggesting these lights have been operating for that long?"

Chakotay nodded his head.

Amaranth was as doubtful as Ryan Tolbert was.

"Who are these Voth again?" Amaranth asked.

They began walk through the caves that were obviously artificially made; eons upon eons ago.

"They Voth are a reptilian species that exist in the Delta-Quadrant," Chakotay explained. "Voyager encountered them, and it would eventually be discovered that they, the Voth, evolved from Earth, or as it now appears, Earth-2."

Ryan Tolbert chuckled.

"Chakotay; you want us to believe that on Earth, this Earth, a reptilian race evolved to the point," Ryan said, with disbelief in this voice, "and that they left Earth to find a new home in the Delta-Quadrant?"

Amaranth just listened, due to the fact that her own species' had come to Earth from another galaxy.

"It's all true," Chakotay said.

"And now," Ryan Tolbert went on to say, "They want to come back?"

"I would guess that is what we're here to find out. However, more importantly, if they were responsible for the virus that killed off the humans of this Earth, then they may be a greater threat to our Earth than even the Borg were."

As Chakotay and Ryan Tolbert, as well as Amaranth, made their way through the twists and turns of the strange underground cave construct, Amaranth had the strangest sensation that they were being watched; and she was right.

* * *

**Planet Vulcan…the medical complex located in the Shikahr providence.**

Elizabeth opened her eyes and smiled at the sight of her new born baby in the arms of her father; Spock. Spock looked down upon his wife as he held the child.

"You have given me a daughter," Spock told her, "I thank you my wife."

Elizabeth took the baby into her arms for the first time as Spock handed the infant over. He watched with, yes, delight as he watched mother and daughter together for the first time since the child had been born.

The door to the room opened and two nurses came in to tend to Elizabeth and the child. One of the nurses went straight to the monitoring devices, as the other nurse, a Bajoran male, took the child from Elizabeth.

"We will have to do a few more tests," the Bajoran nurse told Spock.

"Of course," Spock said, as he watched the Bajoran nurse carefully wrap the infant girl in a soft blanket, and then left the room with her for more tests.

What Spock didn't know at that time was that his child, her name being S'hymar, had just been abducted.

* * *

**DEEP SPACE NINE**

A small vessel came out of the Wormhole and approached the legendary space station which had been on the frontlines during the Dominion War. The ship was given permission to dock at one of the smaller docking ports.

Moments later, with the docking procedural completed; the lone passenger of the ship, a human, made his way into the fabled space station and the Promenade. The people who passed by him seemed intimidated by the pouch he wore over his left eye, and the scowl on his face; especially the children. The man gave off a "do not disturb me aurora or die" vibe that others quickly picked up on; thus giving him his distance.

The sights and sounds were loud and vibrant, much different from where he had come from. Life here, here on the other side, was bright and vibrant; not cold and remote. What the others didn't know, as they walked past him, was that he was also in horrible pain. He fought through the pain as he made his way to one of the public waste extraction areas. Once he was alone inside one of the units, he looked at his reflection in the mirror; there was hardly any life in his eyes; just a cold stare. It was then that he removed his leather made jacket, and saw his scar covered chest and abdomen area. The scars had either been caused by fights, or, by being whipped; but those wounds did not cause his pain. He shifted so that he could see his back, and the ultimate cause of his pain.

Because, as recently as two weeks earlier, this man wasn't just an ordinary man; he had wings. But his tormentors had seen fit to rip them from their sockets, and had cauterized the wounds. The pain was still constant, and he had to use all of his control to stop himself from losing his mind. He slowly put his jacket back on, and collected his thoughts. His name was Ajax; and he had come a long way to find her and to kill her; Amaranth.

Continued…


	377. The Device

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**The Device**

* * *

**Inside the Naissance; (a Dysonsphere that is used to help save endangered plant and animal life forms from throughout the galaxy.)**

_Previously…_

_After stealing a Federation shuttle craft for a joyride, Corvana had to forcibly land the small vessel when an energy pulse interfered with its systems. Corvana, and her new friends, Robert Canary and Rochan, was uninjured. But soon a giant T-Rex chased them into a cave. Then, the most unexpected event happened. While exploring strange computerized sounds that were coming from deep inside the cave, the three of them found themselves face to face with James T Kirk and Hikaru Sulu!_

_Our story continues…_

"Mr. Sulu and I are, as I said a moment ago, trying to save the Federation," Kirk told them. ""I am;" he searched his mind for the right term, "deputizing the three of you to help; am I clear?"

Robert, Rochan and Corvana all looked at each other, then back at Kirk.

"Alright," Robert said, "I guess we can help. But like I said a moment ago," Robert told Kirk, "they are going to come looking for the shuttle we came here in; what do we tell them?"

Before Kirk could respond, Rochan cut in.

"And just what do you want us to do to help you?" Rochan asked.

Kirk looked at Sulu, who nodded his head.

"Might as well tell them," Sulu said. "The last thing we want is for them to get into trouble."

"Alright," Kirk agreed, "follow me."

The three teens followed Jim Kirk and Hikaru Sulu past a large boulder and then deeper into the cave and into another cavern. In the center of the cavern was a strange looking contraption, which looked very old. The strange device was the size of a large wall, with steps, that when take, led to the top to where, it seemed, a person would stand in between two overlapping circular arms.

"What is it that thing?" Corvana asked.

"Well," Sulu replied, "our best guess is that at the top, those overlapping circular arms will, if powered to the correct level, will create a singularity and anyone standing inside the arms will instantly be taken…somewhere else."

"Somewhere else," Robert repeated, "Where to?"

Jim Kirk walked up to the top of the device, and turned back to look down at them.

"We don't know," Kirk replied, "We hope to open it, very soon, with the computer hardware in the other cave."

"Mr. Kirk," Corvana began to say, but Kirk stopped her.

"Please," Kirk said with a smile, "Call me Jim."

The teens all nodded their heads to his request.

"Okay, but Jim," Corvana said, as Kirk came back down the steps. "All your friends out there are worried as to where you went when you disappeared with that woman inside that holographic merry-go-round back on Earth. Why is this so secret?"

Robert and Rochan had no idea what Corvana was talking about (but of course, we do dear readers), but were impressed that she seemed so connected with someone as renowned as Jim Kirk.

"Yes, I know," Jim Kirk replied. "But due to the sensitive nature of this," he motioned back at the strange device, "I have been asked to investigate it with as much secrecy as possible."

"Why?" Robert asked. "I mean, someone must know what you're doing here if you're getting all of this equipment to help."

Kirk didn't like all the questioning because it meant he had to reveal more than he wanted to. He gave Sulu an exasperated look.

"Don't look at me, Jim;" Sulu said with a smile, "these kids are way smarter than we were at that age."

Kirk nodded in agreement.

"C'mon," he said, as he made his way back to the other room where the computers were. The three teens, and Sulu, followed him.

He walked over to control panel and activated a large screen which was mounted on one of the cave walls. The image of a woman, with sharp oriental angles to her face, appeared.

"Her name," Jim Kirk began to explain, "is Azami. She may look like a human, but she is actually a shape-shifter."

The teens all had worried looks on their faces.

"You mean like the Founders?" Rochan asked. The others looked at Rochan. "My uncle was killed during the Dominion War, "he told them.

"No, she isn't a Founder," Jim Kirk replied. "Her species of shape-shifters, they call themselves the Imeyah, come from the Delta-Quadrant. Thousands upon thousands of years ago, the Imeyah shape-shifters tried to control the galaxy but were thwarted. There is even speculation they had a hand in the creation of the Borg."

"What does this Azami want?" Corvana asked.

Kirk looked up at the image of Azami, then back at the teenagers.

"Apparently, she was sent here as an advanced scout for conquest, and posed as a human," Kirk pointed up at the image, "and conspired with others to create an army of hologram soldiers that could exist in reality. Eventually she and her collaborators (Laas and Moriarty) were exposed (earlier plotlines of course) and she was sent to a penal colony."

"However," Sulu took over for Kirk, "during that final Borg attack several months ago, they destroyed the penal colony and Azami was believed to be destroyed with it."

Robert spoke next.

"This is all interesting," Robert Canary said, "but what does this have to do with that singularity thing in the other cave?"

Jim Kirk nodded his head; the kids did indeed ask good questions.

"That device is one of two that have been secretly located inside the Naissance," Kirk explained. "From what we can tell, the one in our cave has not been activated for eons. The other one we know for a fact was used; as recently as just a week ago. Now, as it is," Kirk continued, "we have not tipped our hand to the fact that we know that other one is being used because we want to know who it is who is using them."

"And you think it is her?" Rochan concluded, as he pointed at the image of Azami.

"How do you know?" Corvana asked.

Kirk pushed a button and the image of another device, which looked exactly like the one in the other cave, was shown. But this device was located in a desert setting, but hidden from plain sight due to the fact it was set in a low canyon.

"This device is located on continent 5225-B," Sulu said. "As you know, there are close to 14,000 continents inside this Dysonsphere, most of which have not yet totally been explored. So we set a recording probe to record if anyone was using it; watch closely."

The footage on the screen showed the two arms of the device, which overlapped, spinning quickly and then…poof…someone appeared in the center. Once the arms stopped revolving, the person stepped out of the device; it was Azami. But then, she started to morph into someone else, but the footage on the screen ended before revealing the new person she became.

"Where did she go?" Rochan asked.

Kirk shook his head.

"We don't know," Kirk replied. "And the fact the device hasn't been used in over a week may be an indication that our presence near that other device is known. So," Kirk continued, "we have two mysteries; where do these devices connect to and…"

Before Kirk could conclude his thought, Robert Canary did for him.

"…who is Azami masquerading as?"

Jim Kirk nodded his head in agreement.

"Jim," Corvana said, "S'vath told his father, Spock, that he saw you with some woman you knew in the past; Edith Keeler. What could someone from four-hundred years ago have to do with any of this?"

Jim Kirk nodded at the question, and then decided to tell them the truth about that.

"Yes, I was wondering how I would explain that," Kirk told Corvana. "The merry-go-round, along with me and her, were transported up to a ship. And as I would come to find out, it really wasn't Edith at all; it was a lure."

"You mean it was a trap?" Rochan asked.

Kirk nodded his head.

"Trap is to harsh of a word, but," Kirk stressed, "And soon I understood why they went through great lengths to obscure my disappearance."

Rochan, Robert and Corvana all looked at each other, and then back at Kirk.

"They; who are they?" Robert asked.

Kirk looked over at another cave wall, and the large boulder they had walked passed by earlier began go morph into another shape; a hominoid shape that the three teens recognized immediately from their history lessons; the Lady Founder; she smiled at them.

The three teens were suddenly very worried…

Continued…

**-Character spotlight; Sulu…**

Just to recap Hikaru Sulu's presence in this story. When we first met Sulu, way back, we found out that just like Spock, he had lived a normal life and was very old in the "post-Star Trek Nemesis" era. But during an earlier plotline, aged-Sulu had traveled back into time, some 50,000 years ago; along with Scotty I might add (the Scotty we last saw in Relics). They were eventually put inside of stasis chambers (inside the large head of Vaal by the way, but hidden) and awoke back in our time but physically younger. The effects of time-displacement wore off, and they were aged again, but not so much; so Sulu, right now, looks as he did in Star Trek The Undiscovered Country.

Scotty, of course, was eventually murdered by Sybok in another earlier plotline.


	378. Writings on the Wall

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Writing on the Walls**

* * *

**Earth-2**

Three transporter signals solidified in a dimly lit cavernous expanse, some 750 feet below the surface of Earth-2. Chakotay and F.S.B. agents Amaranth and Ryan Tolbert, each wore a flashlight device around the wrist of their right arms. But while the flashlights were needed, they had not arrived totally in the dark; there were light panels and they…were powered.

They continued with a conversation they were having before beaming down from Amaranth's vessel, the Draconis, which was in orbit of Earth-2.

"Chakotay; you want us to believe that on Earth, this Earth, a reptilian race evolved to an advanced point," Ryan said, with disbelief in this voice, "and that they left Earth to find a new home in the Delta-Quadrant?"

Chakotay didn't even bother getting too much deeper into the past, because at times, he found it hard to believe too.

"I would guess that is what we're here to find out," Chakotay replied, "However, more importantly, if they were responsible for the virus that killed off the humans of this Earth centuries ago, then the Voth pose a danger to our Earth."

As Chakotay and Ryan Tolbert, as well as Amaranth, made their way through the twists and turns of the strange underground cave construct, Amaranth had the strangest sensation that they were being watched; and she was right.

* * *

**Amaranth's ship; the Draconis…**

Frederic Thorn and Annika Hansen deactivated their phasing devices and fully materialized on the bridge of the ship. The voice of the AI spoke upon detecting their life signs.

:: Intruders; please identify yourselves::

Frederick Thorn removed his floppy old fishing hat and placed it on one of the control panels.

"Phoenix," Frederic said, "I believe if you activate your sub-routine 3487500-omega, you will recognized my voice."

"Wait a second," Annika said, "I thought you told me that the AI on this ship was once the living essence of a plasma entity which has usurped the computer systems of the Draconis."

Frederic nodded his head as he went over to the small sized food replicator near the back of the bridge.

"Something like that," Frederic said, as he pressed a button and two apples appeared. He picked them up and flung one of them over to Annika. "However, this isn't the first time Phoenix and I have crossed paths. I'm a time-traveler; remember?"

Annika shook her head, totally confused.

"Well, although I was once part of the Borg collective," Annika began to say, "I must say that in the present my concept of time paradoxes is not what it used to be."

Frederic removed a device from his checkered pattern golfing pants and looked at the screen upon it. There were a series of numbers and computations. He had shown Annika the device before, but she declined wanting to know how it worked in order to preserve some level of time-traveling discipline on her part.

"So what do we do now?" Annika asked.

Frederic read the numbers and told her a half truth.

"Trust me," he told her, "in order to maintain the size of any ripples we might create in the continuum, there are certain points of time when we have to remain un-involved; this is one of those times."

What he neglected to tell her was the simple fact that according to the numbers on the device's screen, the entire galaxy was approaching what could be described as a mega-event in the continuum. And if what the numbers were leading him to believe was true; nothing would be the same after the event rippled out. He took a big bite of his apple and sat down; there was nothing else he could do for now.

"So, you're just going to sit there?" Annika asked; still standing.

"I'm sorry," he told her with a wide smile, "did you want to come over here and," he smiled a devious smile, "mess around?"

Annika shook her head and sat down across from him, taking a bite out of her apple too.

* * *

**Back down on the planet...in the caves below the surface!**

Beneath the surface of the planet below, Chakotay, Amaranth and Ryan Tolbert made their way deeper into the artificial cave setting, with its steps and cavernous spaces, until finally they came upon a large wall that had what appeared to be ancient drawing and text upon it. Chakotay looked at the wall, trying to make sense of it.

"Can you actually read any of that?" Amaranth asked Chakotay.

Chakotay shined his light directly at the wall, and upon hearing Amaranth's words, he nodded his head.

"The text on this part of the wall," Chakotay said, pointing at the strange lettering, "is the same sort of melodic symbols that Jim Kirk and Spock found on the obelisk on that other planet where they encountered native-Americans; Preserver markings no doubt. These strange drawings," Chakotay said, pointing at another area of the wall, "were done by native-Americans, I would guess Apache or Navajo, but these," he pointed at a third set of markings, "are Voth writings."

"How can you be sure?" Ryan Tolbert asked.

Chakotay pointed at different groups of markings.

"When I was with the Voth, I spent most of my time with an Archeologist named Galen," Chakotay told the others. "I can't tell you how many times we discovered ancient Voth cultures, and these markings," he pointed at them again, "are Voth."

Ryan Tolbert shook his head.

"Chakotay, I'm no expert," Ryan Tolbert said, "But it doesn't make sense. I can buy the fact that those are Voth markings," he said, pointing at them, "and that these," he then pointed at the Preserver markings, "are Preserver markings; but how did these," he pointed at the native-American writings, "get down here? Native-Americans did not live on Earth; 65 million years ago."

"He's got a point," Amaranth said to Chakotay, "though I hate to admit it."

Chakotay nodded in agreement, and was about to respond when suddenly they heard a noise in the distance; something or someone had knocked over one of the boulders they had passed.

"We're not alone," Ryan Tolbert said, as he drew his weapon.

"Perhaps our unknown visitors from above," Amaranth suggested.

"There must be one of their ships in orbit," Chakotay told the other two, "and they beamed down here."

"Or," Ryan Tolbert countered, "there's another way down here other than by Transporter," he motioned toward the native-American drawings as proof.

"Can we beam out?" Chakotay asked Amaranth?

She shook her head.

"No, like I said earlier," she told him, "some parts of this underground setting are causing interference with the transporter locks."

The three of them drew their weapons and slowly headed back the way they came because it was the only way out. What they didn't know was that in order to get to an area they could beam out from, they would have to get past Voth warriors!

Continued…


	379. Meddler

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Meddler**

* * *

_**Previously…**_

_**Earth-2**_

_Three transporter signals solidified in a dimly lit cavernous expanse, some 750 feet below the surface of Earth-2. Chakotay and F.S.B. agents Amaranth and Ryan Tolbert, each wore a flashlight device around the wrist of their right arms. But while the flashlights were needed, they had not arrived totally in the dark; there were light panels and they…were powered._

_"Chakotay; you want us to believe that on this Earth, a reptilian race evolved to an advanced point," Ryan asked._

_"I would guess that is what we're here to find out," Chakotay replied.._

_**Amaranth's ship; the Draconis…**_

_Frederic Thorn and Annika Hansen deactivated their phasing devices and fully materialized on the bridge of the ship. The voice of the AI spoke upon detecting their life signs._

_Frederic removed a device from his checkered pattern golfing pants and looked at the screen upon it. It was a device that used a 26 dimension formula to read statistical time compressions, and was constructed by Walter Bishop. _

_"So what do we do now?" Annika asked. Frederic read the numbers and told her a half truth._

_"Trust me," he told her, looking at the numbers;"we can't do anything yet." What he neglected to tell her was the simple fact that according to the numbers on the device's screen, the entire galaxy was approaching what could be described as a mega-event in the continuum. He watched as Annika went about exploring the Draconis's bridge, and then he took something else out of his pocket. He placed the small object, which was totally black and spherical, and placed it on the chair next to him. He pressed a button on one of the ship's control panels, and the spherical object beamed away. He made sure that Annika did not see what he had done…_

_**Back down on the planet...in the caves below the surface!**_

_Beneath the surface of the planet below, Chakotay, Amaranth and Ryan Tolbert made their way deeper into the artificial cave setting, with its steps and cavernous spaces, until finally they came upon a large wall that had what appeared to be ancient drawing and text upon it. Chakotay looked at the wall, trying to make sense of it and was about to say something when suddenly they heard a noise in the distance; something or someone had knocked over one of the boulders they had passed._

_"We're not alone," Ryan Tolbert said, as he drew his weapon._

_The three of them drew their weapons and slowly headed back the way they came because it was the only way out. What they didn't know was that in order to get to an area they could beam out from, they would have to get past Voth warriors!_

"_They're approaching," Amaranth said with a whisper to the other two._

Our story continues…

Chakotay's attention was distracted when down at the ground near his boot, a small object suddenly appeared. Confident that neither Amaranth or Ryan were looking, he reached down and picked it up; but knowing now wasn't the time to see what it was, he just put it in his pocket.

"To hell with this," Agent Ryan Tolbert said, "I'd rather attack than defend. Let's go…" he said, as pulled out his weapon and swiftly ran through the entrance way.

Amaranth and Chakotay shared an annoyed look at Ryan Tolbert, and followed him. Chakotay drew his phaser, Amaranth her .45s. As the three of them entered the next cavern, it became illuminated from several light panels that suddenly snapped on; and then Chakotay saw the two attackers, and the former Voyager XO said one word;

"Voth," Chakotay said.

And then the fight began!...but…then it didn't…because from Chakotay's point of view everything froze..

* * *

_Chakotay looked to his right and saw Amaranth, who seemed to be frozen in time, with her old fashion guns in her hand. Chakotay looked to his left and saw that Ryan Tolbert had his own modern weapon in his hand, ready to fire at the reptile attackers. Suddenly the spherical object in his pocket, on its own, flew out of his pocket and hovered before him and then…poof… from out of nowhere, a man appeared; Fredric Thorn._

"_You," Chakotay said to Fredric. "You're the one traveling around the Alpha-Quadrant with Annika."_

_Fredric smiled, and adjusted his hat; an old golfer's loafer hat upon his head._

"_Well," Fredric said, in his eclectic way, "we've done far more than that. We've been to the past, we're about to go into the future. You might say; there is no limit to what she and I will do."_

"_I assume you stopped time," Chakotay said, motioning to the frozen scene around them. "Why?" Chakotay added._

_A serious look came over Fredric's face._

"_I shouldn't be telling you any of this, but I am, or will, because of Annika," Fredric said. "I am trying to tamper with the time-continuum thingy."_

"_You're altering time?" Chakotay asked. "I didn't think that was possible."_

"_Oh but it is; the Q did it all the time," Fredric came back with. "But whatever, I am trying to save everyone but I keep running up against aspects I can't seem to control."_

_Chakotay looked at the much younger man, and then gave him some sage advice._

"_Then maybe you shouldn't mess around with time after all," Chakotay said. "Let destiny play its course. The Q should have stopped meddling eons ago, but they didn't, and look where it got them."_

"_If I don't help," Fredric said, with worry in his voice, "we all die."_

_Even Chakotay didn't like the sound of that._

"_And this fight we're about to have," Chakotay said, "Is that important you had to stop it?"_

_Fredric nodded his head. _

"_Yes it is, but the fight will still happen." Fredric said. "I don't have," he smiled before going on, "time to get into it all. But the fight will happen and one of you is going to be severely injured. Annika will convince me to help, and I will. However, it will send ripples through the time stream, both ways. This is what you must remember though; after the fight is over, and Annika and I depart to get help, you must return to this cavern and," he pointed at one of the far cave walls, "you must enter the chamber beyond that wall."_

"_Why?" Chakotay asked, "What is in there?"_

_Fredric smiled again._

"_I can't tell you, nor can you find out now," Fredric said. "But no matter what happens, you must go inside that next chamber and then you will be told," Fredric stopped in mid-sentence, and then continued, "strike that; you will come upon information that must be followed through or all of humanity will be lost; as well as all life in the galaxy."_

_Chakotay shook his head._

"_What if I die in this coming fight," Chakotay asked, motioning toward the Voth attackers._

"_Don't die," Fredric said, "and whatever you do; don't tell anyone else. And no matter what you find in that other chamber, do not let it phase you."_

_And then, as suddenly as Fredric appeared, he was gone, and the spherical object returned and fell to the ground._

_Chakotay swiftly ran over to the cave wall Fredric pointed at. Just like the other walls, there was ancient writing upon it, but this writing used symbols from a Native American culture and Chakotay was able to decipher the lone word._

"_Stavros," Chakotay said as he read the symbols, "who or what is Stavros?"_

And, just then, time on froze. Chakotay whirled around to hear the Voth speak.

"Trespassers," one of the Voth exclaimed.

"They must die!" said the other. "Humans, you must be destroyed and we shall be the instruments of your deaths.

"Phoenix! Get us out of here!" Amaranth cried, tapping her com-badge.

It squawked ineffectively; signaling that a jamming field had been erected.

By the time the Voth had gotten halfway across the intervening space; Amaranth had drawn both her .45s, and taken aim at the two soldiers, even as she fired.

Chakotay fired at one, dissolving its head instantly. Tolbert started firing at the remaining Voth, but his unmodified hand phaser was poorly suited for striking down his opponent.

"Oh shit," Tolbert said.

There was a loud roar, followed by another, and another. Amaranth continued firing until a loud click indicated that she was out of ammo. The soldier toppled to the ground, but more poured in. Chakotay took out three more, before the phaser beam began to sputter.

Only two were left at this point, and Amaranth took one down with a flying tackle while the other focused on Chakotay and Tolbert.

Amaranth and her opponent separated, before engaging again. Amaranth drove a knee into the soldier's sternum, and then placed a rather strong kick in the stomach. The Voth grunted slightly, but barreled towards Amaranth, who danced out of the way, delivering a haymaker in the process. It was instantly followed with a two-hand chop to the head that felled the reptilian life-form. Amaranth stood unsteadily for a moment, catching her breath, when she noticed that Tolbert was out cold, and Chakotay was having a hard time not being destroyed by his opponent.

_"No..."_ she thought. _"He is not going to die on my watch!"_

Continued…


	380. Perception of Chance

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Perception by Chance.**

**Inside the Naissance; (a Federation Dysonsphere that is used to help save endangered plant and animal life forms from throughout the galaxy.)**

_Previously…_

_Corvana had to forcibly land the small shuttle she had stolen a giant T-Rex chased them into a cave. While exploring strange computerized sounds that were coming from deep inside the cave, the three of them found themselves face to face with James T Kirk and Hikaru Sulu!_

_"Mr. Sulu and I are trying to save the Federation," Kirk told them. ""I am;" he searched his mind for the right term, "deputizing the three of you to help; am I clear?"_

_The three teens followed Jim Kirk and Hikaru Sulu past a large boulder and then deeper into the cave and into another cavern. In the center of the cavern was a strange looking contraption, which looked very old. The strange device was the size of a large wall, with steps, that when take, led to the top to where, it seemed, a person would stand in between two overlapping circular arms._

_"We don't know what will happen if someone is standing inside those arms if we activate the device."_

_They went back into the other cavern where the control panels were. Kirk activated a large screen which was mounted on one of the cave walls. The image of a woman, with sharp oriental angles to her face, appeared._

_"Her name," Jim Kirk began to explain, "is Azami. She may look like a human, but she is actually a shape-shifter. The Federation, and more specifically Admiral Picard, had dealings with her before. Her race are shape-shifters and extremely powerful. Apparently, she was sent here as an advanced scout for conquest, and chose this appearance," he pointed at the screen._

_Jim Kirk nodded his head at Sulu to continue._

_"That device is one of two that have been secretly located inside the Naissance," Sulue explained. "We have not tipped our hand to the fact that we know that other one is being used because we want to know who it is who is using it._

_"And you think it is her?" Rochan concluded, as he pointed at the image of Azami._

_Kirk pushed a button and the image of another device, which looked exactly like the one in the other cave, was shown. But this device was located in a desert setting, but hidden from plain sight due to the fact it was set in a low canyon._

_"This device is located on continent 5225-B," Sulu said. "We set a recording device to record if anyone was using it; watch closely."_

_Once the arms stopped revolving atop the device, a person stepped out of the device; it was Azami. But then, she started to morph into someone else, but the footage on the screen ended before revealing the new person she became._

"_We don't know who she is posing as," Kirk said. "We have someone helping us."_

_Kirk looked over at another cave wall, and the large boulder they had walked passed by earlier began go morph into another shape; a hominoid shape that the three teens recognized immediately from their history lessons; the Lady Founder; she smiled at them._

_The three teens were suddenly very worried…_

_Our story continues…_

* * *

The Lady Founder looked at the worried teens.

"I see," Lady Founder said, "that the Federation education system had succeeded in vilifying my race."

Sulu shook his head.

"I wouldn't go that far," Sulu said. "I think their apprehension is due to the fact of who specifically you are."

She looked directly at Robert Canary; who although he was startled at seeing her, kept a strong facial expression.

"You fear me," she asked.

Robert thought for a moment.

"The Federation education is, as you just said, very thorough," Robert said, "but if Captain Kirk and Mr. Sulu are here with you, then we have to trust their judgments."

Then she looked at Rochan; his face not as strong.

"You seem to be very afraid of me," Lady Founder said to Rochan.

Rochan tried to swallow his spit, but there was none to swallow.

"My uncle died in the Dominion War," Rochan said, as he broke her glance and looked at the ground before his feet.

The Lady Founder didn't even apologize.

Jim Kirk didn't like the tension, and moved in between the Lady Founder and the three youngsters.

"I'm not sure what you're trying to accomplish," Jim Kirk said to her, "by scaring these children; but I suggest we get back on track."

"Jim," Sulu said, "what are we going to do with them?" Sulu asked.

Kirk already had an idea, and turned around and faced the three young teens.

"How exactly did the three of you come to be here," Kirk asked with a suspicious tone.

Robert Canary and Rochan looked over at Corvana. Kirk knew of Corvana, and the wild streak inside of her. He smiled at the girl.

"You stole the shuttle craft for a good time," Kirk said to her, "didn't you?"

She nodded her head.

"But I swear," She added, "I didn't mean to crash it here. An energy pulse knocked the engines out and we had to land. And then that monster…"

"It's called a Tyrannosaurus rex." Rochan corrected her.

"Whatever," Corvana said to Rochan, "that thing chased us into here."

"My point is," Kirk said to her, "you wouldn't be here unless you had stolen the shuttle."

Corvana was about to protest the accusation, but then just nodded her head.

"Don't worry about it," Jim Kirk said, "I've stolen a few shuttle craft in my time," he added with a slight smile, "But here's the deal," he said to all three of them, "you're going to have to go back but not tell anyone we are here. And then," Kirk said, "I want you to keep an eye on everyone at the main Starfleet Complex where you stole the shuttle because we have to find out who Azami is posing as, and right now, you three are the only options I have."

Robert looked at the

"My father has told me about this Azami shape-shifter," Robert Canary said. "From what he said, she was nearly impossible to stop. The fact she's even still alive is quite interesting since I remember him telling me that the Borg destroyed the penal colony she was on."

Kirk nodded his head.

"Oh, she's a squirrely one to be sure," Kirk said, "But somehow she did survive that attack and now she's involved with something else; and we need to find out what it is."

"So why not just get a bunch of security officers, and secure the other device?" Rochan asked.

"We could do that," Sulu said, "but then she'd get away."

"Then destroy the device she is using, and the one in the other cave, and be done with it." Corvana suggested.

"We can't," Kirk said. "We don't know what destroying these devices would do to the stability of the Naissance. We know that the device she's using, the one on continent 5225-B, is being powered, somehow, by the Naissance. For all we know, the builders of the Naissance left them here for a reason, so for now, destroying them is not an option."

Suddenly Sulu spoke.

"Jim," Sulu said, as he wore a communications ear piece, "two shuttles have been dispatched to this area. We better come up with something; and fast."

Lady Founder spoke next.

"These young humans must be dealt with," she said to Kirk. "If they report our presence, it will jeopardize everything. And remember Kirk;" she added, "Azami's actions not only threaten your Federation; but the Great-Link as well. And to ensure the safety of both, these unimportant young humans must not be allowed to interfere."

Kirk looked at Lady Founder.

"Admiral Janeway's people already know the shuttle is here," Kirk told her, "if these kids suddenly disappear, they will search for them."

Lady Founder nodded her head.

"I am well aware of that," Lady Founder said, "which is why when the security dispatch gets here, they should find the shuttle and," she added looking at Robert-Rochan and Corvana, "three dead bodies."

"Don't even think about it," Kirk said to Lady Founder. "Besides," he added, as he looked at Robert-Rochan and Corvana, "they could help us find out who Azami is posing as."

"Perhaps," Lady Founder said, "but I warn you Kirk; if Azami is exposed and decides to attack; your simplistic words cannot describe the damage she could do and the lives that will be lost in the process."

"Can you do it," Kirk asked the three kids. "Can you go back to that Starfleet complex and try to find out who Azami is?"

"Well, for one thing," Robert Canary replied, "we're going to be in trouble. And, on top of that, how can we find out who she is posing as?"

Sulu came over and handed Robert a small flat square object.

"This will help," Sulu told Robert. "This will vibrate if she comes within two a meter of you."

"A meter," Rochan protested. "What then? She could kill us before we did anything to stop her."

Kirk shook his head.

"Now listen to me," Kirk told them, "you don't do anything to arouse her suspicions. Just find out who she is, then let us know."

"And how do we do that?" Corvana asked.

"Find any communicator, and use this frequency," he handed Corvana a piece of paper with the frequency written on it. "It's a top-secret frequency, and will put you in direct contact with me immediately. The Lady Founder is right," he added, "if Azami is exposed, she would do anything, kill anyone, to escape."

"What about the trouble we'll be in?" Robert asked. "We could be thrown out of the Naissance for what we've done."

Kirk thought for a moment, and then he had an answer.

"Don't worry," Kirk told them, "I have faith in your abilities to improvise and why not; your father, who I have met, is a Starship Captain," Kirk said to Robert, "and from what I know of him, he is a good friend of Chancellor Martok; so am I. In fact, Martok will be visiting the Naissance for a week starting tomorrow; they won't risk his anger punishing you."

Rochan nodded his head.

"I could see that helping Robert," Rochan said, "but what about me and Corvana?"

"Well," Kirk said to Corvana and Rochan, "you two will just have to blame," he pointed at Robert, "him." Kirk looked at Robert. "I know it won't seem fair, taking the blame for something Corvana did," Kirk said to Robert, "but in time, this will all come out and you will all be exonerated."

"Besides," Corvana added with a sardonic expression, "it might help your vanilla image."

Robert looked at his two friends, then Lady Founder, then Sulu and then back to Kirk.

"Alright," Robert said to Kirk, "I'll do it," he added as he put the square object in his pocket.

Moments later, Robert Canary, Rochan and Corvana had left the cave where Kirk and the others were, and hid near a cluster of trees. There was no sign of the T-rex and finally two shuttles landed next to the shuttle the kids had taken earlier. Robert and the others revealed themselves and were ordered on to one of the shuttles and then both shuttles took back off, and zipped away.

Hidden from sight, Kirk-Sulu and Lady Founder watched as the shuttles zipped fast away.

"You should have killed them," Lady Founder said to Kirk.

Kirk looked at her and shook his head.

"From what I know your species," Kirk told her, "you're never really children are you?"

"That is true," she told Kirk. "The knowledge our younglings need comes from the Great-Link."

"Our children," Kirk told her, "are quite adaptable. Corvana has proven herself to be quite resourceful in the past, and the two young men are, from what I can tell, very sturdy individuals. And the fact is," Kirk added, "we need to get a fix on Azami so we can find out what she's up to and where she goes when she uses the device. That is why we are here," Kirk concluded.

Meanwhile, outside of the Naissance, USS B'newall, an Excelsior class-starship came out of warp and prepared to traverse the entrance into the Naissance. Aboard the ship were new crew additions, and a visitor; Walter Bishop.

Walter Bishop was in his quarters aboard the B'newall and completed packing his belongings. He took one last look out the view port, and smiled at the Naissance, which was nearly the size of a solar-system, and was in awe.

Yes; he had visited the massive construct before, at the outset of the Highland ordeal, but now, on this visit, it was much different feeling. It was much different because Walter Bishop knew something that probably no one else knew; the Naissance would soon be the last hope for the galaxy!

continued...


	381. Death Flight

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Death Flight**

**Previously…**

**Earth; Star Fleet Command…**

Will Decker was admiring a plaque dedicated to his father; Matt Decker, when heard a pleasant voice behind him.

"You've been staring at that wall for quite some time," came from a female's voice.

"Oh," Decker said, peeking up at his father's image one last time, "I was just looking at it for old time sake."

The woman smiled.

"My name is Lal," she told him. "My father is on this wall as well."

"You're an android," Decker said to her, as they began to walk together into the academy grounds. "Admiral Picard told me that Commander Data had been successful l in creating an offspring."

"Commander Decker…" Lal began to say, but Decker stopped her by cutting in.

"Will," he told her, "please call me Willard, or Will, for short."

She nodded her head.

"Will," she continued to say, "I don't believe Curtis," she paused to find the right word, "is gone."

Lal went on to say, "I read the de-briefing highlights that Admiral Picard and the others gave. And yes, I am also aware of the sensor reports and all the information that proves beyond a doubt that the Hauck was destroyed. But as for Curtis," she continued to say, "He has died before; at least twice. And after both times; he came back."

"That is interesting to hear," Decker told Lal. "I wonder why Admiral Picard chose not to tell me about those two incidents."

At that moment, another young ensign came over to where they were sitting. It was Ensign Rebecca Sisko, daughter of Benjamin Sisko and close friend of Lal.

"I was just telling Will about our interesting interactions with Curtis Daystrom," Lal explained to Rebecca.

Rebecca nodded her head.

"I still don't understand it all," Rebecca said to Lal and Will. "But I know someone who can tell us more about Curtis; my father."

"Because of Ilya," Will Decker said. "What she and I shared; if Curtis can come back from wherever artificial life forms go when they cease to exist; then why couldn't both of them?"

Rebecca nodded at the logic of it all.

"Well, then yes, come with us. We are going to visit my father; in fact," Rebecca teased Willard with, "Jim Kirk actually saved my life on a couple of occasions."

"Well," Will Decker said, "I better go book package on the transport vessel taking you there. I can't wait to meet your father," Decker said to Rebecca.

The three of them stood up and headed out of the Star Fleet Academy food court, and toward the booking center. What they didn't notice was that someone else was monitoring their movements. He tapped a small communicator which was clipped to the lapel of his shirt.

"Decker could become a problem," the man said. He waited for a response.

_"If his being there becomes a distraction," the voice said from the communicator said, after a moment, "then eliminate the distraction. But don't act too rashly," the voice added. "He could be useful when you get to where you're going."_

The man nodded in agreement, and then stood up and made his way out of the food court as well. His destination was the transport vessel that would soon be leaving for Timus Prime, but would actually end up somewhere else altogether; "The Planet of the Living Dead!"

**Our story continues…**

* * *

Several hours later, the transport vessel was well on its way to Starbase-16 (currently featured in my TOS story "Time Keeper) and from there, the transport vessel would continue on to DS9. The passengers had all settled in to their seats, without incident, and were either involved in discussions with other passengers, or sleeping, or reading or a myriad of other things passengers usually do.

Decker had been in a non ending conversation with both Lal and Rebecca about his exploits, leading up to the final showdown with the V'ger cloud and subsequent revelation that at the heart of it was an antiquated Voyager probe.

"So what was it like," Rebecca asked, "when you merged with Ilya?"

Decker could see the awe in the young ebony skinned girl's eyes. Lal seemed interested as well, but only in a matter of fact way.

"Well, at first," Decker told Rebecca, "I stood there as she walked up to me, and glanced over at Kirk, Spock and McCoy; nothing was happening. And then," Decker said, his voice becoming softer in volume, "every muscle in my body began to feel warm; my mind was flooded with absolute thoughts of euphoria and…content. As I looked into Ilya's eyes, I could feel my soul, and whatever it was that comprised Ilya's artificial existence, merging. And then the entire universe seemed like a large flower; beginning to bloom; it was, dare I say, the most orgasmic experience I had ever known. And from that moment on, my humanity became more as both she and I became one."

Decker looked at Rebecca, and could see her smiling, holding on to Lal's hand very tightly.

"That sounds so," Rebecca began to say, her voice filled with excitement, "romantic. I wish I could have been there to see that. Sometime back, Spock told me about the explosion of light and plasma that he and the others witnessed after you and Ilya became one. So what happened after that…what did you become; where did you go?"

As he looked at Rebecca, who yearned for more of the story, Willard Decker thought of Ilya and Curtis. Where were they now and were they both destroyed? He had to find out for sure. Until he felt 100% sure they had both been destroyed, Willard Decker would go on searching for them.

It was then that the transport vessel suddenly lurched to the side.

"What was that?" Rebecca wondered.

"Maybe we hit something," Decker replied.

Lal shook her head.

"I do not believe so," Lal told Decker. "My audio did not detect any impact sounds; the sudden move was mechanical."

"Mechanical," Willard Decker said, "what does that mean."

Before Lal could respond, all hell broke loose. The ship began to shake violently and lurched forward and back. Some of the passengers began to panic and screen.

Decker spoke to the two girls, his voice raised due to the loud commotion of the passengers.

"The ship is acting," Decker told them both, "as if its programming is not responding and so the captain and his crew are trying to regain control manually."

"So the manual overdrive isn't working," Lal commented.

"When does it ever," Decker said, with a slight tone of humor in his voice.

He was concerned for his safety, and the safety of Lal and Rebecca, but he also knew there wasn't much they could do but hope control was regained and…suddenly it was…slightly. All though the rattling of the ship was over, it was still lightly shaking.

"All hands, this is the captain," a voice said from the ship's PA system, "we are going to have to make an emergency landing; prepare!"

The passengers did as instructed and strapped themselves in. The ship began to shake violently again, and then, as it dove through the atmosphere of an M-class planet, and the effects of gravity became more pronounced, unsecured objects began to whirl about the cabin. Clutter began to strike the bulkheads, and the ship continued to shake when suddenly…

"All hands; brace for impact!" came for the captains voice.

The shuttle skimmed across the top of some trees, and when there was an opening, the captain aimed the transport vessel down and lowered its emergency landing gear; the ship thumped into the ground, violently…and then it came to a stop.

Several moans came from various passengers as the emergency lights flickered. The crew of the transport vessel began to treat the wounded. Luckily Willard Decker, Lal nor Rebecca Sisko were injured, and their Starfleet training kicked in and they assisted best they could. Several minutes later, all was calm as it became apparent there were no serious injuries; just a couple broken arms and bruised kidneys. The captain's voice came back over the PA.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the captain said, "this is Captain Porter; it appears as if we're pretty much okay," he told them. "But I must ask you all to remain calm. The ship is not on fire, and for now, I'd like us all to remain in the ship until we get a better grip of the situation, hold a second," he told them. "I have more info," he continued, "we have landed on the Federation colony world of," he paused for a moment, "Drobix."

Lal and Rebecca immediately shot a worried look at each other, which Decker saw from where he was sitting. He went over to them and sat next to them.

"What's wrong," Decker asked Rebecca. He kept his voice low. "You both look as if you've seen a ghost. Have you been here before?"

Rebecca nodded her head and added these simple words…

"If we don't get off this world, as fast as we can," she said, with fear in her voice. 'We're all dead!"

Continued…


	382. Winged Wonder

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Winged Wonder**

**Previously…**

_(This is a truncated version of a fight that occurred in issue "Meddler"…so please re-read that issue for a more detailed description)_

There was a loud roar, followed by another, and another. Amaranth continued firing until a loud click indicated that she was out of ammo. The soldier toppled to the ground, but more poured in. Chakotay took out three more, before the phaser beam began to sputter.

Only two were left at this point, and Amaranth took one down with a flying tackle while the other focused on Chakotay and Tolbert.

Amaranth and her opponent separated, before engaging again. Amaranth drove a knee into the soldier's sternum, and then placed a rather strong kick in the stomach. The Voth grunted slightly, but barreled towards Amaranth, who danced out of the way, delivering a haymaker in the process. It was instantly followed with a two-hand chop to the head that felled the reptilian life-form. Amaranth stood unsteadily for a moment, catching her breath, when she noticed that Tolbert was out cold, and Chakotay was having a hard time not being destroyed by his opponent.

_"No..."_ she thought. _"He is not going to die on my watch!"_

Just then, Amaranth saw a flicker of motion, as one remaining Voth fired at Chakotay. Without a second's thought, she jumped in front of the beam, stopping it from hitting Chakotay. The beam devastated her chest and left lung, and she collapsed to the ground, wheezing. Fire glimmered in her eyes, and she raised her left hand towards the Voth, palm outwards, as if to ward off another attack. _"Jierda."_ she whispered.

The Voth fell to the ground, convulsed twice, then stilled.

"Amaranth!" Chakotay cried, running over to her.

"Don't...talk...listen...I...need...my...Rider. He...can...help..." Amaranth wheezed, coughing. Bright red blood spurted from the wound, and Chakotay knew that the wound was probably fatal.

"Where is he?" Chakotay asked.

"Earth...I...th...th...think." Amaranth replied. A moment later, the blood flow slowed to a slight trickle, and she slumped to the ground, her eyes closed and a peaceful expression on her face.

* * *

**_Our story continues..._**

Moments later, a stunned Ryan Tolbert and Chakotay, who was holding Amaranth in his arms, beamed back aboard the Draconis; Amaranth's Defiant-class starship which was in orbit of Earth-2. They had materialized in the small ship's sickbay. Ryan Tolbert, though stunned, immediately raised his phaser and aimed it at two unexpected guests; Annika Hansen and Fredric Thorne.

"Annika," Chakotay said, as he gently lowered Amaranth down upon one of the two med-beds, "what the hell are you doing here?"

Chakotay's eyes locked with Fredric, who slightly shook his head; a message to Chakotay to not reveal the earlier conversation.

"To be honest," Annika said, "I'm not really sure myself," she told Chakotay. "Though," she added, looking at Fredric, "if Fredric and I are here; we're here for a reason; his mysterious reason of course."

Fredric and Annika came over to the med-bed and looked down upon the injured woman.

"Who is she?" Annika asked, noticing that Chakotay cared for the woman.

"Her name is Amaranth, and," Chakotay added, "I owe her my life," he added as he worked the med-scans.

It was clear that Agent Tolbert was not happy with the turn of events down on the planet below.

"She's going to die," Ryan Tolbert said, with anger in his voice. "Listen to me, Chakotay," Tolbert said, his words took on a tone of accusation, "did you have any idea that the Voth were down there? You were with them for many years!"

Chakotay shot Agent Tolbert a look of irritation.

"No, I had no idea they were down there," Chakotay replied. "It is possible, I admit, that when they stopped the Borg from destroying Earth, months ago, they may have sent an advanced squadron or warriors; but as to why, I do not know." Chakotay looked over at Fredric Thorn and Annika.

"Somehow I think you're being here has something to do with all of this," again, his glance met with Fredric's. Chakotay decided to keep their secret. He turned back toward Ryan Tolber."Agent Tolbert," Chakotay said to Ryan Tolbert, "I need to go back down there."

"Have you lost your mind," Ryan Tolbert shot back with. "For all we know, there might be more Voth down there."

Chakotay nodded his head.

"I know, but I have to take that risk," Chakotay said. "Just try to keep Amaranth stable…I shouldn't be too long."

Chakotay headed out of the med-bay, Fredric followed him.

"Stay here," Fredric said to Annika, "I'll be right back."

"Alright," Annika said, as she helped Ryan monitor Amaranth's condition.

* * *

Chakotay made his way down the corridor as Fredric caught up to him.

"Thank you for not revealing our earlier conversation," Fredric told Chakotay.

"What the hell is going on here?" Chakotay demanded. "Why are you here and what the hell am I going to find in that closed off cavern?"

"Not what," Fredric said, "but who."

"Stavros is a person?" Chakotay asked.

"The writing on the wall, you recognized it," Fredric concluded. "As to whom it is, well," Fredric said, "Stavros comes from another universe where this galaxy will not be left lifeless."

Chakotay stopped in his tracks.

"What the hell are you saying?" Chakotay demanded.

Fredric shook his head, and then he tried to explained…and what he said, would shake Chakotay to the core.

"In the near future, (Star Trek: Exodus)" Fredric said to Chakotay, "a terrible device will be used to destroy Earth's sun which will spiral out of control and radiate the entire galaxy with metaphasic radiation; making it uninhabitable. You've heard of the Preservers?"

Chakotay nodded his head.

"They scattered endangered life across the known galaxy," Chakotay replied. "They were the ones who took native-Americans from this Earth (Earth-2) and deposited them on a far off world."

Fredric nodded his head.

"Very good, I see you did quite well in your history classes," Fredric added with a smile. "They did that seeding because they foresaw the events that destroyed Earth's sun; they didn't know when. Well, that event is happening now. The Preservers had a limited ability to see beyond linear time, and that is why they tried their best, to seed endangered Earthlings, and intelligent life from other worlds, on other far off worlds. They believed the event was going to happen tens of thousands of years ago; they were wrong about when, well…when is now. Well, actually, I can tell you that the disturbance will be created 40 years in the future from now…but…well…you know what I mean. Its one of those paradox thingies."

"How do you know all this?" Chakotay asked.

Fredric removed the strange device he carried in his pocket. It had a set of ever changing numbers on in. He carefully removed old bubble-gum wrappers, which also populated his pocket.

"This device, which was created by Walter Bishop, can detect changes in the time-stream. Only someone who is addicted, like myself, to a substance called heroin can read it, and, well, we're running out of time."

"Who did this to future Earth and why?" Chakotay asked.

"Your friends; the Voth," Fredric said. "In the near future, they end up being taking this Earth we are at now, Earth-2 as you call it, by force. Over a hundred some odd years ago, Voth agents tampered with the life prolongation efforts of the humans on this world, so as to drive them off. In the future, the virus ends up mutating and killing the eventual Voth population on Earth-2. They decide to take their anger out on Earth-Prime and…well…the disturbance is created by a device they detonate. The disturbance will also spill over to local alternate universes as well, and work backward through time. Chakotay," Fredric added, "I can't tell you anymore. There are rules that come with knowing the future, and from this point on, you're on your own. Stavros will know what to do but listen; you will eventually end up at the Naissance and just remember these three words; go with Kirk's idea."

"Fascinating," Chakotay said, "I'll do the best I can. But I want something in return."

Fredric nodded his head.

"Amaranth said she will die unless her rider, a person named Ajax, is brought to her side. I want you to find this Ajax and bring him here so he can save her."

Fredric knew of coming events, but decided to keep them from Chakotay.

"Very well," Fredric said. "Just don't fail, and get this information to the Federation so they can open the Naissance for others as well. Nothing can stop the irradiated disaster, but at least life will prevail…"

* * *

…moments later, Chaoktay materialized in the cave where there were still several dead Voth soldiers. Chakotay made his way over to the wall with the name Stavros scrawled upon it; written in an old Navajo writing form.

Chakotay aimed his phaser at the wall and fired; burning a hole in it. He entered the hole in the cave wall, and turned on the high powered lighting device he had brought down and was wrapped around his forearm. There were no light panels in this cavern, as there had in the others, so the light was needed.

As the light invaded the room, Chakotay could see a stasis chamber in the center of the cavern. He ran over and peered inside a small window and what he saw was amazing; a man with wings! But more astonishing was the face tattoo on the slumbering winged-wonder; a face tattoo exactly like Chakotay's.

Chakotay was about to open the stasis-chamber when suddenly he heard a voice from behind him.

"Stop," the male voice said. "Or you will die."

Not wanting to die so soon after the start of this convoluted mission, Chakotay slowly turned around to face his unknown threat, and was surprised at what he saw; it wasn't the voice of Voth, but the voice of another winged-man.

"Who are you," Chakotay asked.

"My name," the winged-man replied, "is Ajax."

_To be continued…next season!_


	383. Winged Wonders II

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Winged Wonders II**

**Previously…**

_Chakotay materialized in the cave where there were still several dead Voth soldiers. Chakotay made his way over to the wall with the name Stavros scrawled upon it; written in an old Navajo writing form._

_Chakotay aimed his phaser at the wall and fired; burning a hole in it. He entered the hole in the cave wall, and turned on the high powered lighting device he had brought down and was wrapped around his forearm. There were no light panels in this cavern, as there had in the others, so the light was needed._

_As the light invaded the room, Chakotay could see a stasis chamber in the center of the cavern. He ran over and peered inside a small window and what he saw was amazing; a man with wings! But more astonishing was the face tattoo on the slumbering winged-wonder; a face tattoo exactly like Chakotay's._

_Chakotay was about to open the stasis-chamber when suddenly he heard a voice from behind him._

_"Stop," the male voice said. "Or you will die."_

_Not wanting to die so soon after the start of this convoluted mission, Chakotay slowly turned around to face his unknown threat, and was surprised at what he saw; it wasn't the voice of Voth, but the voice of another winged-man._

_"Who are you," Chakotay asked._

_"My name," the winged-man replied, "is Ajax."_

_Our story continues…_

"Ajax is your name," Chakotay asked. "How can that be possible?"

The winged man, Ajax, came over to where Chakotay was standing which was inside the barely lit cavern. Ajax looked at the stasis chamber-device, with yet another winged man slumbering inside of it, and then he looked back at Chakotay.

"The two of you related?" Chakotay asked innocently.

Ajax nodded his head.

"He is the offspring of my mate and I," Ajax said, with a cold bitter tone, "my Amaranth. She is lost to me now, dead to the ages," Ajax said, his words denoted a special feeling he had toward the woman.

Chakotay reached out and placed his hand on Ajax's shoulder.

"Amaranth is not dead," Chakotay told Ajax, "she is alive, though just barely, in a ship orbiting this planet."

Ajax pushed Chakotay's hand away from his shoulder, and glared back at him with anger in his eyes.

"She is not my Amaranth," Ajax said to Chakotay. "My Amaranth was killed by the Wave. I arrived here in this universe, via the Bajoran wormhole, and acquired a ship and made my way here."

Chakotay could not fathom what Ajax was talking about; none of it made any sense.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Chakotay said, "but why are you here? I am on a mission to save Earth from destruction, and I have been told that only this winged man," he pointed at Stavros who was still in stasis, "can help me."

"As I said," Ajax said after a moment, "Stavros is my son." Ajax went over to the stasis device and looked through the window and saw the face of his son; stilled by the effects of the stasis device. "Five years ago, a human came to us. He told us that Earth's star would be destroyed, and that only Stavros could stop the destruction. Before I could react, this stranger stunned me with some sort of device, and the next thing I knew; they were both gone."

Chakotay sympathized with the Ajax.

"I'm sorry; five years is a long time ago," Chakotay finally said. "But I have to ask; how can it have taken this long to find him, and how did you know he would be here, of all places?"

Ajax looked up from the window, with his son just inches on the other side. There was a tear falling from Ajax's cheek.

"I do not come from this place," Ajax explained. "I come from what you might call a parallel universe. At first, when the Earth wasn't destroyed in my own universe, I gave up hope; I believed I would never see Stavros again. But though my hope was gone, I kept searching and searching. And then it happened, nearly a month ago; the Wave. A man with wisdom explained to me that the wave was metaphasic radiation but I had no idea what that meant. But the Wave swept over Earth, and killed everyone on the planet in little over five seconds; including my Amaranth. The Wave was stopped several days later by a magical being in my universe, but it had killed billions upon billions. Then I remembered my son disappearing; how did that man who took him, know that the destruction was going to happen; I concluded that he must have been a time-traveler, or visitor from another universe; or both."

"He's from this universe," Chakotay concluded, after a moment. "His name is Fredric Thorn," he added. "Apparently this Wave of yours is the result of a device that will be detonated 30 to 40 years from now, in this universe. The metaphasic radiation you spoke of will spill over into other universes and time-lines as well."

Ajax had listened carefully.

"How does my son figure into this?" Ajax asked.

"I don't know," Chakotay answered. "Fredric would not tell me the rest, due to the entropy effect it would have on the time-stream of this universe. But he did tell me," Chakotay said, as he turned to face the stasis device containing Stavros, "that Stavros would know what to do upon my rousing of him." As Chakotay pressed a couple buttons on the device, his free hand reached for his hand phaser. Finding it, he whirled around and fired it at Ajax; who then fell to the floor stunned and out cold. Chakotay was amazed at how long it took to knock him out with the phaser's beam. "But he didn't say anything about you. I'm sorry," he said to the stilled body of Ajax. "But I don't have the time to find out."

And then, Chakotay faced the stasis device and worked the console. It took nearly ten minutes, but he finally learned enough of the tech to deactivate the device. And then, all of a sudden, the stasis device's outer-shell slid opened. A large hissing noise and mist spilled out and around the device as Chakotay stood back. And then stepping out of the mist was yet another winged man; with a tattoo that mirrored Chakotay's exactly. The winged man and Chakotay stared at each other and then, finally, Stavros spoke.

"Father," Stavros said with a warm smile, as he stepped down from the device.

Chakotay could only stare back with disbelief, especially sinec the still stunned Ajax already claimed to be Stavros' father.

And then, the smile faded from Stavros' face, replaced by a somber expression.

"I am sorry," Stavros said, after a moment, "you are not the Chakotay that I knew. I guess the confusion caused by my slumber is still having an effect on my memory."

"I am sorry," Chakotay said. "From your earlier expression, I can see that this other Chakotay was close very to you. But I have to ask, why did you call him and," Chakotay said; stepping back a few feet. "who is this man then?" Chakotay asked, pointing at Ajax, who was still out cold on the dirt ground.

And then, as swift as the wind, Stavros withdrew a large weapon that resembled a Bat'leth, which must have been contained in the stasis chamber next to where Stavros had slept, and then in one fluid motion, he brought the bladed weapon down swiftly and severed Ajax's head from his body.

Chakotay could only say two words…

"Holy….shit…."

Continued…


	384. The Shymar Equation

**Star Trek; The Path of Destiny**

**The Shymar Equation**

**Three weeks ago…on Vulcan…**

Spock and Leonard McCoy had arrived on the planet Vulcan only an hour earlier, and immediately the two friends were beamed over to the medical center located in the Shikahr Providence. As Spock entered the waiting area, he was pleased to find his son S'vath, and his wife Amanda, waiting there as well.

"Father," S'vath said, as he came over to hug Spock upon seeing him, "I know I'm not supposed to hug you and all that, but," S'vath said, with a wide smile, "I'm going to be an older brother, so it's my job to get junior in trouble when I can; you know, being a role model and all."

Spock nodded his head at the successful attempt at humor. Spock looked over at Amanda, and then back at S'vath.

"I will keep that in mind," Spock said.

It was a joyous event, except to a Bajoran male who was dressed as one of the medical staff. Once the Bajoran man was sure of privacy, he took a communicator out of their pocket and activated it.

_"What can you tell me about the child?" a voice asked from the communicator._

"The child is a female," the Bajoran said. "And. according to the first medical scan, it is healthy."

_"So," the voice said, "my brother has seen fit to deliver me a niece to plan for," Sybok said. "She will live a wonderful life...with me."_

**_Several hours later…_**

_The door to the room opened and two nurses came in to tend to Elizabeth and the child. One of the nurses went straight to the monitoring devices, as the other nurse, a Bajoran male, took the child from Elizabeth._

_"We will have to do a few more tests," the Bajoran nurse told Spock._

_"Of course," Spock said, as he watched the Bajoran nurse carefully wrap the infant girl in a soft blanket, and then left the room with her for more tests._

_What Spock didn't know at that time was that his daughter, S'hymar, had just been abducted._

Our story continues…three weeks later…

The home of Spock and Amanda was now under the watchful eye Federation security outside. There had been a fear that Spock and Amanda, and their two other children, Lenora and Sarek, would be targets as well. But, alas, after three weeks; there had been no other attempts against the family.

Spock's wife, Elizabeth, who was the daughter of Christopher Pike and Vena, had pretty much spent the past three weeks in a lone chair by a window that looked out on mountain ranges in the distance. She had barely eaten, or spoken, since Shymar's abduction.

For his part, Spock had been in constant communication with Starfleet and the Federation for any news about the Bajoran nurse who was last seen holding Shymar. As of yet; there were no leads.

S'vath and Amanda had stayed on Vulcan at Spock and Amanda's home since Shymar's abduction, to offer support. There was no greater anguish for a parent than a lost child, especially one who had been abducted. And, to be sure, this wasn't the first time one of Spock's children had been abducted. S'vath came over to Spock, who had poured himself cup of tea and was sitting on a couch near to where Elizabeth was sitting in her chair. S'vath spoke softly with his father, so that Amanda didn't have to hear.

"Dad," S'vath said, purposely choosing the less former version of the word father, "what about Sybok? He abducted little Sarek, remember? And we haven't seen or heard from him ever since he fled from the Naissance, after he took little Sarek and murdered Montgomery Scott (that happened many-many issues ago)."

Spock shook his head in the negative.

"According to Jim," Spock replied, "Jonathan Archer told him that when the S'ihg (_a metaphysic group that attempted to parcel out justice; the group was comprised of the living spirits of Archer, Sarek (Spock's father) and K'mpec)_ rescued little Sarek from Sybok, they destroyed my brother in the process."

"Yes I remember," S'vath said. "But didn't Commander Donnelly tell us more recently that the all of the Q had been vanquished from this galaxy before he himself was killed? Maybe, since the S'ihg was formed by Q, and without his control, everything they did became undone."

Before Spock could reply, someone else's voice did.

"Perhaps I can shed more light on this situation," the voice said.

S'vath and Spock looked over to where the male voice had come from and saw a man standing on the other side of the room; with a Siamese cat on his shoulder.

"Gary-7," Spock said, in a matter of fact tone, as he stood up walked over to the mysterious human who was still employed by yet unknown employers.

"I remember you; you're the asshole," S'vath said, who also walked over to Gary-7, "who stranded me, as well as my wife Amanda, and Nog, Bashir and Obrien inside that blasted Diamond ship sometime back."

"And," Spock added, "attempted to wipe Jim Kirk out of existence."

Gary nodded his head.

"Actually, Spock," Gary said, "I was only trying to correct the mistake of Kirk being duplicated in that Transporter accident in the first place. But, thankfully, the universe found other ways to deal with that abomination, even if…" Gary was about to reveal the fact the Jim Kirk was actually still alive, in the Naissance (as we both know, dear reader), but he was cut off by S'vath.

"Enough already," S'vath said to Gary-7, "you said you could help with more information about this current situation with my baby sister Shymar; so get on with it. Why are you here?"

Before Gary-y could answer, no one had noticed that Elizabeth had stood up and had also walked over to where they were.

"Where is my daughter," Elizabeth said, holding a phaser aimed directly at Gary-7, "you son of a bitch!"

Continued…


	385. The Price is Life

**Star Trek; The Path of Destiny**

**The Price is Life**

**Planet Vulcan…**

_The home of Spock and Amanda was now under the watchful eye Federation security outside. There had been a fear that Spock and Amanda, and their two other children, Lenora and Sarek, would be targets as well. But, alas, after three weeks; there had been no other attempts against the family._

_"Dad," S'vath said, purposely choosing the less former version of the word father, "what about Sybok? He abducted little Sarek, remember? And we haven't seen or heard from him ever since he fled from the Naissance, after he took little Sarek and murdered Montgomery Scott (that happened many-many issues ago)."_

_But then another voice spoke…_

_"Perhaps I can shed more light on this situation," the voice said._

_Before Gary-y could say anything, no one had noticed that Elizabeth had stood up and had also walked over to where they were._

_"Where is my daughter," Elizabeth said, holding a phaser aimed directly at Gary-7, "you son of a bitch!"_

Continued…

Spock gently walked over to his wife and reached out his hand.

"Elizabeth," Spock told her, "Gary-7 might be able to help us find Shymar." Elizabeth slowly lowered her phaser, "if he doesn't," Spock added, "then you can use your phaser," Spock said as he looked back at Gary-7.

Gary-7 smiled, as he petted the cat on his shoulder. The cat let out a quiet meow.

"Yes I know Isis," Gary-7 said to the cat, "it is surprising to see a Vulcan act in such a manner."

"He isn't a full Vulcan," S'vath said, cutting in, "and neither am I. In fact," S'vath added, "if you don't tell us something we can use to find Shymar, my sister-in-law (Elizabeth) won't have to use the phaser, I will kill you and these," S'vath showed Gary-7 his balled up fists, "will be all I need."

"Then," Gary-7 said, calmly, "I better tell you what I know. I suggest we all sit down," Gary-7 added.

S'vath, Elizabeth and Spock all sat together on one sofa as Gary-7 sat down on one of the single cushioned seat.

"You can start with the S'ihg," Spock said, "My son, S'vath, suspects my older brother Sybok of kidnapping my daughter. However, we were under the assumption that Sybok was," Spock paused for the right word, "dealt with by the S'ihg."

"Alright, I will start there. The Qs," Gary-7 began to explain, "Currently have no power in this part of the universe, thanks to the actions of the late Commander Donnelly and other dynamics. They will again, someday, but not now. The S'ihg were the spirits of special life forms that one of the Q enlisted to administer a form of galactic justice. After the Q civil-war, the Continuum no longer allowed their members, the Qs, to administer their own form of justice. In this part of the galaxy, your father Sarek (Gary-7 said to Spock,) as well as K'mpec, the former Klingon Chancellor, Jonathan Archer, a former Starfleet officer and," Gary-7 paused, "Khan Noonien Singh. They were the Si'hg."

"Khan," Spock said softly. "What form of justice would Khan be warranted to administer?"

"To be honest, I don't know," Gary-7 replied. "It is irrelevant since Commander Donnelly ended up destroying the Si'hg, and when he did that, Sybok, who was in a form of limbo; was brought back into this universe, and yes," Gary-7, "it is he who has seen to the kidnapping of your daughter."

"Take us to him," S'vath suddenly said. "My uncle has caused a lot of pain to my family; that comes to an end once and for all."

"And don't forget what he did to Tuvok and T'av," Spock said to S'vath.

Suddenly cutting in was Elizabeth.

"Can you take us to her," Elizabeth said to Gary-7, "can you take us to our daughter?" she added, holding Spock's arm.

Gary-7 pondered the question, and then he had an answer.

"I will help you as best as I can, but," Gary-7 added, "it has to come with a price."

"What kind of person would demand a price to save a child?" S'vath asked with anger in his voice.

Gary-7 stood up and walked over to one of the walls inside of Spock and Elizabeth's home which had an abstract painting of the galaxy on it. He softly knocked on it with one of his hands, as if to denote the galaxy played a part in it all.

"S'vath," Gary-7, looking at the painting, began to explain, "it is not a price that I am placing on the child's life; it is destiny. For you see, my employers have a limited ability to grasp the future; vague but applicable. And what they know of coming events is certain and seemingly unstoppable. So, while I could help save one child, the fact remains, all children will die unless…"

Spock cut in.

"What you suggest," Spock said, "is that we all face an uncertain future. Can you be more precise?"

"The Wave," Gary-7 stated. "Simply put; it is metaphasic radiation which cannot be stopped without the Q; and they're gone. The Wave will sweep over most, if not all, of this galaxy. All life, everywhere, could be destroyed. And since this is metaphasic radiation, it won't take eons, centuries or decades to do this, it will take, at best, three-weeks."

"Three weeks," Spock repeated, "how is that possible?"

"It just is," Gary-7 said, taking his eyes off the painting. "You must inform your Federation and tell them what I have said. And then it will come," he said looking at S'vath, "the Price. There is only one place in this part of the galaxy that will be safe from The Wave; and one place only. You refer to it as the Naissance, the Dysonsphere that your Federation is in possession of. You must alert everyone, and not only the worlds in your Federation, but the Romulans, Klingons, Breen, Gorn," he was about to go on, "all of them. They must also be given a chance to save their species; their cultures, inside the Naissance."

"The Naissance," S'vath said out loud. "Father, there are over 14,000 continents inside of it. I guess," S'vath said looking at Spock, "there could be eroom; but not for everyone," S'vath said to Gary-7. "Even you must be aware of that."

"My employers are," Gary-7 said to them all. "Just give me your word you will inform your Federation leaders," Gary-7 directed at Spock.

"If you promise that we will get our daughter back," Elizabeth said directly to Gary-7.

Gary-7 nodded his head.

Twenty-minutes later, Spock was sitting at a control panel, finishing a conversation with Admiral Kathryn Janeway, the Federation's senior officer in command of the Naissance.

"Are you sure of your sources," Janeway said to Spock; the image of her face displayed on a monitor. "The last time we tangled with Mr. Seven on Deep Space Nine, it wasn't on the best of terms. He was allied with those behind that whole Project Diamond fiasco."

"Indeed," Spock recalled. "However, I find his words to be genuine."

"Very well," Janeway said back to Spock, "I will contact the Federation council immediately."

And then her image faded.

Spock stood up and faced Gary-7.

"I have done my part," Spock said to Gary-7. "Now it is time for you to do yours."

And then, suddenly, two swirling disturbances appeared in the room; the means of which Gary-7 used to travel instantly throughout the galaxy.

"S'vath," Gary-7 said to Spock's son, "you will use the Corridor (Gary's term for the gateways) on the left. It will take you to the Naissance. Once there, you will find… James T Kirk. Help him with his task."

S'vath and shot Spock a perplexed glance.

"Fascinating," Spock said to Gary-7. "So my old friend is still alive after all."

Gary-7 nodded his head.

"You and I," Gary-7 said to Spock, "will use the Corridor on the right. We will confront your brother. As to whether or not we will retrieve your daughter alive will depend on aspects not under my purview."

Spock nodded his head, and hugged Elizabeth.

"Bring her back to me," Elizabeth said to Spock, "bring our daughter home."

What Spock and Elizabeth could not know was that they would never see each other again.

And then, without further words, S'vath walked into the swirling disturbance before him, while Spock walked through the other one with Gary-7…and then…they were gone.

Continued…


	386. Back Track

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Back Track**

**Previously…**

_A transport vessel, on its way to the planet Timus Prime, suffered a malfunction and was thrown off course….Star Fleet officers Lal and Rebecca Sisko, as well as Commander Willard Decker, was among the passengers!_

_"The ship is acting," Decker told them both, "as if its programming is not responding and so the captain and his crew are trying to regain control manually."_

_The ship dove into the atmosphere of a planet and skimmed across the top of some trees, and when there was an opening, the captain aimed the transport vessel down and lowered its emergency landing gear; the ship thumped into the ground, violently…and then it came to a stop._

_Lal and Rebecca immediately shot a worried look at each other when they realized where they were; the planet Drobix; planet of the living dead! _

_"What's wrong," Decker asked Rebecca. He kept his voice low. "You both look as if you've seen a ghost. Have you been here before?"_

_Rebecca nodded her head and added these simple words…_

_"If we don't get off this world, as fast as we can," she said, with fear in her voice. 'We're all dead!"_

Continued…

* * *

Luckily, none of the passengers or crew was seriously injured. There were a couple broken arms, several bruised ribs, but all in all, it could have been worse. Lt's Lal and Rebecca Sisko spoke with the captain of the transport vessel; his name was Commander Manny Rosario.

"Sir," Rebecca pleaded with Commander Rosario, "we have to get off his planet as fast as we can."

Commander Rosario looked out upon the field they had landed upon, with a bank of trees and foothills in the distance, and didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"I don't understand your concern," Rosario told the two women. "Drobix is listed as a Federation colony world. They are involved with…"

"We know," Rebecca cut in, "mining and other activities."

"That's right," Commander Rosario added. "According to our maps, there is a settlement beyond those hills. I'm sure we can…"

"Listen to me," Rebecca cut in with again, "if you send anyone over that ridge; they will be killed. Lal and I," Rebecca motioned to Lal, "were on this planet several months ago (an earlier plotline of course) and," her voice trailed off, "we barely made it off this planet alive."

Another passenger came over, who appeared to be a businessman, and cut in on the conversation.

"With all due respect," he said to Lal and Rebecca, "my name is Bart Murphy, I'm a businessman. I have no love for your Starfleet," he stated rather arrogantly, at Rebecca and Commander Rosario, "and I just want to get to DS9 for a conference I am supposed to be attending. So I suggest you send help over that ridge and get this ship fixed!"

Bart Murphy straightened up his tie and walked back to the majority of the other passengers who also seemed annoyed with the inaction.

"There you have it," Rosario said to Rebecca. "We have a duty to get these people to where they're supposed to be."

Willard Decker came over to Rebecca, Lal and Commander Rosario.

"I suppose the three of us could go to that settlement," Decker told Lal and Rebecca.

"That would not be a wise choice," Lal said to Decker. "Rebecca's concerns for the safety of all hands are well deserved. In fact your son…"

But Decker cut her off.

"Be that as it may," Decker said to Lal and Rebecca, "we are going to do just what I said we're going to do." He then looked at Commander Manny Rosario."I'm Commander Willard Decker," Decker said to Rosario, "I will take these two young women with me, and will scout the settlement and see if we can get assistance."

Rosario looked at Lal and Rebecca, and then he nodded his head and gave a phaser to Decker.

"Take this," Rosario said, as Decker took the phaser from him.

Decker nodded his head, and then moments later, he, as well as Rebecca and Lal, made their way toward the nearby hills.

As the three of them headed away from the other passengers, the businessman, Bart Murphy, reached into his pocket for a small device. He pressed a button on the tiny controls; a signal was sent.

* * *

An hour later, as they made their way through the fields and foliage, Willard Decker listened to the strange tale of Rebecca and Lal's last visit to Drobix. They told him how how thee transport vessel they were on had crashed landed on this world, only to find out that the colonists had all been turned into mindless zombies. He listened with pride as they told him how Curtis (an artificial being whom Decker considered like a son to him and Ilya) had risked and seemingly lost his _life_ trying to protect the two young women from the lifeless humans that were trying to kill them.

"And so," Rebecca said, summing up the story, "when we had to leave Curtis behind, we assumed he had been killed by those things. But," Rebecca said with a pause, "the next thing we know he was alive and well when we got back to the Naissance."

"Sir," Lal said to Decker, "why did you ask Commander Rosario to let the three of us go to the settlement up ahead, since you already knew there could be trouble here?"

Decker smiled at Lal. Even though Cutis and Ilya were far more advanced artificial beings, he found Lal to be very interesting as well.

"I saw the star maps that Commander Rosario was looking at," Decker told Lal and Rebecca, as they walked along a dirt path, "They were up-to-date, perhaps just a week old. If what you both said happened here, and I have no reason to doubt you, then why wasn't this planet put on quarantine?"

A look of anger flasked over Rebecca's face.

"My father did just that," Rebecca countered. "I saw him pass the recommendation to Admiral Janeway."

"And I must add," Lal said, "I was in the Admiral's office when she sent the order to Starfleet Command."

"And yet," Decker came back with, "the maps did not denote such a listing. So," Decker said, with an air of suspicion in his voice. "Our ship goes off course and once again; you're both here."

Rebecca stopped walking, and then Lal, noticing Rebecca's stopping; she stopped too.

"What are you saying?" Rebecca asked Decker, who stopped walking and turned back to look at Rebecca.

Decker came closer to the two of them.

"I believe we're here, all of us, because," Decker said, with a soft but confident voice, "because someone wanted you two here."

Rebecca didn't like that sound of that; at all!

* * *

**The Planet Timus Prime…**

Benjamin Sisko looked about the living room of the house he shared with his wife Kasidy. The entire lower level of the house was now jammed packed with boxes, most of which he had packed up himself. Kasidy came into living room from the kitchen.

"Wow," Kasidy said, as she looked at all the boxes, "I didn't know we had accumulated all this stuff. The kitchen is pretty much all packed up. I can't wait to see the invoice when the movers get here next week." She chuckled, but it had been much work to pack up.

Ben came over to his wife.

"Kas," Ben said to her, "you're okay with moving back to Earth to run my dad's restaurant? I mean, I don't want to think that I am pressuring you."

Kasidy looked up at her husband and smiled.

"Where I go, as long as you're there, I'm happy," she said in a pleasant voice.

"A safe answer," Ben said with a smile of his own. "When we get back to Earth," he said as he reached into a box and removed an urn, "I want to spread Mavis's ashes over the Gulf of Mexico. I think that is what she would have wanted."

Kasidy nodded her head. The murder of Mavis, Ben's older sister (an earlier plotline), had been tragic.

Kasidy was about to say something when a knock came at the front door. Suddenly stepping in was Quark.

"Ah, Quark," Sisko said to the Ferengi he had known for so many years. "I trust the movers you arranged for us will be here on time next week."

Quark nodded his head and looked at the mound of boxes and shook his head.

"I still don't think you should be leaving," Quark said.

"Don't worry," Ben said to Quark. "Since I am the former Mayor of Timus, I'm sure they'll invite me back for official function s from time to time. You haven't seen the last of us."

"Oh, don't worry," Quark said with a smile, "we'll be seeing more of each other than you might think."

He handed Sisko a data-pad that had the image of a building on it.

"I'm opening up my own restaurant, in New Olreans; right around the corner from Sisko's," Quark said.

Ben shot Quark a surprised look.

"Don't worry," Quark added, "I won't serve that mush you call Cajun cooking; Quark's will specialize in cuisine from all over the galaxy."

"When did you decide to do this?" Kasidy asked, as Ben handed her the picture of the building that Quark had bought.

"Well, now that my nephew has been stationed at the Academy," Quark said, "and since my brother hardly leaves the Ferengi home world, I've decided to head to Earth. They say if you can make it there; you can make it anywhere."

As Quark droned on about making a big profit on Earth, Kasidy looked over at her husband, and saw that a blank expression came over his face; and she knew what that meant; Ben was in contact with the Prophets inside the Celestial Temple.

* * *

Ben Sisko was inside the all white universe he had been to several times, in his dealings with the Prophets. He could hear the echoing sound of his heart beat. Suddenly stepping out of the whiteness was Jim Kirk.

:::The Sisko must prepare his people::: Kirk said.

And then the image of Chakotay came out of the whiteness.

:::The Wave will soon come upon them::: Chakotay said.

"What is the wave?" Sisko asked Chakotay.

And then the image of the Lady Founder came out of the whiteness.

:::It will destroy everything everywhere::: Lady Founder said.

:::The Sisko will do what it takes to save his people::: Kirk added.

* * *

And then, Sisko snapped out of it. He found himself on the ground, back in his house, propped up against a box. Quark was on one side of them, steadying him, Kasidy was on the other side.

"Ben," Kasidy said to him. "Were you with the Prophets?" she asked.

Sisko closed his eyes, and tried to regain his senses.

"Yes," his deep voice finally said. "They were trying to warn me about…" his mind searched for the term that the Lady Founder spirit used, "the Wave."

"The Wave," Quark said, with awe in his voice, "I could use that as the name to my restaurant."

Quark and Kasidy helped Sisko back up to his feet. And as he dismissed Kasidy's worries, Ben thought about what he had been told; and it worried him to the core.

Continued…


	387. What Is To Come

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**What Is To Come…**

* * *

**The Naissance**

Several food courts were located in the massive Starfleet complex, which had become not only a major hub for Starfleet science activities, but, it had also become a well sought out tourist destination; and why not? With animal life being saved from all over the known galaxy from dying worlds, and then being brought to the Naissance for study, it was only natural for such an attraction to attract all kinds of tourists as well as visiting schools. Some things never changed, and with children flocking to see the alien animals, it would no doubt inspire some of them to follow a path into life sciences.

Admiral Kate Janeway stood at the window in her office atop the Starfleet complex, which offered her a bird's eye view of the interior of the Naissance. The Naissance Dysonsphere was actually just over a third the size of the Dysonsphere the Enterprise had found several hundred light years away (Relics). The star inside that Dysonsphere had become unstable, and entrance into it was impossible due to the high radiation. It was believed that someday the star inside that Dysonsphere would nova in the coming centuries if not sooner.

But that wasn't the case with the Naissance Dysonsphere. It was only a few years back (and earlier plotline of course) that she and Julian Bashir had convinced the Federation to allow them to use the then as of yet named Dysonsphere as a place to preserve endangered animal and plant life from dying worlds. Others, such as Jean-Luc Picard and T'nar of Vulcan had argued that such a facility would violate the Prime Directive. Others, such as then Ambassador Spock and Chancellor Martok, lobbied for such interference. The debate had been well thought out on both sides, and eventually the Dysonsphere was given the designation of Naissance.

The Klingons saw fit to donate a ship, an old D7 battlecruiser, for the task of ferrying endangered plants and animals to Naissance. The D7 was renamed Emprenda and was Commanded by Captain Jonathan Canary, and the mission had gone quite well but now, Janeway thought, as she sipped from a glass of tea; that was about to change due to the information Spock had passed on to her. There was a chime at her door and then it slid open, and then entering Janeway's office were Commander Julian Bashir and Chancellor Martok of the Klingon high council.

"Admiral Janeway, it has been too long," Martok said with his usual swagger.

"And if I had to guess," Janeway said, eyeing Martok, "you've lost a good 20-30 pounds at least since we last met!"

"Yes," Martok said with his growl of a voice, as he sat down in one of the chairs at Janeway's desk, "married life has forced me to eat healthier which is why I like to come all the way to the Federation; to enjoy your food courts; far from my wife's prying eyes."

"Commander Bashir," Janeway said to the former doctor of DS9, "I take it the Emprenda has come back with a rare cadre of plant life."

Bashir sat in one of the other chairs.

"In fact," Bashir said, with pride in his voice, "I believe we may have come back with a type of flour that if cooked properly; could cure the common cold with a piece of toast."

"Now that is amazing," Janeway said, as she sat down at her desk.

"So why the urgent message," Martok asked. "I only arrived here a day ago and then I get this emergency summons to your office."

Janeway nodded her head.

"What I am about to tell the both of you is very sensitive information, and consider it top secret." Janeway told them. "I have asked you here, Chancellor, because the Klingon Empire has been a close ally for many years and you need to hear what I have to say, and I am informing you Julian because you deserve to know because of your involvement with the Naissance project."

An air of seriousness swept over the room.

"Why do I get the impression this isn't good news," Bashir said with a somber tone to his voice.

Janeway went on and explained the Wave; an explosion that was detonated in the future that will/is expanding into the past, and possibly into other adjoining universes. She also explained that it could not be stopped and it would sweep through the galaxy in approximately three weeks or sooner; ending all life in its destructive past.

Julian did not believe what he was hearing.

"How can we trust Gary-7," Julian Bashir asked. "He tried to kill Kirk and when I…"

"Yes Julian," Janeway cut in, "I know that he was remotely involved with the Project Diamond incident. However," Janeway added, "Spock believes him on this matter, so I believe him."

Martok stood up.

"I must warn my people, Admiral," Martok said.

"According to Gary-7," Janeway began to say, "The Naissance is the only place that can withstand the Wave. Anyone inside here will live. We are opening the doors to everyone who can get here time. Starfleet will announce a galactic wide message very soon."

"Then I must tell my people to prepare," Martok replied, "and then, once this Wave has passed, we can reclaim our worlds."

Janeway shook her head.

"It won't be that easy, Chancellor," Janeway told the Klingon leader, "according to Gary-7, the metaphasic radiation will not subside for three or four centuries," Janeway said with finality in her voice. "And since we don't exactly know when the Wave will arrive, there is no telling how many will arrive here in time."

Martok started for the door when Janeway added, the Janeway was not done.

"Chancellor," Janeway said to his back, causing him to turn and face her. "The Federation will open the doors of the Naissance to anyone who can arrive here in time; but even with 14000 or so continents, it won't hold everyone in the galaxy. And I should tell you; the Federation will offer refuge to all parties, including the Romulan Empire."

Martok shook his head, not believing what he had just heard Janeway say.

"That would be a mistake," Martok said, with a tone of anger in his voice. "I suppose you will make the same offer to the Cardassians and the Tholians?" Martok pondered.

Janeway nodded her head, and then she could only watch as Martok stormed out the door.

"Julian," Janeway said to the man who had helped her bring the Naissance project to life, "how many continents inside of this Dysonsphere are still uninhabited?"

"Oh," Julian said, still in slight shock over what he just heard, "we've only seeded life on twelve of them so far, and most of those are on the other side of the sun. I guess our efforts to save endangered life will come to an end."

Janeway smiled at the Bashir.

"It would appear so, but then again," Janeway added, "we will still be saving endangered life forms if you think about it; our own."

Bashir nodded his head slowly in agreement.

* * *

Several levels below Janeway's office, three middle-school aged students were milling about the food court, still trying to figure out who the shape-shifter Azami was posing as; but in the two days since they had started their search, they had no luck. Robert Canary, Rochan and Corvana decided to take break.

They made their way to the crowded food courts and went to one of the many ice-cream shops and sat down at one of the tables.

"We're failures," Rochan said with a defeated tone to his southern-India accented voice. "We've been looking for the shape-shifter, and not even a nudge on that stupid thing," he said, as he pointed at the small device Robert placed on the table.

"Are you sure you're using it right," Corvana asked Robert.

Robert nodded his head.

"According to Sulu, we just have to wait for this thing to vibrate, and when it does…" Robert began to say, but then Rochan cut him off.

"We'll be within three feet of Azami," Rochan completed the sentence, "we know; we were there when Kirk told us what we had to do."

Suddenly the communicator/badge on Robert's shirt chirped.

_"Hey, where are you," a voice asked._

"Dad," Robert said, "I thought the Emprenda wasn't due back for another week."

_"We finished up early," Jonathan Canary replied, the Captain of the Emprenda. "Want to come up?"_

Robert looked at his friends.

"Let's go," Rochan said with an eager smile, "I'd rather look around that old D7 Klingon ship of your dad's, than look for the shape-shifter anyway."

"What about you," Robert asked Corvana. "I think Admiral Janeway (who Corvana was staying with while in the Naissance) won't mind. In fact, I think she and Commander Waters usually come up to the Emprenda to welcome my dad back."

"Sure," Corvana said, as she was sipping on her straw, "sounds cool."

"Alright dad," Robert said, after tapping his com badge, "we'll come up."

And then, moments later, Robert Canary, Rochan and Corvana shimmered away, via a transporter beams.

* * *

Meanwhile on a different continent inside the Naissance Dysonsphere, Jim Kirk and Sulu stood near the strange device that was inside the cave. Weeks ago they had been brought there by Guinan.

"Lay it on me," Kirk said to Sulu.

"Well, if I'm reading the readings correctly," Sulu said to Kirk, "these high edge power supply units we're using now should be able to power these converters," Sulu said, as he pointed at several large power lines that led up to the device which they deduced was some sort of singularity creator, "and activate this thing."

"You're fools," the Lady founder said as she stood behind them. "How can you be sure you won't open that doorway only to allow something terrible to come through from the other side?"

Jim Kirk looked over at her.

"Oh, I'm not a fool," Kirk said, "It is a risk. But since we don't want to tip or hands to whoever is using the other device (which, readers, is on yet another continent inside the Naissance) we have to know where these things lead to."

The Lady Founder was about to say something else, but suddenly a strange atmospheric disturbance appeared next to the device; it was a disturbance Kirk remembered seeing before; back when he was captain of the USS ENTERPRISE. It was during his dealings with Gary-7.

Suddenly, stepping out of the disturbance was someone totally unexpected; S'vath, the son of Spock.

S'vath spread his arms and announced…

"Ta da!" S'vath said with a smile.

"S'vath," Kirk said with a smile, "I have to admit, I am shocked at seeing you step through that miniature tornado," Kirk said as the atmospheric disturbance ebbed and faded away.

"You're shocked at seeing me Uncle Jim," S'vath said, "what about you? The last time I saw you is when you disappeared into that merry-go-round back at that fair in Riverside Iowa with Edith Keeler."

"It wasn't Edith," Kirk said with remorse. "It was her."

Kirk pointed at the Lady Founder who morphed into Edith Keeler, and then back to her Founder self.

"Umm," S'vath said to Sulu, "Jim might not know who she is, but you should; what the hell is she doing here?"

"Believe me," Sulu said with a sarcastic grin, "I do know who she is, but unfortunately we need her help for the project we're working on."

S'vath looked at Kirk.

"About that," S'vath said, "I was obviously sent here by Gary-7."

"How could you trust him," Sulu said, "after what he tried to do to Jim and us?"

"I know," S'vath said to Sulu, "I didn't want to trust him either, but my father convinced me to, so here I am."

"Why are you here?" Lady Founder asked. Her gaze was one of dis-trust.

S'vath explained the threat of The Wave; and then…

"You have to let me go," Lady Founder said to Kirk. "I have to warn the Great Link."

S'vath shook his head in the negative.

"The Bajoran wormhole is at least a four week trek from here," S'vath told her. "And then your home world is another month or two into the Gamma-Quadrant from there."

"I have to try," Lady Founder said to Kirk, ignoring S'vath. "Someone has to warn the Link."

Sulu looked at Kirk.

"She has a point," Sulu offered.

"I know," Kirk said to Sulu. "When Guinan convinced her," Kirk motioned toward the Lady Founder, "she warned us not to let her out of our sight. Thankfully you built this device," Kirk removed a small device from his pocket and showed it to Sulu, "to help inhibit her shape-shifting ability or I'm sure we'd have lost her the moment we got here."

"Kirk," Lady Founder said, "I am helping you because Azami's kind would not only destroy your Federation, but the Great Link as well. However, the Great Link faces extinction due to this Wave your Vulcan friend just told us about," she said, looking over at S'vath, "so all I ask is a chance to help save my people."

"The main reason you're here," Kirk told her, "is if we come up against Azami. Sulu and I would stand no chance against Azami, but you would."

"That's why I'm here, Jim," S'vath said. "Gary-7 sent me here to help you. He doesn't exactly know how, but he thinks whatever Azami is doing will dovetail into this Wave situation."

"I still want to warn the Great Link," Lady Founder urged. "I beg you to let me go."

"You don't have the time," S'vath told her. "Like I said; we have three weeks, tops, before that thing sweeps through the galaxy."

Lady Founder looked at S'vath.

"I will get to my people in time," Lady Founder told S'vath, and then she looked back at Kirk. "However, I will honor our agreement Jim Kirk, and not leave unless you give me permission to."

Kirk looked over at Sulu.

"I think if Mr. Spock were here," Sulu said, "he might use logic to stop you from letting her go."

"For good reason," S'vath added. "Even I would agree with my father this time."

Kirk looked over at S'vath.

"You're father and Bones would dance around the concepts of logic and compassion all the time," Kirk said, with a smile, "and this time; I am siding with compassion."

Kirk turned off the device which was inhibiting the Lady Founder's shape-shifting abilities. She nodded her head, and then shape-shifted into the shape of a bird and flew out of the cave.

"I hope I don't live to regret letting her go," Kirk said to Sulu and S'vath.

"So let me guess," S'vath said to Kirk, "you have no idea what Azami is doing here at the Naissance."

"Not a clue," Sulu said, "which is why we want to create a singularity with this device we found," he motioned at the device, "and see where it leads to."

"Do you have any idea," S'vath continued, "who she is posing as?"

Kirk shook his head in the negative.

"No, not yet, but hopefully," Kirk added, thinking about Robert Canary, Rochan and Corvana, "that will change soon…"

And it will dear reader; next time!

Continued…


	388. The Savior Complex

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**The Savior Complex**

**Previously…**

**Under the surface of Earth-2; inside the secret chamber…**

_Chakotay was about to open the stasis-chamber containing the winged man with a tattoo very much like Chakotay's, when suddenly he heard a voice from behind him._

_"Stop," the male voice said. "Or you will die. My name," the winged-man replied, "is Ajax."_

_"Are the two of you related?" Chakotay asked innocently._

_Ajax nodded his head._

_"He is the offspring of my mate and me," Ajax said, with a cold bitter tone, "my Amaranth. She is lost to me now, dead to the ages," Ajax said, his words denoted a special feeling he had toward the woman. "My son was abducted."_

_"I'm sorry for your loss," Chakotay said._

_"Five years ago, a human came to us," Ajax explained, "and he told me that Earth's star would be destroyed and then disappeared with my son. I concluded that my son's abductor must have been a time-traveler."_

_"His name is Fredric," Chakotay replied, "and he is from this universe. He has warned me that the Wave that destroyed your Earth would destroy mine. However," Chakotay secretly said, as he secretly reached into his pocket for his phaser. Finding it, he whirled around and fired it at Ajax, "he didn't tell me about you." _

_Ajax fell to the ground; out cold._

_Chakotay stood back and activated the stasis-chamber and then stepping out of the mist was the other winged man._

_"Father," Stavros said with a warm smile aimed at Chakotay, as he stepped down from the device._

_And then, the smile faded from Stavros' face, replaced by a somber expression._

_"I am sorry," Stavros said, after a moment, "you are not the Chakotay that I knew. I guess the confusion caused by my slumber is still having an effect on my memory. I thought you were my step-father."_

_And then Stavros saw Ajax, his biological father, on the ground and as swift as the wind, Stavros withdrew a large weapon that resembled a Bat'leth, and severed Ajax's head from his body._

_Chakotay could only say two words…_

_"Holy….shit…."_

_Our story continues…_

"You didn't have to do that," Chakotay said to Stavros, while they stood in the cavernous space.

"Believe me," Stavros said, "I did. Though he was father, his soul was dark; evil. He raped my mother to conceive me, and his forms of child discipline were quite," Stavros shook his head, as a flood of terrible memories came to mind, "sadistic. However," Stavros added, "there is no time for this. Where is Frederic, we need to find…" Stavros asked.

"Wait a second," Chakotay said, blocking Stavros's way as the winged man attempted to move, "what the hell is going on here? For starters; how did you get here in the first place? You're father told me that Frederic abducted you just a few years ago, and yet, according to this stasis-chamber's settings, you've been here for millions of years. And," Chakotay said, "The fact the readings on this device are in numbers that weren't even around until, at best, 2 or 3 thousand years ago, doesn't make any sense either."

Stavros nodded his head at the futile nature of it all.

"Frederic told me you'd be skeptical," Stavros said with a sigh. Then he explained the situation as best he could. "Decades from now, in this universe, a device will be detonated and will destroy your Earth. It will create something that is called a metaphasic wave," Stavros said.

"I've heard theories about such waves of energy," Chakotay replied. "Go on," he urged.

"Well, this Wave not only spills over into your universe's time continuum, but several other universes that are part of the cluster of universes this one is part of," Stavros said. "The only way it could be stop was to bring someone into this cluster of universes…"

"Meaning you," Chakotay concluded. "But if I understand you correctly, you're not even from the universe Frederic abducted you from. Which means he," Chakotay said, pointing at Ajax, "isn't even your father; your Ajax."

"The first time Fredrick came into my life," Stavros continued, "was when I had just been born. And he didn't come alone; he brought my counterpart from another universe."

"His universe," Chakotay said, looking over at Ajax's body.

"Yes," Stavros said, in a soft tone. "I have no idea how my counterpart fared, but I know this," Stavros said, "that Ajax," Stavros said looking over at Ajax's body, "was cruel; very cruel to me. Anyway," Stavros went on, "five years ago Frederic appeared before me and explained what I just told you to which there is much more to tell, but we don't have time. Only to say that Frederic and I time traveled into the past with this stasis-field. We came here," Stavros said, "and I was placed inside the stasis-field, to be awakened by you at the proper time so that I could do what I had to do."

"God I hate paradoxical non-sense," Chakotay said with a faint smile. "And just what are we supposed to be doing?"

Suddenly a voice came from behind where Stavros and Chakotay were standing.

"What the hell is going on here?" the voice asked.

Stavros and Chakotay turned around to see who had asked that question. Stavros was about to attack, but Chakotay stopped him.

"He's a friend," Chakotay said to Stavros, and then he looked back at Ryan Tolbert. "You should be in sick bay, so what are you doing here?"

"Amaranth's condition is worsening," Ryan Tolbert told Chakotay. "If we don't get her help; she's going to die."

"Can you help her?" Chakotay asked Stavros.

"I do not know," Stavros replied.

"She's your mother," Chakotay said, "well; kind of," he added. Before Stavros could answer, Chakotay cut him off. "She's saved my, and I have come to respect her as a friend. You called me father earlier so I suppose my counterpart did his part to help ease the pain you suffered at the hands of Ajax. If you could repay that debt, maybe you can do so by saving our Amaranth. Once that is done," Chakotay concluded, "Then I will help you do whatever it is you must do."

Ryan Tolbert, who walked stiltedly due to his earlier injuries during the fight with the Voth, came over to where Chakotay and Stavros were standing. Tolbert saw the decapitated head and body of Ajax, and looked at Chakotay and could only say three words.

"What the fu…."

* * *

Moments later, Ryan Tolbert, Chakotay and Stavros beamed aboard the Draconis. Frederic, who stood beside Annika, who was operating the Transporter, did not look happy.

"Why are both here?" Frederic demanded. "By coming here, you are jeopardizing everything."

"I don't know Frederic," Chakotay said, as he charged out of the small transporter room, with Stavros by his side. Frederic caught up with Chakotay.

"I'm sure you realize by now that all of our lives are in danger, and not just ours; whole universes of life." Frederic said, with anger in his voice. "That Wave is coming this way and in fact it could be here at any moment."

They made it to just outside sickbay, but Chakotay stopped to face Frederic.

"Stavros told me what you told him about the Wave," Chakotay said, "he said it was created by a device in the future, and that it will not only destroy the Earth of that time, but it will traverse the time-line as well as spill over into other universes; does that about sum it up?"

Frederic nodded his head.

"Alright then," Chakotay continued, "Stavros also told me that when he was a child you kidnapped him from one universe, hid him in yet another universe, and yet again, finally hid him right here in this universe, millions of years ago, under the pretext of keeping whatever you're doing secret from mysterious evil forces."

"You have no idea," Frederic said, under his breath.

"I think I'm looking at a man," Chakotay said, jabbing Frederic's chest with his index finger, "who is trying everything he can think of to save his own ass! I think, on some level, you are the cause of all of this."

Suddenly, on the other side of the corridor, a weird atmospheric disturbance appeared, and then, without warning, two people stepped out of the disturbance. One of them was a Vulcan that everyone instantly recognized; the other was a man in a nice suit; and he was holding a black cat.

Continued…


	389. Danger Multiplied

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Danger Multiplied**

**Previously…**

**Chakotay and Stavros had beamed up to the Draconis. Chakotay had a confrontation with Frederick Thorn**

_"I think I'm looking at a man," Chakotay said, jabbing Frederic's chest with his index finger, "who is trying everything he can think of to save his own ass! I think, on some level, you are the cause of all of this."_

_Suddenly, on the other side of the corridor, a weird atmospheric disturbance appeared, and then, without warning, two people stepped out of the disturbance. One of them was a Vulcan that everyone instantly recognized; the other was a man in a nice suit; and he was holding a black cat._

Continued…

The disturbance closed in upon itself, and the swirling motion it caused ceased almost instantly.

"Spock," Chakotay said to the famed Vulcan, "what is going on; who is that man?"

"His name," Frederick said, from where he stood next to Annika Hansen, "is Gary-7. We have crossed paths many times."

"Yes we have, Frederick Thorn," Gary-7 said, with a slight tone of accusation to his voice, as he pet his cat, "Isis and I have warned you time and time again what will happen if you keep trying to alter the time-line."

Frederick shook his head.

"And I keep telling you in response," Frederick replied, "that I will not let Earth be destroyed by my mistakes."

Ryan Tolbert looked at Frederick, and then back to Gary-7.

"Then I take it," Ryan Tolbert said to Spock directly, both of whom knew each other quite well (earlier plotlines), "that this threat to Earth, this so called Wave, is real?"

"Indeed," Spock replied. "Unlike Gary-7," Spock said, as he looked at Gary-7 and then back to Chakotay and Ryan Tolbert, "I cannot totally fault the actions of Frederick Thorn. His future actions will lead to the destruction of Earth, and he has been fighting, literally, against time to stop it. However, from what I have been told; his actions are futile and are causing repercussions in other nearby universes to our own."

"I can try again," Frederick pleaded with Spock, as he walked over to where Gary-7 and Spock were standing. "This time," Frederick added directly at Gary-7, "you should help me instead of stopping me."

"I can't," Gary-7 said, with remorse in his voice. "I come from Earth, just as you do, and even with the power I have at my disposal, I cannot stop what you have done."

"What about Walter Bishop," Annika said, trying to think of any action to take. "He could think of something."

"Actually," Frederick said, softly, to Annika, "he can't. I've already met up with him a few times in my efforts, which I have kept from you darling, and even he can't find an answer; so I went on trying to find one of my own, perhaps, as Spock just said, it has all been a futile effort. But Walter Bishop did tell me that this man," Frederick motioned toward Stavros, "can at least help save some degree of life in this galaxy. That is why I abducted him from his universe."

"He existed beyond the cluster of universes we are part of?" Gary-7 asked.

Frederick nodded his head.

"Yes, he does," Frederick answered. "As I'm sure you already know," Frederick continued to say to Gary-7, "the Naissance is the only place in the galaxy where life can survive the Wave. Due to events beyond my or your abilities, access to the Naissance is going to be impossible, very soon in fact."

"Yes," Gary-7 agreed, "so what are you saying?"

"The Wave will sweep over the future, just as expected," Frederick went on to say. "The special energizer that operates the lone entrance to the Naissance, here in our time, is going to be compromised by enemy efforts (Azami). So, I took the liberty of hiding another energizer, from his cluster of universes," he pointed at Stavros, "in the future where the Wave is created. If Stavros can get to it in time, and bring it back to the Naissance, it will re-open it for those who seek refuge. Stavros will not be affected by entropy effects."

"If you are a time traveler as you say you are," Ryan Tolbert interjected, "then why don't you just go and get it yourself."

"He can't," Chakotay said to Frederick, knowing the reason. "You are going to honor your word to me, aren't you, and retrieve the other Ajax, the one in the future, so he can save Amaranth."

"Another Ajax?" Stavros asked Chakotay, with anger in his voice.

"Yes," Frederick replied, "and as Chakotay said, I am already fated to save this other Ajax, thus I cannot take you, Stavros, into the same future to retrieve the energizer."

"But I can." Chakotay said swiftly. "Phoenix," Chakotay suddenly called out to the A.I. that controlled the Draconis.

:::Yes Chakotay, I have already plotted a course. Using the sling-shot method of time travel, we can make journey into the future:::

"What about us," Ryan asked, nearly demanding. "I don't want to go into the future."

"There's another Defiant-class ship in orbit of this planet," Chakotay said, referring to the one Ajax had stolen once he had emerged from the Bajoran wormhole.

:::Affirmative, it is on the other side of the planet:::

"Then," Ryan said, after a moment, "The rest of us can transfer there. Maybe we should take Amaranth as well."

:::That would be unwise, agent Tolbert. My readings indicate that Amaranth must be reunited with Ajax and soon or…she will no longer exist:::

"Then it is settled," Gary-7 said, with finality in his voice. "Chakotay and Stavros will travel into the future and retrieve the energizer unit to open the door to the soon to be closed Naissance. Frederick and Annika will go into the same future to retrieve Ajax, so that Amaranth can live. Mr. Tolbert, you can return to your ship."

"What about the other Defiant-class ship?" Ryan Tolbert asked.

"It can be used to stop that," Gary-7 said as the Draconis shook violently.

:::We are under attack::: Phoenix.

"Who is attacking us?" Annika asked as she activated the monitor on the wall.

"They are," Spock said, pointing at the screen.

A Voth warship appeared. The image of the ship was replaced the image of a Voth.

"We claim this world as our own," the Voth warrior said, "You will be destroyed for trespassing unless you leave."

Suddenly the strange disturbance that appeared earlier, which Spock and Gary-7 had walked out of, returned. And then, Spock and Gary-7 stepped inside of it and…were gone.

"I guess it is up to us," Chakotay said, realizing that Spock and Gary-7 must have other places to be.

"No," Ryan Tolbert said, "I will beam over to the other Ajax's stolen ship and somehow use it to stall the Voth. You two," he pointed at Chakotay and Stavros, "get into the future and get that energizer! You two," Ryan then said, pointing at Annika and Frederick, "got get this future Ajax person so he can save Amaranth."

"You'll be killed," Chakotay said to Ryan Tolbert.

"Perhaps," Agent Ryan Tolbert said, "but if I can delay the Voth long enough, then it is a chance I will take."

Chakotay put his hand on Ryan Tolbert's shoulder.

"If you can get to Earth, could you please…"

Tolbert nodded his head, and cut him off because he already knew what Chakotay was referring to.

* * *

Moments later, Ryan Tolbert materialized on the bridge of the Defiant-class ship which Ajax from the other universe had stolen upon arriving from the Bajoran wormhole; having used it to jump universes.

The Voth warship shifted its coordinates away from the Draconis, and went after the ship Ryan Tolbert was now in control of. Tolbert could only watch as Frederick's ship and also the Draconis warped away on their separate tasks. And then Ryan thought about it.

"To hell with this," Ryan said, as the Voth ship came toward his position, "you can have Earth-2; for all the good it will do for you."

Ryan set coordinates and then the ship streaked away; destination Earth-prime. If it was true that all life was about to be extinguished in the galaxy, then Ryan would take the selfish step of trying to save his wife and child, and two other children that Chakotay was worried about, and had sworn to protect; the children of Jim Kirk and Myran. He would do all he could to take them all to...THE NAISSANCE!

Continued…


	390. The Past, The Present and The Future

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY (and Star Trek Exodus)**

**The Past, the Present and The Future**

_(This chapter was first published as part of "Star Trek: Exodus", which left many people wondering what was going on. Well, events of "Star Trek; The Path of Destiny" have finally caught up to Exodus, thus this chapter is ready to appear in the chronology of "The Path of Destiny". Exodus was spinoff of the universe established by the events of "Path of Destiny", but took place 35 years after the current events of "Destiny". Civil war, and the eventual destruction of Earth, forced Earth's citizens to flee into the stars. Zeb (who appeared in "Destiny", but much younger) was the patriarch of his family and was helping to lead them to a new home world in the Gamma-Quadrant. But when Earth was destroyed, (which "Destiny has been referring to in recent chapters) the blast wave started travel back into the past and even spilt over into parallel universes…)_

Previously…

_While zooming through space in his Sciv, Zeb MaCahan realized that a ship was following him. Deciding to confront the unknown pursuers, Zeb landed his Sciv at a trading post located inside a city which itself was inside a giant bubble which floated in the atmosphere of a world with an atmosphere deadly to humans._

_The ship which had been following them landed as well; and Zeb, and his passenger, Odo, decided to confront the unknown passengers inside the strange looking ship. The passengers were Fredric Thorn and Annika Hansen! Zeb and Odo went aboard the strange ship to converse with the two time travelers._

"Years ago I had heard you were spending time with this man," Odo said to Annika, and then he looked at Frederick. "Your uncle, Lawrence Thorn, was a criminal. You do know that most of this material of his, (Odo motioned at the stacks and stacks of stuff) if not all of it, was deemed too dangerous to be in the hands of ordinary people."

"Uncle Larry, as I called him," Frederick said, "did have his faults; but he was a brilliant man. Besides," Frederick added. "We are here on a different matter," he told Zeb and Odo.

"Well get on with it," Zeb said, "patience isn't one of my virtues."

Annika looked at Fredric and nodded her head.

"We have come here to find someone who, while they also exist back in our time, some thirty-five years ago," Fredric said, "they are not available to us due to the effects he could have on the time-line if he were awakened back then. So we have come forward to…"

Zeb cut in, "His name is Ajax," Zeb said, "isn't it?"

"Like Frederick said; we can't reveal everything we know, you just have to trust us," Annika said. She looked at Zeb. "While I can't go into the specifics of what will happen to him, I will say this; someone very important to him desperately needs him."

"Her name is Amaranth; isn't it?" Zeb asked. "He would do anything if it meant saving her life."

Zeb told them that Ajax was currently aboard a Klingon ship that belonged to J'aquqh. He also warned them that Ajax had a very suspicious nature to him.

"Before you go," Zeb said to Annika and Frederick, "I want something in return. Earth was destroyed a little while back. Could you give us some sort of clue as to who did it?"

"Do you see that mountain in the distance," Fredric said to Zeb.

Zeb looked at the mountain that Frederick was pointing at.

"I do," Zeb replied.

"Go there for your answer." Fredric told Zeb. "There you will find the answer in a book I left there years ago."

"Damn I hate time-travelers," Zeb said with a scowl in his voice.

And with that, Fredric and Annika led Odo and Zeb off of the ship and in moments it lifted off, and exited the bubble.

Zeb kept his eye on the mountain where the book was now, in theory, buried. What was really there? Or had it all been a ploy? Zeb was rarely wrong…

* * *

As Fredric and Annika sat in the ship, and it zoomed toward space, Fredric looked at Annika.

"It's the only way," Fredric said to her.

"But you lied to him," Annika said. "You know that telling him a book was buried on that mountain was ins't true; because all he is going to find is the power-rod containing the energizer element for the Naissance."

Fredric took at the strange device from his pocket that he used to track the time stream. Numbers flashed across the screen.

"Well," Annika said, "did it work? Will Zeb find the energizer and will he give it to Chakotay and Stavros arrive?"

"I guess," Fredric began to say, "In about an hour we will know. These changes to the time stream do not happen instantly. The Draconis should be arriving in about an hour and, hopefully, Stavros will be aboard her. But," Fredric said, "We have our part to play still with Ajax and speaking of which, on to our next stop; a grimy Klingon vessel, and a winged wonder!"

* * *

An hour later, Zeb and Odo were back in the Sciv, and they too left the bubble and headed for the mountain; and a date with destiny. But then...suddenly, the sky lit up with a wild display of electromagnetic bolts of lightning. And then a ship appeared as if from out of nowhere, and instantly Odo thought he recognized it; the Defiant?

Chakotay and Stavros had arrived from the past!

"I remember the Defiant; both of them," Zeb said to Odo as he prepared the ship for flight.

"Well, trust me; I was on both of them. The fire power on a Defiant-class ship is no laughing matter," Odo added.

"Odo; I don't care what ship it is," Zeb said, as he powered up the Sciv, "Something tells me that whoever is aboard her is heading for whatever is buried on that mountain. I think there is much more going on here than we know, so I'm just going to play along."

"We can't stop a Defiant class-ship with just a Sciv," Odo said in a tone of warning.

Zeb cracked a tiny smile as he powered the Sciv into the sky and zoomed after the Defiant-class ship.

"You have no idea what this Sciv can do, Odo," Zeb said. "Oh, I can't promise we will live through it, but I can promise you this," his small grin became a sinister smile, "I don't want to take them down, I just want to know who they are…"

Suddenly Zeb stopped talking, because, at that moment they could see a person fly out of one of the Defiant's emergency exits. The person had wings!

"What the hell is going on," Zeb said, in an astonished tone, "that can't possibly be Ajax. He's light-years away from here."

Suddenly the Defiant-class ship began to fire its laser blasters at the Sciv, causing Zeb to take evasive action.

"Damn," Zeb cursed. "That ship is providing cover for our winged friend out there."

Odo nodded in agreement as Zeb forced the Sciv to the right to dodge some of the blasts. But Odo was able to conclude one important fact.

"They aren't trying to hit us," Odo told Zeb. "Those ships were far too accurate with their firing mechanisms against smaller vessels such as your Sciv. They just don't want you getting close to that mountain."

And then, as Zeb brought the Sciv around for another run, he could see up ahead. The winged humanoid was returning from the mountain back to the ship and in mere moments, had gone back inside the through a hatch.

"Whoever that was; they were holding something," Odo stated.

And then blasts from the Defiant-class vessel halted. Zeb was about to say something, but then a strange feeling came over his body; he was being teleported. Before he was gone he was able to say five words to Odo.

"I hope you can fly…"

And then Zeb was gone.

Odo quickly moved over to the pilot's seat and took control of the Sciv. He pivoted the ship, and raced after the Defiant-class ship. But the Sciv was no match, and all Odo could do was watch as the other ship zoom into space, and the he saw it warp away. There was nothing Odo could do but aim the Sciv back to the city-bubble below. But all of a sudden Odo saw a strange bright light coming from the horizon. He thought it was some sort of blast, but whatever it was; it was moving too fast to avoid. And as it approached, Odo could only close his eyes…

And then…everything was gone!

continued...


	391. Coming soon!

STAR TREK: PATH OF DESTINY…

All new issues are in production as my long vacation has come to an end…so…get ready! Can anything stop the WAVE from destroying the galaxy? Find out very soon!


	392. Danger Multiplied REISSUE

**This is re-issue; it has been quite some time since the last issue of this story…I will be posting new issues starting this week (1****st**** week of January 2014)…it would be wise to read these again to get caught up…**

**STAR TREK: THE PATH OF DESTINY**

**Danger Multiplied**

**Previously…**

**Chakotay and Stavros had beamed up to the Draconis. Chakotay had a confrontation with Frederick Thorn**

_"I think I'm looking at a man," Chakotay said, jabbing Frederic's chest with his index finger, "who is trying everything he can think of to save his own ass! I think, on some level, you are the cause of all of this."_

_Suddenly, on the other side of the corridor, a weird atmospheric disturbance appeared, and then, without warning, two people stepped out of the disturbance. One of them was a Vulcan that everyone instantly recognized; the other was a man in a nice suit; and he was holding a black cat._

Continued…

The disturbance closed in upon itself, and the swirling motion it caused ceased almost instantly.

"Spock," Chakotay said to the famed Vulcan, "what is going on; who is that man?"

"His name," Frederick said, from where he stood next to Annika Hansen, "is Gary-7. We have crossed paths many times."

"Yes we have, Frederick Thorn," Gary-7 said, with a slight tone of accusation to his voice, as he pet his cat, "Isis and I have warned you time and time again what will happen if you keep trying to alter the time-line."

Frederick shook his head.

"And I keep telling you in response," Frederick replied, "that I will not let Earth be destroyed by my mistakes."

Ryan Tolbert looked at Frederick, and then back to Gary-7.

"Then I take it," Ryan Tolbert said to Spock directly, both of whom knew each other quite well (earlier plotlines), "that this threat to Earth, this so called Wave, is real?"

"Indeed," Spock replied. "Unlike Gary-7," Spock said, as he looked at Gary-7 and then back to Chakotay and Ryan Tolbert, "I cannot totally fault the actions of Frederick Thorn. His future actions will lead to the destruction of Earth, and he has been fighting, literally, against time to stop it. However, from what I have been told; his actions are futile and are causing repercussions in other nearby universes to our own."

"I can try again," Frederick pleaded with Spock, as he walked over to where Gary-7 and Spock were standing. "This time," Frederick added directly at Gary-7, "you should help me instead of stopping me."

"I can't," Gary-7 said, with remorse in his voice. "I come from Earth, just as you do, and even with the power I have at my disposal, I cannot stop what you have done."

"What about Walter Bishop," Annika said, trying to think of any action to take. "He could think of something."

"Actually," Frederick said, softly, to Annika, "he can't. I've already met up with him a few times in my efforts, which I have kept from you darling, and even he can't find an answer; so I went on trying to find one of my own, perhaps, as Spock just said, it has all been a futile effort. But Walter Bishop did tell me that this man," Frederick motioned toward Stavros, "can at least help save some degree of life in this galaxy. That is why I abducted him from his universe."

"He existed beyond the cluster of universes we are part of?" Gary-7 asked.

Frederick nodded his head.

"Yes, he does," Frederick answered. "As I'm sure you already know," Frederick continued to say to Gary-7, "the Naissance is the only place in the galaxy where life can survive the Wave. Due to events beyond my or your abilities, access to the Naissance is going to be impossible, very soon in fact."

"Yes," Gary-7 agreed, "so what are you saying?"

"The Wave will sweep over the future, just as expected," Frederick went on to say. "The special energizer that operates the lone entrance to the Naissance, here in our time, is going to be compromised by enemy efforts (Azami). So, I took the liberty of hiding another energizer, from his cluster of universes," he pointed at Stavros, "in the future where the Wave is created. If Stavros can get to it in time, and bring it back to the Naissance, it will re-open it for those who seek refuge. Stavros will not be affected by entropy effects."

"If you are a time traveler as you say you are," Ryan Tolbert interjected, "then why don't you just go and get it yourself."

"He can't," Chakotay said to Frederick, knowing the reason. "You are going to honor your word to me, aren't you, and retrieve the other Ajax, the one in the future, so he can save Amaranth."

"Another Ajax?" Stavros asked Chakotay, with anger in his voice.

"Yes," Frederick replied, "and as Chakotay said, I am already fated to save this other Ajax, thus I cannot take you, Stavros, into the same future to retrieve the energizer."

"But I can." Chakotay said swiftly. "Phoenix," Chakotay suddenly called out to the A.I. that controlled the Draconis.

:::Yes Chakotay, I have already plotted a course. Using the sling-shot method of time travel, we can make journey into the future:::

"What about us," Ryan asked, nearly demanding. "I don't want to go into the future."

"There's another Defiant-class ship in orbit of this planet," Chakotay said, referring to the one Ajax had stolen once he had emerged from the Bajoran wormhole.

:::Affirmative, it is on the other side of the planet:::

"Then," Ryan said, after a moment, "The rest of us can transfer there. Maybe we should take Amaranth as well."

:::That would be unwise, agent Tolbert. My readings indicate that Amaranth must be reunited with Ajax and soon or…she will no longer exist:::

"Then it is settled," Gary-7 said, with finality in his voice. "Chakotay and Stavros will travel into the future and retrieve the energizer unit to open the door to the soon to be closed Naissance. Frederick and Annika will go into the same future to retrieve Ajax, so that Amaranth can live. Mr. Tolbert, you can return to your ship."

"What about the other Defiant-class ship?" Ryan Tolbert asked.

"It can be used to stop that," Gary-7 said as the Draconis shook violently.

:::We are under attack::: Phoenix.

"Who is attacking us?" Annika asked as she activated the monitor on the wall.

"They are," Spock said, pointing at the screen.

A Voth warship appeared. The image of the ship was replaced the image of a Voth.

"We claim this world as our own," the Voth warrior said, "You will be destroyed for trespassing unless you leave."

Suddenly the strange disturbance that appeared earlier, which Spock and Gary-7 had walked out of, returned. And then, Spock and Gary-7 stepped inside of it and…were gone.

"I guess it is up to us," Chakotay said, realizing that Spock and Gary-7 must have other places to be.

"No," Ryan Tolbert said, "I will beam over to the other Ajax's stolen ship and somehow use it to stall the Voth. You two," he pointed at Chakotay and Stavros, "get into the future and get that energizer! You two," Ryan then said, pointing at Annika and Frederick, "got get this future Ajax person so he can save Amaranth."

"You'll be killed," Chakotay said to Ryan Tolbert.

"Perhaps," Agent Ryan Tolbert said, "but if I can delay the Voth long enough, then it is a chance I will take."

Chakotay put his hand on Ryan Tolbert's shoulder.

"If you can get to Earth, could you please…"

Tolbert nodded his head, and cut him off because he already knew what Chakotay was referring to.

Moments later, Ryan Tolbert materialized on the bridge of the Defiant-class ship which Ajax from the other universe had stolen upon arriving from the Bajoran wormhole; having used it to jump universes.

The Voth warship shifted its coordinates away from the Draconis, and went after the ship Ryan Tolbert was now in control of. Tolbert could only watch as Frederick's ship and also the Draconis warped away on their separate tasks. And then Ryan thought about it.

"To hell with this," Ryan said, as the Voth ship came toward his position, "you can have Earth-2; for all the good it will do for you."

Ryan set coordinates and then the ship streaked away; destination Earth-prime. If it was true that all life was about to be extinguished in the galaxy, then Ryan would take the selfish step of trying to save his wife and child, and two other children that Chakotay was worried about, and had sworn to protect; the children of Jim Kirk and Myran. He would do all he could to take them all to...THE NAISSANCE!

Continued…


End file.
